title: Early upregulation in nasal epithelium and strong expression in olfactory bulb glomeruli suggest a role for Aquaporin-4 in olfaction.
abstract: Aquaporin-4 (AQP4) has been reported to be upregulated post-partum in pregnancy and in early lung development. Several technical challenges exist in measuring AQP4 protein levels, among them sensitivity to detergent solubilization, sample heating and gel composition. Here we have optimized quantification of AQP4 using immuno-blots. Using improved methodology we find no evidence for AQP4 upregulation post-partum or in the early lung development. However, in the nasal epithelium AQP4 is upregulated as early as in the brain. Furthermore, AQP4 is strongly expressed in the glomerulus, the synaptic unit of the olfactory bulb, suggesting a role for AQP4 in olfactory function.
authors: Center for Molecular Biology and Neuroscience (CMBN), University of Oslo, Norway.
authors: Jan Gunnar
authors: JG
authors: Sørbø
authors: Svein Erik
authors: SE
authors: Moe
authors: Torgeir
authors: T
authors: Holen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D051401:Aquaporin 4 / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D001921:Brain / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D003902:Detergents / Q000737:chemistry; D019281:Dimerization; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D008168:Lung / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D009297:Nasal Mucosa / Q000378:metabolism*; D009830:Olfactory Bulb / Q000378:metabolism*; D009832:Olfactory Nerve / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012903:Smell; D013696:Temperature; D015854:Up-Regulation
chemical_list: D051401:Aquaporin 4; D003902:Detergents