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Description

Anoctamin-2 (UniProt: Q8CFW1, also known as Transmembrane protein 16B, TMEM16B) is encoded by the Ano2 (also known as Tmem16b) gene (Gene ID: 243634) in murine species. TMEM16B is a multi-pass membrane protein that serves as a calcium-activated chloride channel (CaCC) that plays a role in olfactory signal transduction and also mediates light perception amplification in retina. Its channel activity is shown to be repressed by chloride channel inhibitors, such as niflumic acid and flufenaic acid. TMEM16 B is expressed in retina, especially in the photoreceptor synaptic terminals, and in olfactory epithelium, particularly in sensory neurons (OSNs) and cilia. It is also shown to be expressed in retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), olfactory bulb, and cortex. It is detected in the mantle layer of the neural tube and in the dorsal root ganglia at E14.5. TMEM16B is also involved in a calcium-dependent mode of ionic plasticity that reduces the efficacy of GABAergic synapses. It is reported to attenuate GABAergic transmission by increasing the postsynaptic chloride concentration, hence reducing the driving force for chloride influx.