| First Author | Liu QR | Year | 1992 |
| Journal | Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A | Volume | 89 |
| Issue | 24 | Pages | 12145-9 |
| PubMed ID | 1465453 | Mgi Jnum | J:3475 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:51988 | Doi | 10.1073/pnas.89.24.12145 |
| Citation | Liu QR, et al. (1992) Cloning and expression of a cDNA encoding the transporter of taurine and beta-alanine in mouse brain. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 89(24):12145-9 |
| abstractText | A taurine/beta-alanine transporter was cloned from a mouse brain cDNA library by screening with a partial cDNA probe of the glycine transporter at low stringency. The deduced amino acid sequence predicts 590 amino acids with typical characteristics of the sodium-dependent neurotransmitter transporters such as sequence homology and membrane topography. However, the calculated isoelectric point of the taurine/beta-alanine transporter is more acidic (pI = 5.98) than those (pI > 8.0) of other cloned neurotransmitter transporters. Xenopus oocytes injected with cRNA of the cloned transporter expressed uptake activities with Km = 4.5 microM for taurine and Km = 56 microM for beta-alanine. Northern hybridization showed a single transcript of 7.5 kilobases that was highly enriched in kidney and distributed evenly in various parts of the brain. In situ hybridization showed the mRNA of the taurine/beta-alanine transporter to be localized in the corpus callosum, striatum, and anterior commisure. Specific localization of the taurine/beta-alanine transporter in mouse brain suggests a potential function for taurine and beta-alanine as neurotransmitters. |
