Potassium Inwardly Rectifying Channel Subfamily J, Member 12 (KCNJ12)

By RT-PCR of human atrial RNA using primers based on the conserved transmembrane domains of inwardly rectifying K(+) channel (Kir or IRK) family proteins, Wible et al. (1995) isolated a Kir family member from a human atrial cDNA library. The heart IRK predicted 432-amino acid sequence is 98% identical to that of rat RB-IRK2. Northern blot analysis showed that the gene was expressed in human ventricle and atrium.

Namba et al. (1997) cloned the KCNJ12 gene from a human genomic library.Using Northern blot analysis, Ryan et al. (2010) detected an approximately 2.2-kb Kcnj12 transcript that was highly expressed in skeletal muscle, but not in any other tissue examined, including heart.