Voltage-gated potassium channel Kv 2

The major Kv component in brain and cortex.

General Information

Voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channels regulate many aspects of neuronal excitability like shaping of action potentials or modulating of spike patterns.
Mammalian neurons express more than 20 different Kv subunits that can be subdivided into 12 families. Heteromeric assembly of four subunits and differential phosphorylation of Kv channels give rise to a huge molecular and functional diversity.
The Kv 2 subfamily comprising Kv 2.1 (DRK 1, Kcnb 1) and Kv 2.2 (CDRK, Kcnb 2) is a unique exception since they do not form heterodimers. Kv 2.1 is found in large clusters on the soma and proximal dendrites of pyramidal neurons.