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Gap junctions were first described as close appositions as other tight junctions, but following electron microscopy studies in 1967, they were renamed gap junctions to distinguish them from tight junctions. [2] They bridge a 2-4 nm gap between cell membranes. [3] Gap junctions use protein complexes known as connexons to
Structure and location of gap junctions on cellular membranes. Gap junction modulation describes the functional manipulation of gap junctions, specialized channels that allow direct electrical and chemical communication between cells without exporting material from the cytoplasm. [1]
Each gap junction (sometimes called a nexus) contains numerous gap junction channels that cross the plasma membranes of both cells. [11] With a lumen diameter of about 1.2 to 2.0 nm, [2] [12] the pore of a gap junction channel is wide enough to allow ions and even medium-size molecules like signaling molecules to flow from one cell to the next, [2] [13] thereby connecting the two cells' cytoplasm.
A gap junction modulator is a compound or agent that either facilitates or inhibits the transfer of small molecules between biological cells by regulating gap junctions. [1] Various physiological processes including cardiac , neural or auditory , depend on gap junctions to perform crucial regulatory roles, and the modulators themselves are the ...
Connexins are commonly named according to their molecular weights, e.g. Cx26 is the connexin protein of 26 kDa. A competing nomenclature is the gap junction protein system, where connexins are sorted by their α (GJA) and β (GJB) forms, with additional connexins grouped into the C, D and E groupings, followed by an identifying number, e.g. GJA1 corresponds to Cx43.
Gap junction alpha-1 protein (GJA1), also known as connexin 43 (Cx43), is a protein that in humans is encoded by the GJA1 gene on chromosome 6. [5] [6] [7] As a connexin, GJA1 is a component of gap junctions, which allow for gap junction intercellular communication (GJIC) between cells to regulate cell death, proliferation, and differentiation. [8]
This location is the gap junction, where connexons facilitate rapid cell-to-cell interactions via electrical transmissions. Gap junctions are often present at nerve endings such as in cardiac muscle and are important in maintaining homeostasis in the liver and proper function of the kidneys.
This gene encodes a gap junction protein. The encoded protein is known as a connexin, most of which form gap junctions that provide direct connections between neighboring cells. [5] However, Cx29, which is highly expressed in myelin-forming glial cells of the CNS and PNS, has not been documented to form gap junctions in any cell type.