Fig. 1.

Gene organization and mRNA expression in rodents. (A) The loci of the three pannexins in the mouse genome, indicating their exon (numbered boxed regions) and intron structure, are displayed. Within each exon, nucleotides contributing to the presumed protein sequence for each pannexin are shaded. (B) Northern blot analysis was performed on rat poly(A)⁺ RNA (lanes 1-16: adrenal gland, bladder, eye, spinal cord, thyroid, stomach, prostate, large intestine, testis, kidney, skeletal muscle, liver, lung, spleen, brain, and heart, respectively). The two filters were hybridized with probes for each of the three pannexins and exposed for 16 h at -70°C. The Px1 probe hybridized to a 2.2-kb mRNA that was detectable in several organs, including spinal cord and brain. The 3.5-kb Px2 was most abundant in spinal cord and brain and was also present in other organs. A less prominent 2.5-kb transcript was observed in some organs. Px3 mRNA was observed only in skin (data not shown).