title: Identification of G protein α subunits in the main olfactory system and vomeronasal system of the Japanese Striped snake, Elaphe quadrivirgata.
abstract: In the olfactory system, G proteins couple to the olfactory receptors, and G proteins expressed in the main olfactory system and vomeronasal system vary according to animal species. In this study, G protein α subunits expressed in the main olfactory system and vomeronasal system of the snake were identified by immunohistochemistry. In the olfactory epithelium, only anti-Gαolf/s antibody labeled the cilia of the receptor cells. In the vomeronasal epithelium, only anti-Gαo antibody labeled the microvilli of the receptor cells. In the accessory olfactory bulb, anti-Gαo antibody stained the whole glomerular layer. These results suggest that the main olfactory system and the vomeronasal system of the snake express Gαolf and Gαo as G proteins coupling to the olfactory receptors, respectively.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Veterinary Anatomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Iwate University, Morioka, Iwate 020-8550, Japan.
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kondoh
authors.forename: Katsuo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Koshi
authors.forename: Hisaya K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Ono
authors.forename: Kuniaki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sasaki
authors.forename: Nobuaki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nakamuta
authors.forename: Kazuyuki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Taniguchi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017812:Colubridae / Q000502:physiology*; D044385:GTP-Binding Protein alpha Subunits / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012903:Smell / Q000502:physiology; D019147:Vomeronasal Organ / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D044385:GTP-Binding Protein alpha Subunits