Na+/K+ Transporting ATPase Interacting Protein 1 (NKAIN1)

NKAIN1 is a member of a family of mammalian proteins with similarity to Drosophila Nkain and interacts with the beta subunit of Na,K-ATPase (ATP1B1) .

NKAIN1 contains a predicted cleavable signal peptide and 3 putative transmembrane domains. Mouse Nkain1 shares 60% amino acid similarity with the first 200 amino acids of the Drosophila ortholog, which extends for an additional 458 amino acids in a C-terminal tail absent from mouse Nkain1. RT-PCR analysis detected expression in mouse brain and testis only. Immunohistochemical studies localized Nkain1 to the cell membrane when expressed in HEK293T cells, and double-staining with marker NeuN showed that Nkain1 expression was neuron specific.