Aquaporins: a water channel family.
Water channel proteins, aquaporins, are integral membrane proteins serving in the permeation of water and some other small molecules. Eleven isoforms of aquaporins have been identified from various tissues to date. They are expressed in tissue- and cell-specific manners, and are closely related to the specific functions of tissues and cells. Aquaporins are usually localized to the plasma membrane. Some isoforms are present in cytoplasmic compartments, and their translocation to the plasma membrane is crucial in the regulation of water transfer. This review focuses on the localization of aquaporins in mammalian tissues and discusses the physiological importance of water channels.
Matsuzaki
Toshiyuki
T
Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Gunma University School of Medicine, Showa-machi 3-39-22, Maebashi, Gunma 371-8511, Japan. matoshi@med.gunma-u.ac.jp
Tajika
Yuki
Y
Tserentsoodol
Nomingerel
N
Suzuki
Takeshi
T
Aoki
Takeo
T
Hagiwara
Haruo
H
Takata
Kuniaki
K
D000818:Animals; D020346:Aquaporins / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D020033:Protein Isoforms; D051381:Rats; D014867:Water / Q000378:metabolism
D020346:Aquaporins; D020033:Protein Isoforms; D014867:Water