Molecule of the Month March 2010 |
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Enlightened Ion Channels | ||
Ligand-gated ion channels (LGICs), such as the serotonin (5-HT) type 3 receptor (5-HT3R), are responsible for rapid transmission of nerve impulses at synapses. The 5-HT3R is an attractive therapeutic target, however, its transmembrane nature hampers efforts to obtain high resolution structures. Using high-affinity biophysical probes to investigate the structure and function of LGICs is a complementary strategy.
This work was carried out in the groups of Prof. Martin Lochner and Dr. Sarah Lummis (Cambridge). References:
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