Xenopus laevis Oocytes

Abstract

Xenopus oocytes are a versatile expression system particularly suited for membrane transporters and channels. Oocytes have little background activity and therefore offer a very high signal-to-noise ratio for transporter and channel characterization. This chapter provides an overview of the basic methods used for the analysis of membrane transporters in this system, including preparation of oocytes, assays of transport activity, protocols for immunostaining and fluorescence microscopy, and other assays to study surface expression.