Department of Medical Physiology, Division Heart and Lungs, University Medical Center Utrecht, The Netherlands.
J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2010 Jan;48(1):76-82. doi: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2009.08.018. Epub 2009 Aug 31.
Gap junctions form the intercellular pathway for cell-to-cell transmission of the cardiac impulse from its site of origin, the sinoatrial node, along the atria, the atrioventricular conduction system to the ventricular myocardium. The component parts of gap junctions are proteins called connexins (Cx), of which three main isoforms are found in the conductive and working myocardial cells: Cx40, Cx43, and Cx45. These isoforms are regionally expressed in the heart, which suggests a specific role or function of a specific connexin in a certain part of the heart. Using genetically modified mice, the function of these connexins in the different parts of the heart have been assessed in the past years. This review will follow the cardiac impulse on its path through the heart and recapitulate the role of the different connexins in the different cardiac compartments.
缝隙连接构成了细胞间的通路，可将心脏冲动从其起源部位——窦房结，沿着心房、房室传导系统传递到心室心肌。缝隙连接的组成部分是称为连接蛋白（Cx）的蛋白质，其中三种主要的同工型存在于传导和工作心肌细胞中：Cx40、Cx43 和 Cx45。这些同工型在心脏中呈区域性表达，提示特定的连接蛋白在心脏的某个特定部位具有特定的作用或功能。过去几年，使用基因修饰小鼠评估了这些连接蛋白在心脏不同部位的功能。本综述将沿着心脏冲动的传递路径，概述不同连接蛋白在不同心脏腔室中的作用。
