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Neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors of Drosophila melanogaster : the α‐subunit Dα3 and the β‐type subunit ARD co‐assemble within the same receptor complex
Author(s) -
Chamaon Kathrin,
Schulz Regine,
Smalla Karl-Heinz,
Seidel Bert,
Gundelfinger Eckart D.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/s0014-5793(00)02057-3
Subject(s) - drosophila melanogaster , protein subunit , acetylcholine receptor , neuropil , nicotinic acetylcholine receptor , interleukin 10 receptor, alpha subunit , cys loop receptors , nicotinic agonist , receptor , biochemistry , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , g alpha subunit , immunoprecipitation , chemistry , neuroscience , central nervous system , gene
Dα3 is a functional α‐subunit of Drosophila melanogaster nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs). Here, we produced Dα3‐specific antibodies to study which other nAChR subunits can co‐assemble with Dα3 in receptor complexes of the Drosophila nervous system. Immunohistochemical studies revealed that Dα3 is co‐distributed with the β‐subunit ARD in synaptic neuropil regions of the optic lobe. Both subunits can be co‐purified by α‐bungarotoxin affinity chromatography. Dα3 antibodies co‐immunoprecipitate Dα3 and ARD proteins and, vice versa, anti‐ARD antibodies co‐precipitate ARD and Dα3. These data demonstrate that one type of fly nAChRs includes these two subunits as integral components.