Protein Interactions Required for the Function of a Candidate Mechanosensory Ion Channel

所有生物都有感知机械刺激并作出反应的能力。机械转导在动植物的听觉、触觉和重力轴等多种过程中起着至关重要的作用。迄今为止所研究的所有物种的机械转导似乎都是由离子通道介导的，离子通道在机械刺激下打开或关闭。编码这些通道的基因已被确定，但对亚基结构、组成和组装的检查尚未进行。Driscoll博士在一个简单的生物模型系统中识别这些新通道方面发挥了重要作用，她建议继续研究这些有趣的蛋白质。在拟议的研究中，她将确定这些通道如何组装以及哪些亚基连接在一起成为功能单元。此外，由于必须对通道施加张力才能使其打开或关闭，这意味着它以某种方式锚定在细胞中。进一步的研究将确定作为这些通道锚点的细胞骨架的正常成分。通过这些研究，Driscoll博士将获得独特的见解，通过细胞膨胀参与改变细胞功能的机制的生化性质。此外，由于机械力参与改变哺乳动物和简单生物的细胞功能，因此可能会获得关于人类声音或触觉信息转导机制的新见解，从而开辟具有临床意义的新途径。

IBN-9511710 Driscoll, Monica A. All living organisms have the ability to sense and respond to mechanical stimuli. Mechanotransduction is critical to such diverse processes as hearing, touch and gravitaxis in plants and animals. Mechanotransduction in all species studied to date appears to be mediated by ion channels that open or close in response to mechanical stimuli. The genes encoding these channels have been identified but an examination of the subunit structures, composition and assembly has yet to be undertaken. Dr. Driscoll has been instrumental in identifying these novel channels in a simple biological model system and she proposes to continue her studies with these interesting proteins. In the proposed studies, she will determine how these channels assembled and which subunits are linked together into functional units. Additionally, since tension must be applied to the channel for it to open or close, the implication is that it is somehow anchored into the cell. Further studies will identify the normal constituents of the cellular skeleton that serve as the anchor point for these channels. Through these studies, Dr. Driscoll will gain unique insights into the biochemical nature of the mechanisms by which cellular distention is involved in changing cellular function. In addition, since mechanical forces are involved in changing cellular function in mammals as well as simple organisms, new insights may be gained about the mechanisms in which sonic or tactile information are transduced in humans thereby opening new avenues of clinical significance.