Nathanson, Neil

Our laboratory is interested in the regulation of and mechanisms responsible for signal transduction in excitable cells. We have had a long-standing interest in the muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChR), which comprise a family of related receptor proteins which are the products of distinct genes. Muscarinic receptors can regulate the activity of enzymes involved in intracellular second messenger pathways, such as adenylyl and guanylyl cyclases, phospholipase C, phosphodiesterases, and protein kinases, and can also regulate the function of ion channels. The mAChR gene family produces these effects by interacting with the members of a second gene family, the GTP-binding coupling proteins (G-proteins), which are required for receptor function. We are using a combination of molecular genetic, immunological, biochemical, physiological, and behavioral studies to study the regulation of expression and mechanisms of action of the mAChR and G-proteins in the nervous system.