Hypertension and Vascular Research Division, Department of Internal Medicine, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, MI, USA.
Pflugers Arch. 2011 Oct;462(4):623-30. doi: 10.1007/s00424-011-1002-x. Epub 2011 Aug 2.
Gas molecules play important roles in human physiology. Volatile substances produced by one cell often regulate neighboring cells in a paracrine fashion. While gaseous molecules have traditionally been thought to travel from cell to cell by free diffusion through the bilayer portion of the membrane, this does not explain their rapid physiological actions. The recent observations that: (1) water channels can transport other molecules besides water, and (2) aquaporins are often expressed in tissues where gas (but not water) transport is essential suggest that these channels conduct physiologically important gases in addition to water. This review summarizes recent findings on the role of aquaporins as gas transporters as well as their physiological significance.
气体分子在人体生理学中发挥着重要作用。一个细胞产生的挥发性物质通常以旁分泌的方式调节邻近细胞。虽然传统上认为气态分子通过穿过膜的双层部分的自由扩散从一个细胞传播到另一个细胞，但这并不能解释它们的快速生理作用。最近的观察结果表明：（1）水通道除了水以外还可以运输其他分子，以及（2）水通道蛋白通常在气体（而不是水）运输至关重要的组织中表达，这表明这些通道除了水以外还可以传导生理上重要的气体。本综述总结了水通道蛋白作为气体转运体的作用及其生理意义的最新发现。
