Entrez Summary: Several different potassium channels are known to be involved with electrical signaling in the nervous system. One class is activated by depolarization whereas a second class is not. The latter are referred to as inwardly rectifying K+ channels, and they have a greater tendency to allow potassium to flow into the cell rather than out of it. This asymmetry in potassium ion conductance plays a key role in the excitability of muscle cells and neurons. The protein encoded by this gene is an integral membrane protein and member of the inward rectifier potassium channel family. The encoded protein has a small unitary conductance compared to other members of this protein family. Two transcript variants encoding the same protein have been found for this gene. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008].
UniProt Summary: Inward rectifier potassium channels are characterized by a greater tendency to allow potassium to flow into the cell rather than out of it. Their voltage dependence is regulated by the concentration of extracellular potassium; as external potassium is raised, the voltage range of the channel opening shifts to more positive voltages. The inward rectification is mainly due to the blockage of outward current by internal magnesium. Can be blocked by extracellular barium and cesium (By similarity). {ECO:0000250}.
Pfam DomainsGO Terms
Pfam Domains
IRK
GO Terms
inward rectifier potassium channel activity
potassium ion import across plasma membrane
inorganic cation import across plasma membrane
inorganic ion import across plasma membrane
voltage-gated potassium channel complex
PDZ domain binding
cardiac conduction
import across plasma membrane
multicellular organismal signaling
cytoplasmic vesicle membrane
potassium ion transmembrane transport
potassium ion transport
basolateral plasma membrane
postsynaptic membrane
regulation of heart contraction
regulation of blood circulation
monovalent inorganic cation transport
regulation of ion transmembrane transport
cell junction
inorganic cation transmembrane transport
regulation of transmembrane transport
regulation of system process
cation transmembrane transport
metal ion transport
inorganic ion transmembrane transport
import into cell
regulation of ion transport
cation transport
ion transmembrane transport
transmembrane transport
ion transport
regulation of transport
CRISPR Data
Compound HitMost Correlated Genes in ChemogenomicsTissues where Essential in the Avana Dataset (DepMap 20Q1)