The gap junction family: structure, function and chemistry

Anatomy and Embryology - Tập 182 - Trang 517-528 - 1990
Rolf Dermietzel1, T. K. Hwang1, D. S. Spray2
1Institut für Morphologie und Anatomie, Universität Regensburg, Regensburg, Federal Republic of Germany
2Department of Neuroscience, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA

Tóm tắt

Gap junctions are aggregates of transmembranous channels which bypass the extracellular space by transporting messenger molecules and ions from one cytoplasmic source to an adjacent cytoplasmic interior. The channels join the plasma membranes of adjacent cells by bridging the extracellular space between them. Thereby, cellular “compartments” which were once considered to be individual units are, in actuality, interconnected by a system of pathways which form a functional cellular syncytium. The evolutionary importance of a generalized intercellular communication system can be appreciated when one considers the widespread prevalence of gap junctions within animals of all multicellular phyla, and within almost all tissues of vertebrates. Only a few population of cells such as skeletal muscle cells (which are fused to form functional syncytia) and circulating blood cells are not equipped with gap junctions. This paper provides a brief review of the diverse structural, molecular and functional aspects of gap junctions as revealed by current research.

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