Kvβ2 (or KCNAB2) is a member of a family of proteins that regulate the activity of voltage-dependent K+ channels. The other members of the family are Kvβ1 and Kvβ3.
The Kvβ subunits were originally identified using a biochemical approach that demonstrated that the ion-conducting a subunits existed in a macromolecular complex with auxiliary β subunits with a probable stoichiometry of α4β4. It is now widely established that the regulatory β subunits are able to alter both the biophysical (i.e. acceleration of inactivation kinetics) and biochemical (promote cell surface expression) properties of the functional Kv channel.
The Kvβ regulatory subunits are cytosolic proteins with conserved C-termini and variable N-terminus domains. The interaction with the a subunits is via the conserved C-terminal end that binds to a specific sequence in the N-terminus domain of the a subunits.
Kvβ2, as well as the other Kvβ subunits can bind to all the members of the large Kv1.x (Shaker) channel subfamily. However, recent evidence suggests that it can also bind to members of the Kv4.x subfamily.
Kvβ2 is the most abundant β subunit in the brain where it couples with all the Kv1.x subunits, but the protein is also expressed in peripheral tissues including heart, lung and cells of hematopoietic origin such as T cells where it couples with Kv1.3, the dominant voltage-dependent K+ channel in these cells.
We have now developed a highly specific antibody directed against a unique region in the N-terminus end of the rat Kvβ2 protein. The antibody will also recognize Kvβ2 samples from mouse and human origin.
