Golfα is expressed in primary sensory neurons outside of the olfactory neuroepithelium

G_olfα is the α chain of a trimolecular stimulatory G protein originally described as the G protein responsible for signal transduction in odourant recognition within neurons of the olfactory neuroepithelium. While applying the technique of mRNA differential display to herpes simplex virus infected tissue, a partial cDNA clone corresponding to the mouse homologue of Golfα was isolated from sensory dorsal root ganglia. Levels of this transcript were reduced following viral infection and this reduction was enhanced in CD8⁺ depleted mice. The presence of this G protein within sensory ganglia was confirmed with Northern blotting and PCR and in situ hybridization studies localised Golfα expression exclusively to neurons within this tissue.