The Light-Dependent Cation Channel of Fly Photoreceptors
{'Code': '08090200', 'Directorate': {'Abbreviation': 'BIO', 'LongName': 'Direct For Biological Sciences'}, 'Division': {'Abbreviation': 'IOS', 'LongName': 'Division Of Integrative Organismal Systems'}}
{'SignBlockName': 'Christopher Platt', 'PO_EMAI': None, 'PO_PHON': None}
A photoreceptor cell responds to light in a series of steps.                    In the vertebrate eye, cyclic GMP is a compound in the                          photoreceptors that increases in internal concentration when the                cell is illuminated.  The increased concentration of cGMP then                  triggers opening of channels in the cell membrane that allow ions               to cross it.  Since the ions carry electrical charge, their                     movement produces the electrical event called the receptor                      potential.                                                                                                                                                      Very little is known about the light-dependent cation channel                   in photoreceptors of invertebrates, although invertebrates offer                the promise of understanding the genetic basis for the                          development and regulation of this important feature.  The fruit                fly, Drosophila, is well-known for its use in genetic studies,                  and a wide variety of mutant strains are available.  This project               will study light-dependent cation channel in flies, using a newly               developed preparation in vitro that allows access to cell                       membranes for the electrophysiological technique of patch-clamp                 recording.  The properties of channel opening and closing will be               established and compared with those for vertebrate                              photoreceptors.  Biochemical compounds will identified that                     control the opening of the channel to compare to the cGMP role in               the vertebrate photoreceptors.  Visual mutants of Drosophila will               be screened to identify possible genes that determine the                       structure or function of the genes controlling this important                   membrane component.  This work will lead directly to the promise                of genetic manipulation allowing structural analysis of these                   channels; such analysis of proteins important in sensory                        transduction will have substantial impact on all sensory science.
{'FirstName': 'Robert', 'LastName': 'Stephenson', 'PI_MID_INIT': 'S', 'PI_SUFX_NAME': None, 'PI_FULL_NAME': 'Robert S Stephenson', 'EmailAddress': 'rstephe@sun.science.wayne.edu', 'NSF_ID': '000172917', 'StartDate': '02/15/1989', 'EndDate': None, 'RoleCode': 'Principal Investigator'}
{'Name': 'Wayne State University', 'CityName': 'DETROIT', 'ZipCode': '482023692', 'PhoneNumber': '3135772424', 'StreetAddress': '5700 CASS AVE STE 4900', 'StreetAddress2': None, 'CountryName': 'United States', 'StateName': 'Michigan', 'StateCode': 'MI', 'CONGRESSDISTRICT': '13', 'CONGRESS_DISTRICT_ORG': 'MI13', 'ORG_UEI_NUM': 'M6K6NTJ2MNE5', 'ORG_LGL_BUS_NAME': 'WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY', 'ORG_PRNT_UEI_NUM': None}
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{'Code': '1185', 'Text': 'SENSORY SYSTEMS'}
{'url': 'https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/download?DownloadFileName=1988&All=true', 'xml': '8819238.xml'}