Effect of antibodies against gap junction protein on gap junction formation in early amphibian embryogenesis

✍ Scribed by Zeng (Mi-Pai Tseng), Mibai

• Publisher: Wiley (John Wiley & Sons)
• Year: 1987
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 851 KB
• Volume: 7
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0741-0581
• DOI: 10.1002/jemt.1060070206

✦ Synopsis

By electron microscopic observations of freeze-etching replicas, the gap junctions of ectoderm cells of early gastrulae of Xenopus leauis, injected with antibodies against gap-junction protein at an earlier stage, were compared with those of normal gastrulae. Most of the gap junctions found in the antibody-injected series were of very small size and consisted of fewer than 40 connexons, while those of the normal gastrulae usually have gap junctions with over 100 connexons. It was concluded that the normal assembly of intramembranous particles to form gap junctions was attenuated by microinjection -_ _ of the antibodies.

'Provided by Prof. Klaus Willecke of Essen University.