GAP JUNCTIONS: FROM BIOLOGY TO THERAPEUTICAL APPLICATIONS
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Connexins form a multigene family of polytopic membrane proteins that, in vertebrates, are the constitutive subunits of intercellular channels and provide the structural basis for electrical coupling.
The appearance of electrical coupling in the nervous system is developmentally regulated and restricted to distinct cell types. Electrical coupling between neurons persists after the establishment of chemical transmission, thus suggesting that this form of cell-cell signalling may be functionally interrelated with, rather than alternative to chemical transmission. Furthermore, evidence for the possible role of gap junctions in human neurological diseases is also mounting, raising new questions on the significance of connexin diversity and on their functional role in the nervous system.
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