GJB2 and deafness: The importance of stabilizing interactions is evident in the V37-V38-A39-A40 structural motif of Cx26, where amino acid substitutions as well as naturally occurring deafness-associated mutations (V37I or A40G) differentially impede gap junction assembly with phenotypic effects ranging from low oligomerization efficiency to non-functional channels (Jara et al., 2012).