Tu, Y.H., Cooper, A.J., Teng, B., Chang, R.B., Artiga, D.J., Turner, H.N., Mulhall, E.M., Ye, W., Smith, A.D., Liman, E.R. (2018). An evolutionarily conserved gene family encodes proton-selective ion channels.  Science 359(6379): 1047--1050.

FBrf0238286

Research paper

Ion channels form the basis for cellular electrical signaling. Despite the scores of genetically identified ion channels selective for other monatomic ions, only one type of proton-selective ion channel has been found in eukaryotic cells. By comparative transcriptome analysis of mouse taste receptor cells, we identified Otopetrin1 (OTOP1), a protein required for development of gravity-sensing otoconia in the vestibular system, as forming a proton-selective ion channel. We found that murine OTOP1 is enriched in acid-detecting taste receptor cells and is required for their zinc-sensitive proton conductance. Two related murine genes, Otop2 and Otop3, and a Drosophila ortholog also encode proton channels. Evolutionary conservation of the gene family and its widespread tissue distribution suggest a broad role for proton channels in physiology and pathophysiology.

PMC5845439 (PMC) (EuropePMC)