Interstitial cells of Cajal integrate excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission with intestinal slow-wave activity.

The enteric nervous system contains excitatory and inhibitory neurons, which control contraction and relaxation of smooth muscle cells as well as gastrointestinal motor activity. Little is known about the exact cellular mechanisms of neuronal signal transduction to smooth muscle cells in the gut. Here we generate a c-Kit(CreERT2) knock-in allele to target a distinct population of pacemaker cells called interstitial cells of Cajal.