Recent advances in epithelial sodium-coupled phosphate transport

This review focuses on recent developments in the molecular characterizatio n of renal sodium-phosphate cotransporters and the mechanisms involved in t heir regulation. Of the three classes of sodium-phosphate cotransporters ex pressed in the mammalian kidney, the type II transporter, NPT2/Npt2 reflect s the characteristics of apical sodium-dependent phosphate transport, and i s a target for regulation. Studies in mice in which the Npt2 gene was disru pted by targeted mutagenesis underscore the importance of Npt2 in the maint enance of phosphate homeostasis. Recent advances in our understanding of ph osphate transport mechanisms in intestine and bone are also discussed. Curr Opin Nephrol Hypertens 8:407-414. (C) 1999 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.