Referenced in: none

Automatically associated channels: Kir6.2

Title: Evolution of thermal response properties in a cold-activated TRP channel.

Authors: Benjamin R Myers, Yaron M Sigal, David Julius

Journal, date & volume: PLoS ONE, 2009 , 4, e5741

PubMed link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19492038

Abstract
Animals sense changes in ambient temperature irrespective of whether core body temperature is internally maintained (homeotherms) or subject to environmental variation (poikilotherms). Here we show that a cold-sensitive ion channel, TRPM8, displays dramatically different thermal activation ranges in frogs versus mammals or birds, consistent with variations in these species' cutaneous and core body temperatures. Thus, somatosensory receptors are not static through evolution, but show functional diversity reflecting the characteristics of an organism's ecological niche.