Open main menu
Home
Random
Recent changes
Special pages
Community portal
Preferences
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Incubator escapee wiki
Search
User menu
Talk
Dark mode
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Editing
Uniporter
(section)
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
== Discovery == [[File:Scheme facilitated diffusion in cell membrane-en.svg|thumb|Facilitated diffusion using transport proteins]] Early research in the 19th and 20th centuries on [[osmosis]] and [[diffusion]] provided the foundation for understanding the [[Passive transport|passive movement]] of molecules across cell membranes.<ref>{{cite book |vauthors=Cooper GM |chapter=12.2 Transport of Small Molecules |chapter-url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK9847/ |id=NBK9847 |title=The Cell: A Molecular Approach |edition=2nd |publisher=Sinauer Associates |location=Sunderland MA |date=2000 |isbn=0-87893-106-6 |pages= |url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK9839/}}</ref> In 1855, the physiologist [[Adolf Eugen Fick|Adolf Fick]] was the first to define osmosis and simple diffusion as the tendency for [[Solution (chemistry)|solutes]] to move from a region of higher concentration to a lower concentration, also very well-known as [[Fick's laws of diffusion|Fick's Laws of Diffusion]].<ref name="Stillwell W">{{cite book |vauthors=Stillwell W |chapter=Membrane Transport |chapter-url= |editor= |title=An Introduction to Biological Membranes |publisher= |location= |date=2016 |isbn=978-0-444-63772-7 |doi=10.1016/B978-0-444-63772-7.00019-1 |pages=423β51 |pmc=7182109}}</ref> Through the work of [[Charles Overton]] in the 1890s, the concept that the [[biological membrane]] is [[Semipermeable membrane|semipermeable]] became important to understanding the regulation of substances in and out of the cells.<ref name="Stillwell W" /> The discovery of [[facilitated diffusion]] by Wittenberg and Scholander suggested that [[protein]]s in the cell membrane aid in the transport of molecules.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Rubinow SI, Dembo M |title=The facilitated diffusion of oxygen by hemoglobin and myoglobin |journal=Biophys J |volume=18 |issue=1 |pages=29β42 |date=April 1977 |pmid=856316 |pmc=1473276 |doi=10.1016/S0006-3495(77)85594-X |bibcode=1977BpJ....18...29R }}</ref> In the 1960s - 1970s, studies on the transport of [[glucose]] and other nutrients highlighted the [[Specificity (biochemistry)|specificity]] and [[Selectivity (biochemistry)|selectivity]] of [[membrane transport protein]]s.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Wright EM, Loo DD, Hirayama BA |title=Biology of human sodium glucose transporters |journal=Physiol Rev |volume=91 |issue=2 |pages=733β94 |date=April 2011 |pmid=21527736 |doi=10.1152/physrev.00055.2009 }}</ref> Technological advancements in biochemistry helped isolate and characterize these proteins from cell membranes. Genetic studies on [[bacteria]] and [[yeast]] identified genes responsible for encoding transporters. This led to the discovery of [[SLC2A10|glucose transporters]] (GLUT proteins), with [[GLUT1]] being the first to be characterized.<ref name="Thorens B">{{cite journal |vauthors=Thorens B, Mueckler M |title=Glucose transporters in the 21st Century |journal=Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab |volume=298 |issue=2 |pages=E141β5 |date=February 2010 |pmid=20009031 |pmc=2822486 |doi=10.1152/ajpendo.00712.2009 }}</ref> Identification of gene families encoding various transporters, such as [[Solute carrier family|solute carrier (SLC) families]], also advanced knowledge on uniporters and its functions.<ref name="Thorens B" /> Newer research is focusing on techniques using [[Recombinant DNA|recombinant DNA technology]], [[electrophysiology]] and advanced imaging to understand uniporter functions. These experiments are designed to [[Cloning vector|clone]] and express transporter genes in host cells to further analyze the three-dimensional structure of uniporters, as well as directly observe the movement of ions through proteins in real-time.<ref name="Thorens B" /> The discovery of [[mutation]]s in uniporters has been linked to diseases such as [[GLUT1 deficiency syndrome]], [[cystic fibrosis]], [[Hartnup disease]], [[primary hyperoxaluria]] and [[hypokalemic periodic paralysis]].<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Shamseldin HE, Alasmari A, Salih MA, Samman MM, Mian SA, Alshidi T, Ibrahim N, Hashem M, Faqeih E, Al-Mohanna F, Alkuraya FS |title=A null mutation in MICU2 causes abnormal mitochondrial calcium homeostasis and a severe neurodevelopmental disorder |journal=Brain |volume=140 |issue=11 |pages=2806β13 |date=November 2017 |pmid=29053821 |doi=10.1093/brain/awx237 }}</ref>
Edit summary
(Briefly describe your changes)
By publishing changes, you agree to the
Terms of Use
, and you irrevocably agree to release your contribution under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 License
and the
GFDL
. You agree that a hyperlink or URL is sufficient attribution under the Creative Commons license.
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)