New roles for connexons.
Connexons or gap junction hemichannels are large, nonselective ion channels that reside in the nonjunctional plasma membrane before their assembly into gap junction channels. Increasing evidence suggests that these channels can open under certain conditions and may participate in a number of cellular processes, including the release of small metabolites such as ATP and NAD(+), which are involved in paracrine signaling.
Ebihara
Lisa
L
Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Finch University of Health Sciences, North Chicago, Illinois 60064, USA.
D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D017630:Connexins / Q000378:metabolism; D017629:Gap Junctions / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000502:physiology*
D017630:Connexins; D007473:Ion Channels; D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate