title: Conduits of life's spark: a perspective on ion channel research since the birth of neuron.
abstract: Heartbeats, muscle twitches, and lightning-fast thoughts are all manifestations of bioelectricity and rely on the activity of a class of membrane proteins known as ion channels. The basic function of an ion channel can be distilled into, "The hole opens. Ions go through. The hole closes." Studies of the fundamental mechanisms by which this process happens and the consequences of such activity in the setting of excitable cells remains the central focus of much of the field. One might wonder after so many years of detailed poking at such a seemingly simple process, is there anything left to learn?
authors.affiliation: Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Physical Biosciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
authors.forename: Ehud Y
authors.initials: EY
authors.lastname: Isacoff
authors.forename: Lily Y
authors.initials: LY
authors.lastname: Jan
authors.forename: Daniel L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Minor
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D015640:Ion Channel Gating / Q000502:physiology*; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology*; D008958:Models, Molecular; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D007473:Ion Channels