Knockout mice reveal a role for P2Y6 receptor in macrophages, endothelial cells, and vascular smooth muscle cells.

P2Y receptors are G-protein-coupled receptors activated by extracellular nucleotides. The P2Y(6) receptor is selectively activated by UDP, and its transcript has been detected in numerous organs, including the spleen, thymus, intestine, blood leukocytes, and aorta. To investigate the biological functions of this receptor, we generated P2Y(6)-null mice by gene targeting.