Differential co-localization of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunits with calcium-binding proteins in retinal ganglion cells.

Immunohistochemistry was used to examine the co-occurrence of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunits with calcium-binding proteins in ganglion cells of the chick retina. The alpha3 subunit was rarely observed in ganglion cells containing calbindin, calretinin, or parvalbumin. On the other hand, the alpha8 subunit was more often co-localized with all calcium-binding proteins studied. These results may be related to the high calcium permeability of nicotinic receptors that contain the alpha8 subunit.