Patent ID: 8153400

Claim:
A method for identifying an agent useful in modulating ion transport across a calcium channel, comprising: (a) adding to a calcium channel polypeptide comprising the amino acid sequence of wild type TrpC7 polypeptide or SEQ ID NO:6 and having a calcium channel and a mutT domain, an amount of exogenous ADP-ribose that is capable of increasing ion transport across the calcium channel; (b) contacting the calcium channel polypeptide with a candidate agent suspected of modulating calcium channel activity of the polypeptide; (c) measuring the ion transport across the calcium channel, and (d) comparing the measured ion transport across the calcium channel to a control to determine whether the candidate agent modulates ion transport across the calcium channel, wherein a difference in the measured ion transport across the calcium channel in the presence of the candidate agent compared to the control indicates the agent modulates ion transport across the calcium channel.