THE MOLECULAR PHYSIOLOGY OF ELECTRONEUTRAL CATION-CHLORIDE COTRANSPORT

The application of molecular biology to the study of electroneutral ca tion-chloride cotransporters has been extremely successful, resulting in the identification of a new gene family of five membrane proteins. The function, expression, and regulation of these important proteins c an increasingly be described in molecular terms. In addition, mutation s in two renal cation-chloride transporter genes have been found in pa tients with Bartter's and Gitelman's syndromes, autosomal recessive di sorders of renal salt excretion.