Acid-sensing ion channel

Acid-sensing ion channels (ASICs) are neuronal voltage-insensitive cationic channels activated by extracellular protons. ASIC proteins are a subfamily of the ENaC/Deg superfamily of proteins. To date six proteins of the ASIC family have been identified that arise from four genes, ASIC1, ASIC2, ASIC3, and ASIC4. ASIC1a, 1b and 2a, 2b are splice variants. ASICs are trimeric proteins and can be made up of different combinations of subunits, they can be found throughout both the central and peripheral nervous system. The crystal structure of chicken ASIC1a was solved in 2007.

Acid-sensing ion channels are potential drug targets for treating a wide variety of conditions linked to both the CNS and PNS.