Biology:CACNA2D4

Generic protein structure example

Calcium channel, voltage-dependent, alpha 2/delta subunit 4 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the CACNA2D4 gene.

Function

This gene encodes a member of the alpha-2/delta subunit family, a protein in the voltage-dependent calcium channel complex. Calcium channels mediate the influx of calcium ions into the cell upon membrane polarization and consist of a complex of alpha-1, alpha-2/delta, beta, and gamma subunits in a 1:1:1:1 ratio. Various versions of each of these subunits exist, either expressed from similar genes or the result of alternative splicing. Research on a highly similar protein in rabbit suggests the protein described in this record is cleaved into alpha-2 and delta subunits. Alternate transcriptional splice variants of this gene have been observed but have not been thoroughly characterized.

Further reading

• "Mutation in the auxiliary calcium-channel subunit CACNA2D4 causes autosomal recessive cone dystrophy". American Journal of Human Genetics 79 (5): 973–7. November 2006. doi:10.1086/508944. PMID 17033974. 
• "Identification of a CACNA2D4 deletion in late onset bipolar disorder patients and implications for the involvement of voltage-dependent calcium channels in psychiatric disorders". American Journal of Medical Genetics. Part B, Neuropsychiatric Genetics 159B (4): 465–75. June 2012. doi:10.1002/ajmg.b.32053. PMID 22488967. 
• "A genome-wide association study of behavioral disinhibition". Behavior Genetics 43 (5): 363–73. September 2013. doi:10.1007/s10519-013-9606-x. PMID 23942779. 
• "Molecular cloning and characterization of the human voltage-gated calcium channel alpha(2)delta-4 subunit". Molecular Pharmacology 62 (3): 485–96. September 2002. doi:10.1124/mol.62.3.485. PMID 12181424. 

External links

• Human CACNA2D4 genome location and CACNA2D4 gene details page in the UCSC Genome Browser.

This article incorporates text from the United States National Library of Medicine, which is in the public domain.