Neuronal acetylcholine receptor subunit alpha-2, also known as nAChRα2, is a protein that in humans is encoded by the CHRNA2gene.[1][2] The protein encoded by this gene is a subunit of certain nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAchR).
Knockout of this gene in mice potentiates nicotine-modulated behaviors.[3]
Using two different genetically modified mutant mouse lines (Chrna2L9'S/L9'S and Chrna2KO), findings highlight that α2* nAChRs influence hippocampus-dependent learning and memory and CA1 synaptic plasticity in adolescent mice. [4]
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Wood S, Schertzer M, Yaremko ML (1995). "Identification of the human neuronal nicotinic cholinergic alpha 2 receptor locus, (CHRNA2), within an 8p21 mapped locus, by sequence homology with rat DNA". Somat. Cell Mol. Genet. 21 (2): 147–50. doi:10.1007/BF02255790. PMID7570187.
Elliott KJ, Ellis SB, Berckhan KJ, et al. (1997). "Comparative structure of human neuronal alpha 2-alpha 7 and beta 2-beta 4 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunits and functional expression of the alpha 2, alpha 3, alpha 4, alpha 7, beta 2, and beta 4 subunits". J. Mol. Neurosci. 7 (3): 217–28. doi:10.1007/BF02736842. PMID8906617.
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Navaneetham D, Penn A, Howard J, Conti-Fine BM (1997). "Expression of the alpha 7 subunit of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor in normal and myasthenic human thymuses". Cell. Mol. Biol. (Noisy-le-grand). 43 (3): 433–42. PMID9193799.
Sato KZ, Fujii T, Watanabe Y, et al. (1999). "Diversity of mRNA expression for muscarinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes and neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunits in human mononuclear leukocytes and leukemic cell lines". Neurosci. Lett. 266 (1): 17–20. doi:10.1016/S0304-3940(99)00259-1. PMID10336173.
Bertrand D, Picard F, Le Hellard S, et al. (2002). "How mutations in the nAChRs can cause ADNFLE epilepsy". Epilepsia. 43 Suppl 5: 112–22. doi:10.1046/j.1528-1157.43.s.5.16.x. PMID12121305.
Jin P, Fu GK, Wilson AD, et al. (2004). "PCR isolation and cloning of novel splice variant mRNAs from known drug target genes". Genomics. 83 (4): 566–71. doi:10.1016/j.ygeno.2003.09.023. PMID15028279.
