title: Physical characterization of gap junction membrane connexons (hemi-channels) isolated from rat liver.
abstract: Enriched subcellular fractions of double membrane gap junctions (plaques) from rat livers were treated under reducing conditions with high salt and non-ionic detergent concentrations at high pH to obtain a preparation of structural 80-90 A complexes of oligomers (connexons). The isolated oligomers were chromatographically purified, and subsequently characterized immunologically, morphologically by electron microscopy, hydrodynamically by gel filtration and ultracentrifugation, spectroscopically by circular dichroism, and chemically via cross-linking studies. The physical characteristics of these isolated gap junction complexes were compared to those of native membrane-bound gap junctions in rat liver. These analyses indicate that the isolated complex (connexon) principally contains a hexameric arrangement of gap junction protein to form a single membrane hemi-channel.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California 92037, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cascio
authors.forename: N M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Safarik
authors.forename: N B
authors.initials: NB
authors.lastname: Gilula
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002942:Circular Dichroism; D017630:Connexins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D005260:Female; D017629:Gap Junctions / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D015151:Immunoblotting; D008099:Liver / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D010316:Particle Size; D011487:Protein Conformation; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012995:Solubility; D013347:Subcellular Fractions; D014461:Ultracentrifugation; D000097002:Gap Junction beta-1 Protein
chemical_list: D017630:Connexins; D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents; D000097002:Gap Junction beta-1 Protein