Ion channels in mesangial cells: function, malfunction, or fiction.
Ion channels in glomerular mesangial cells from humans, rats, and mice have been studied by electrophysiological, molecular, and gene-knockout methods. Two channels, a large, Ca(2+)-activated K(+) channel (BK) and a store-operated Ca(2+) channel (SOCC), can be defined with respect to molecular structure and function. Human BK, comprised of a pore-forming alpha-subunit and an accessory beta1-subunit, operate as Ca(2+)-sensing feedback modulators of contractile tone. SOCC have also been characterized in a mouse cell line; they are comprised of molecules belonging to the transient receptor potential subfamily.
Ma
Rong
R
Department of Integrative Physiology, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, Texas, USA.
Pluznick
Jennifer L
JL
Sansom
Steven C
SC
D000818:Animals; D005920:Glomerular Mesangium / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000502:physiology*; D007674:Kidney Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology*
D007473:Ion Channels