PUBLICATION
Zebrafish Connexin 79.8 (Gja8a): A lens connexin used as an electrical synapse in some neurons
- Authors
- Yoshikawa, S., Vila, A., Segelken, J., Lin, Y.P., Mitchell, C.K., Nguyen, D., O'Brien, J.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-160713-8
- Date
- 2017
- Source
- Developmental Neurobiology 77(5): 548-561 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Lin, Ya-Ping, O'Brien, John, Yoshikawa, Shunichi
- Keywords
- Gja8, cerebellum, cx50.5, photoreceptor, retina, transgenic
- MeSH Terms
-
- Animals
- Connexins/metabolism*
- Electrical Synapses/metabolism*
- Female
- HeLa Cells
- Humans
- Lens, Crystalline/metabolism*
- Male
- Neurons/metabolism*
- Zebrafish/metabolism*
- Zebrafish Proteins/metabolism*
- PubMed
- 27402207 Full text @ Dev. Neurobiol.
Citation
Yoshikawa, S., Vila, A., Segelken, J., Lin, Y.P., Mitchell, C.K., Nguyen, D., O'Brien, J. (2017) Zebrafish Connexin 79.8 (Gja8a): A lens connexin used as an electrical synapse in some neurons. Developmental Neurobiology. 77(5):548-561.
Abstract
In the mammalian central nervous system a remarkably small number of connexins is used in electrical synapses, with the majority formed from Cx36. A larger number has been detected in teleosts, with some seeming to serve restricted roles. Here we report the discovery of a new connexin expressed in the zebrafish lens and a limited set of neurons. Zebrafish cx79.8 (gja8a), previously annotated incorrectly as cx50.5 based on a partial cDNA sequence, is a homologue of mammalian Cx50 (Gja8). We examined its expression through transgenic promoter-reporter constructs, in situ hybridization, and immunolabeling, and examined regulation of coupling in transfected HeLa cells. cx79.8 was expressed most strongly in the lens, but expression was also found in several groups of neurons in the cerebellum and related areas at the midbrain-hindbrain boundary, in cone photoreceptors, and in neurons in the retinal inner nuclear and ganglion cell layers. Labeling in the retina with antibodies against two C-terminal epitopes revealed numerous small punctate spots in the inner plexiform layer and along the somata of cones. Abundant gap junctions were labeled in the outer 1/3 of the lens, but were absent from the center, suggesting that the epitopes or the entire protein was absent from the center. Cx79.8 tracer coupling was strongly regulated by phosphorylation, and was extremely low in control conditions in HeLa cells due to protein phosphatase 2A activity. These properties allow coupling to be strongly restricted in situ, a frequently observed property for electrical synapses. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Genes / Markers
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping