Identification of a disulfide bridge essential for structure and function of the voltage-gated Ca(2+) channel α(2)δ-1 auxiliary subunit.

ABSTRACT: Voltage-gated calcium (Ca(V)) channels are transmembrane proteins that form Ca(2+)-selective pores gated by depolarization and are essential regulators of the intracellular Ca(2+) concentration. By providing a pathway for rapid Ca(2+) influx, Ca(V) channels couple membrane depolarization to a wide array of cellular responses including neurotransmission, muscle contraction and gene expression. Ca(V) channels fall into two major classes, low voltage-activated (LVA) and high voltage-activated (HVA). The ion-conducting pathway of HVA channels is the α(1) subunit, which typically contains associated β and α(2)δ ancillary subunits that regulate the properties of the channel. Although it is widely acknowledged that α(2)δ-1 is post-translationally cleaved into an extracellular α(2) polypeptide and

SUBMITTER: Calderon-Rivera A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5457164 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature