Date of Award
2024
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
MS in Biology
Department
Biological Sciences
First Advisor
Yong Yu
Second Advisor
Yan Zhu
Third Advisor
Matteo Ruggiu
Abstract
Transient Receptor Potential V1 (TRPV1) is a nonselective cation channel, which is expressed in nociceptors/ pain detecting receptors. Activated by a wide variety of exogenous and endogenous physical and chemical stimuli such as heat, TRPV1 is involved in temperature detection, body temperature regulation, and pain perception. It is generally accepted that TRPV1's conductance to cations, including Ca2+, depends on its conformational change from a closed to an open state following gating. In the current study, I observed that the plasma membrane of Xenopus laevis oocytes, upon exogenous expression of rat TRPV1, exhibited weak permeability to Ca2+, as evidenced by the activation of endogenous calcium-activated chloride channels. Through testing the effects of mutations in the pore of TRPV1, I confirmed that calcium was indeed conducted through TRPV1. Therefore, this study suggests that even in the closed state, rat TRPV1 displays residual permeability to Ca2+, an unknown feature that may be critical for its physiological function.
Recommended Citation
Adhikary, Zinnia, "CALCIUM PERMEABILITY OF RAT TRPV1 IN A CLOSE STATE WHEN EXPRESSED IN XENOPUS LAEVIS OOCYTES" (2024). Theses and Dissertations. 741.
https://scholar.stjohns.edu/theses_dissertations/741