期刊名称：Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
印刷版ISSN：0027-8424
电子版ISSN：1091-6490
出版年度：2002
卷号：99
期号：11
页码：7780-7785
DOI：10.1073/pnas.102184999
语种：English
出版社：The National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
摘要：Endothelial cells (ECs) line the mammalian vascular system and respond to the hemodynamic stimulus of fluid shear stress, the frictional force produced by blood flow. When ECs are exposed to shear stress, one of the fastest responses is an increase of K+ conductance, which suggests that ion channels are involved in the early shear stress response. Here we show that an applied shear stress induces a K+ ion current in cells expressing the endothelial Kir2.1 channel. This ion current shares the properties of the shear-induced current found in ECs. In addition, the shear current induction can be specifically prevented by tyrosine kinase inhibition. Our findings identify the Kir2.1 channel as an early component of the endothelial shear response mechanism.
