Rabbit polyclonal antibody to Rhodopsin (L328)

Retinitis pigmentosa is an inherited progressive disease which is a major cause of blindness in western communities. It can be inherited as an autosomal dominant, autosomal recessive, or X linked recessive disorder. In the autosomal dominant form, which comprises about 25% of total cases, approximately 30% of families have mutations in the gene encoding the rod photoreceptor specific protein rhodopsin. This is the transmembrane protein which, when photoexcited, initiates the visual transduction cascade. Defects in this gene are also one of the causes of congenital stationary night blindness. Vision involves the conversion of light into electrochemical signals that are processed by the retina and subsequently sent to and interpreted by the brain. The process of converting light to an electrochemical signal begins when the membrane~bound protein, rhodopsin, absorbs light within the retina.