Functional signals between cells are received by
transmembrane proteins as signal transmitters.
During evolution, relatively simple precursor
genes for such proteins gave rise to multiple
structurally and functionally related genes.
Their corresponding proteins serve to transmit
ions (sodium, potassium, calcium, chloride, and
others), as neurotransmitters, and for perception
of light and odors, etc. Cloning of these
genes has yielded insight into the variety of
functions of transmembrane signal transmitters.
Their general structure can be traced back
to an evolutionarily conserved ancestral
molecule.
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