GAP JUNCTIONS AND CELL-CELL COMMUNICATION

这项研究的重点是确定其结构和功能 能隙结沟道与能隙贡献的关系 胚胎发育和发育过程中的连接通讯 差异化。这项研究的具体目标包括 跟在后面。 1.大鼠肝脏缝隙连接的结构与功能关系 将确定通道和杆状病毒衍生的缝隙连接通道 通过最初从这两个来源分离通道低聚物。这个 低聚物随后将用于以下用途：(1)表征 它们的结构和生化特性；(2)努力使 分离的低聚物用于电子显微镜和潜在的X-射线分析 射线衍射；(3)低聚物在黑膜中的重组 其中重构的通道电导特性可以 进行生物物理表征；(4)确定分离的低聚物是否 含有单个基因产物(同源低聚物)或多个基因产物 (杂低聚物)；以及最后(5)确定 胞外区的序列。 2.将在多个系统中研究缝隙连接通信 包括：非洲爪哇胚胎发生、小鼠胚胎发生和 大鼠和肌肉的器官发生、着床和分娩 使用小鼠细胞培养系统进行分化。此外， 缝隙连接通信对其中一些过程的贡献 将通过修改与各种扰动的通信进行分析 接近了。

This research project is focused on determining the structure and function relationship of the gap junction channel and the contribution of gap junctional communication to the processes of embryonic development and differentiation. The specific objectives for this study include the following. 1. The structure and function relationship of the rat liver gap junction channels and a baculovirus-derived gap junction channel will be determined by initially isolating channel oligomers from these two sources. The oligomers will then be used for the following: (1) a characterization of their structural and biochemical properties; (2) efforts to crystallize the isolated oligomers for analysis by electron microscopy and potentially X- ray diffraction; (3) reconstitution of the oligomers into black membrane systems where the channel conductance properties of the reconstituted can be characterized biophysically; (4) to determine if the isolated oligomers contain a single gene product (homo-oligomer) or multiple gene products (hetero-oligomer); and finally (5) to determine the contribution of the sequences in the extracellular domains. 2. Gap junctional communication will be studied in a number of systems that include: Xenopus embryogenesis, mouse embryogenesis and organogenesis, implantation and parturition in the rat, and muscle differentiation using a mouse cell culture system. IN addition the contribution of gap junctional communication to some of these processes will be analyzed by modifying communication with various perturbation approaches.