Patent ID: 7807388

Claim:
A method for identifying a compound which modulates the activity of a polypeptide, comprising: (a) measuring in a first cell a first rapid inactivating inward current in the absence of a test compound; (b) measuring in a second cell a second rapid inactivating inward current in the presence of the test compound, wherein the first and second rapid inactivating inward currents are stimulated by a temperature of 48-50° C. and wherein the first and second cells express a polypeptide comprising an amino acid sequence which is at least 90% identical to the entire length of the amino acid sequence SEQ ID NO:5; and (c) comparing the first and second rapid inactivating inward currents, wherein a difference between the first and second rapid inactivating inward currents identifies the test compound as a compound which modulates the activity of the polypeptide.