scholarly journals Stabilizing the Closed S6 Gate in the Shaker K v Channel Through Modification of a Hydrophobic Seal

2004 ◽  
Vol 124 (4) ◽  
pp. 319-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tetsuya Kitaguchi ◽  
Manana Sukhareva ◽  
Kenton J. Swartz
Keyword(s):  
Double Mutant ◽  
Single Channel ◽  
Ion Permeation ◽  
Ion Conduction ◽  
K Channels ◽  
Voltage Sensors ◽  
Gating Charge ◽  
Extracellular Region ◽  
Activation Gate ◽  
Primary Activation

The primary activation gate in K+ channels is thought to reside near the intracellular entrance to the ion conduction pore. In a previous study of the S6 activation gate in Shaker (Hackos et al., 2002), we found that mutation of V478 to W results in a channel that cannot conduct ions even though the voltage sensors are competent to translocate gating charge in response to membrane depolarization. In the present study we explore the mechanism underlying the nonconducting phenotype in V478W and compare it to that of W434F, a mutation located in an extracellular region of the pore that is nonconducting because the channel is predominantly found in an inactivated state. We began by examining whether the intracellular gate moves using probes that interact with the intracellular pore and by studying the inactivation properties of heterodimeric channels that are competent to conduct ions. The results of these experiments support distinct mechanisms underlying nonconduction in W434F and V478W, suggesting that the gate in V478W either remains closed, or that the mutation has created a large barrier to ion permeation in the open state. Single channel recordings for heterodimeric and double mutant constructs in which ion conduction is rescued suggest that the V478W mutation does not dramatically alter unitary conductance. Taken together, our results suggest that the V478W mutation causes a profound shift of the closed to open equilibrium toward the closed state. This mechanism is discussed in the context of the structure of this critical region in K+ channels.

scholarly journals Constitutive Activation of the Shaker Kv Channel

2003 ◽  
Vol 122 (5) ◽  
pp. 541-556 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manana Sukhareva ◽  
David H. Hackos ◽  
Kenton J. Swartz
Keyword(s):  
Single Channel ◽  
Membrane Depolarization ◽  
Ion Conduction ◽  
K Channels ◽  
Voltage Sensors ◽  
Kv Channel ◽  
Kv Channels ◽  
Activation Gate ◽  
Sensor Activation ◽  
Primary Activation

In different types of K+ channels the primary activation gate is thought to reside near the intracellular entrance to the ion conduction pore. In the Shaker Kv channel the gate is closed at negative membrane voltages, but can be opened with membrane depolarization. In a previous study of the S6 activation gate in Shaker (Hackos, D.H., T.H. Chang, and K.J. Swartz. 2002. J. Gen. Physiol. 119:521–532.), we found that mutation of Pro 475 to Asp results in a channel that displays a large macroscopic conductance at negative membrane voltages, with only small increases in conductance with membrane depolarization. In the present study we explore the mechanism underlying this constitutively conducting phenotype using both macroscopic and single-channel recordings, and probes that interact with the voltage sensors or the intracellular entrance to the ion conduction pore. Our results suggest that constitutive conduction results from a dramatic perturbation of the closed-open equilibrium, enabling opening of the activation gate without voltage-sensor activation. This mechanism is discussed in the context of allosteric models for activation of Kv channels and what is known about the structure of this critical region in K+ channels.

scholarly journals Desensitization of Mouse Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Channels

1998 ◽  
Vol 112 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-197 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Auerbach ◽  
Gustav Akk
Keyword(s):  
Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
Rate Constant ◽  
Binding Sites ◽  
Single Channel ◽  
Ion Permeation ◽  
Activation Gate ◽  
The Status ◽  
Single Channel Currents ◽  
Cyclic Models ◽  
Channel Currents

The rate constants of acetylcholine receptor channels (AChR) desensitization and recovery were estimated from the durations and frequencies of clusters of single-channel currents. Diliganded-open AChR desensitize much faster than either unliganded- or diliganded-closed AChR, which indicates that the desensitization rate constant depends on the status of the activation gate rather than the occupancy of the transmitter binding sites. The desensitization rate constant does not change with the nature of the agonist, the membrane potential, the species of permeant cation, channel block by ACh, the subunit composition (ε or γ), or several mutations that are near the transmitter binding sites. The results are discussed in terms of cyclic models of AChR activation, desensitization, and recovery. In particular, a mechanism by which activation and desensitization are mediated by two distinct, but interrelated, gates in the ion permeation pathway is proposed.

scholarly journals A Gastropod Toxin Selectively Slows Early Transitions in the Shaker K Channel's Activation Pathway

2004 ◽  
Vol 123 (6) ◽  
pp. 685-696 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon T. Sack ◽  
Richard W. Aldrich ◽  
William F. Gilly
Keyword(s):  
Single Channel ◽  
K Channel ◽  
Channel Activity ◽  
Gating Currents ◽  
K Channels ◽  
Voltage Sensors ◽  
Essentially Normal ◽  
Channel Opening ◽  
Single Channel Activity ◽  
Kinetics Of

A toxin from a marine gastropod's defensive mucus, a disulfide-linked dimer of 6-bromo-2-mercaptotryptamine (BrMT), was found to inhibit voltage-gated potassium channels by a novel mechanism. Voltage-clamp experiments with Shaker K channels reveal that externally applied BrMT slows channel opening but not closing. BrMT slows K channel activation in a graded fashion: channels activate progressively slower as the concentration of BrMT is increased. Analysis of single-channel activity indicates that once a channel opens, the unitary conductance and bursting behavior are essentially normal in BrMT. Paralleling its effects against channel opening, BrMT greatly slows the kinetics of ON, but not OFF, gating currents. BrMT was found to slow early activation transitions but not the final opening transition of the Shaker ILT mutant, and can be used to pharmacologically distinguish early from late gating steps. This novel toxin thus inhibits activation of Shaker K channels by specifically slowing early movement of their voltage sensors, thereby hindering channel opening. A model of BrMT action is developed that suggests BrMT rapidly binds to and stabilizes resting channel conformations.

scholarly journals Coupling between Voltage Sensors and Activation Gate in Voltage-gated K+ Channels

2002 ◽  
Vol 120 (5) ◽  
pp. 663-676 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhe Lu ◽  
Angela M. Klem ◽  
Yajamana Ramu
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Signal ◽  
K Channel ◽  
Coupling Mechanism ◽  
Excitable Cells ◽  
Voltage Sensing ◽  
K Channels ◽  
Voltage Sensors ◽  
Voltage Gated ◽  
Transmembrane Segments ◽  
Activation Gate

Current through voltage-gated K+ channels underlies the action potential encoding the electrical signal in excitable cells. The four subunits of a voltage-gated K+ channel each have six transmembrane segments (S1–S6), whereas some other K+ channels, such as eukaryotic inward rectifier K+ channels and the prokaryotic KcsA channel, have only two transmembrane segments (M1 and M2). A voltage-gated K+ channel is formed by an ion-pore module (S5–S6, equivalent to M1–M2) and the surrounding voltage-sensing modules. The S4 segments are the primary voltage sensors while the intracellular activation gate is located near the COOH-terminal end of S6, although the coupling mechanism between them remains unknown. In the present study, we found that two short, complementary sequences in voltage-gated K+ channels are essential for coupling the voltage sensors to the intracellular activation gate. One sequence is the so called S4–S5 linker distal to the voltage-sensing S4, while the other is around the COOH-terminal end of S6, a region containing the actual gate-forming residues.

scholarly journals Structural basis of ion permeation gating in Slo2.1 K+ channels

2013 ◽  
Vol 142 (5) ◽  
pp. 523-542 ◽  
Author(s):  
Priyanka Garg ◽  
Alison Gardner ◽  
Vivek Garg ◽  
Michael C. Sanguinetti
Keyword(s):  
Selectivity Filter ◽  
Structural Basis ◽  
K Channel ◽  
Xenopus Laevis Oocytes ◽  
Ion Permeation ◽  
Channel Activation ◽  
K Channels ◽  
Voltage Gated ◽  
Channel Function ◽  
Activation Gate

The activation gate of ion channels controls the transmembrane flux of permeant ions. In voltage-gated K+ channels, the aperture formed by the S6 bundle crossing can widen to open or narrow to close the ion permeation pathway, whereas the selectivity filter gates ion flux in cyclic-nucleotide gated (CNG) and Slo1 channels. Here we explore the structural basis of the activation gate for Slo2.1, a weakly voltage-dependent K+ channel that is activated by intracellular Na+ and Cl−. Slo2.1 channels were heterologously expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes and activated by elevated [NaCl]i or extracellular application of niflumic acid. In contrast to other voltage-gated channels, Slo2.1 was blocked by verapamil in an activation-independent manner, implying that the S6 bundle crossing does not gate the access of verapamil to its central cavity binding site. The structural basis of Slo2.1 activation was probed by Ala scanning mutagenesis of the S6 segment and by mutation of selected residues in the pore helix and S5 segment. Mutation to Ala of three S6 residues caused reduced trafficking of channels to the cell surface and partial (K256A, I263A, Q273A) or complete loss (E275A) of channel function. P271A Slo2.1 channels trafficked normally, but were nonfunctional. Further mutagenesis and intragenic rescue by second site mutations suggest that Pro271 and Glu275 maintain the inner pore in an open configuration by preventing formation of a tight S6 bundle crossing. Mutation of several residues in S6 and S5 predicted by homology modeling to contact residues in the pore helix induced a gain of channel function. Substitution of the pore helix residue Phe240 with polar residues induced constitutive channel activation. Together these findings suggest that (1) the selectivity filter and not the bundle crossing gates ion permeation and (2) dynamic coupling between the pore helix and the S5 and S6 segments mediates Slo2.1 channel activation.

scholarly journals Slow Inactivation in Shaker K Channels Is Delayed by Intracellular Tetraethylammonium

2008 ◽  
Vol 132 (6) ◽  
pp. 633-650 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vivian González-Pérez ◽  
Alan Neely ◽  
Christian Tapia ◽  
Giovanni González-Gutiérrez ◽  
Gustavo Contreras ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Time Course ◽  
Inactivation Kinetics ◽  
Type I ◽  
Slow Inactivation ◽  
External Application ◽  
K Channels ◽  
Gating Charge ◽  
Channel Opening ◽  
Activation Gate ◽  
Free Membrane

After removal of the fast N-type inactivation gate, voltage-sensitive Shaker (Shaker IR) K channels are still able to inactivate, albeit slowly, upon sustained depolarization. The classical mechanism proposed for the slow inactivation observed in cell-free membrane patches—the so called C inactivation—is a constriction of the external mouth of the channel pore that prevents K+ ion conduction. This constriction is antagonized by the external application of the pore blocker tetraethylammonium (TEA). In contrast to C inactivation, here we show that, when recorded in whole Xenopus oocytes, slow inactivation kinetics in Shaker IR K channels is poorly dependent on external TEA but severely delayed by internal TEA. Based on the antagonism with internally or externally added TEA, we used a two-pulse protocol to show that half of the channels inactivate by way of a gate sensitive to internal TEA. Such gate had a recovery time course in the tens of milliseconds range when the interpulse voltage was −90 mV, whereas C-inactivated channels took several seconds to recover. Internal TEA also reduced gating charge conversion associated to slow inactivation, suggesting that the closing of the internal TEA-sensitive inactivation gate could be associated with a significant amount of charge exchange of this type. We interpreted our data assuming that binding of internal TEA antagonized with U-type inactivation (Klemic, K.G., G.E. Kirsch, and S.W. Jones. 2001. Biophys. J. 81:814–826). Our results are consistent with a direct steric interference of internal TEA with an internally located slow inactivation gate as a “foot in the door” mechanism, implying a significant functional overlap between the gate of the internal TEA-sensitive slow inactivation and the primary activation gate. But, because U-type inactivation is reduced by channel opening, trapping the channel in the open conformation by TEA would also yield to an allosteric delay of slow inactivation. These results provide a framework to explain why constitutively C-inactivated channels exhibit gating charge conversion, and why mutations at the internal exit of the pore, such as those associated to episodic ataxia type I in hKv1.1, cause severe changes in inactivation kinetics.

scholarly journals Trapping of a Methanesulfonanilide by Closure of the Herg Potassium Channel Activation Gate

2000 ◽  
Vol 115 (3) ◽  
pp. 229-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
John S. Mitcheson ◽  
Jun Chen ◽  
Michael C. Sanguinetti
Keyword(s):  
Single Channel ◽  
K Channel ◽  
Membrane Hyperpolarization ◽  
K Channels ◽  
Large Size ◽  
Channel Opening ◽  
Activated State ◽  
Activation Gate ◽  
Herg Channels ◽  
Positively Charged

Deactivation of voltage-gated potassium (K+) channels can slow or prevent the recovery from block by charged organic compounds, a phenomenon attributed to trapping of the compound within the inner vestibule by closure of the activation gate. Unbinding and exit from the channel vestibule of a positively charged organic compound should be favored by membrane hyperpolarization if not impeded by the closed gate. MK-499, a methanesulfonanilide compound, is a potent blocker (IC50 = 32 nM) of HERG K+ channels. This bulky compound (7 × 20 Å) is positively charged at physiological pH. Recovery from block of HERG channels by MK-499 and other methanesulfonanilides is extremely slow (Carmeliet 1992; Ficker et al. 1998), suggesting a trapping mechanism. We used a mutant HERG (D540K) channel expressed in Xenopus oocytes to test the trapping hypothesis. D540K HERG has the unusual property of opening in response to hyperpolarization, in addition to relatively normal gating and channel opening in response to depolarization (Sanguinetti and Xu 1999). The hyperpolarization-activated state of HERG was characterized by long bursts of single channel reopening. Channel reopening allowed recovery from block by 2 μM MK-499 to occur with time constants of 10.5 and 52.7 s at −160 mV. In contrast, wild-type HERG channels opened only briefly after membrane hyperpolarization, and thus did not permit recovery from block by MK-499. These findings provide direct evidence that the mechanism of slow recovery from HERG channel block by methanesulfonanilides is due to trapping of the compound in the inner vestibule by closure of the activation gate. The ability of HERG channels to trap MK-499, despite its large size, suggests that the vestibule of this channel is larger than the well studied Shaker K+ channel.

scholarly journals Kcsa

2001 ◽  
Vol 118 (3) ◽  
pp. 303-314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meredith LeMasurier ◽  
Lise Heginbotham ◽  
Christopher Miller
Keyword(s):  
Ion Channel ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Single Channel ◽  
Ion Binding ◽  
Ion Permeation ◽  
K Channels ◽  
High Affinity ◽  
Symmetrical Solution ◽  
Reversal Potentials

Ion conduction and selectivity properties of KcsA, a bacterial ion channel of known structure, were studied in a planar lipid bilayer system at the single-channel level. Selectivity sequences for permeant ions were determined by symmetrical solution conductance (K+ > Rb+, NH4+, Tl+ ≫ Cs+, Na+, Li+) and by reversal potentials under bi-ionic or mixed-ion conditions (Tl+ > K+ > Rb+ > NH4+ ≫ Na+, Li+). Determination of reversal potentials with submillivolt accuracy shows that K+ is over 150-fold more permeant than Na+. Variation of conductance with concentration under symmetrical salt conditions is complex, with at least two ion-binding processes revealing themselves: a high affinity process below 20 mM and a low affinity process over the range 100–1,000 mM. These properties are analogous to those seen in many eukaryotic K+ channels, and they establish KcsA as a faithful structural model for ion permeation in eukaryotic K+ channels.

scholarly journals Charge movement in gating-locked HCN channels reveals weak coupling of voltage sensors and gate

2012 ◽  
Vol 140 (5) ◽  
pp. 469-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sujung Ryu ◽  
Gary Yellen
Keyword(s):  
Voltage Dependence ◽  
Voltage Sensor ◽  
Hcn Channels ◽  
Charge Movement ◽  
Coupling Energy ◽  
K Channels ◽  
Voltage Sensors ◽  
Gating Charge ◽  
Pacemaker Channels ◽  
Open States

HCN (hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide gated) pacemaker channels have an architecture similar to that of voltage-gated K+ channels, but they open with the opposite voltage dependence. HCN channels use essentially the same positively charged voltage sensors and intracellular activation gates as K+ channels, but apparently these two components are coupled differently. In this study, we examine the energetics of coupling between the voltage sensor and the pore by using cysteine mutant channels for which low concentrations of Cd2+ ions freeze the open–closed gating machinery but still allow the sensors to move. We were able to lock mutant channels either into open or into closed states by the application of Cd2+ and measure the effect on voltage sensor movement. Cd2+ did not immobilize the gating charge, as expected for strict coupling, but rather it produced shifts in the voltage dependence of voltage sensor charge movement, consistent with its effect of confining transitions to either closed or open states. From the magnitude of the Cd2+-induced shifts, we estimate that each voltage sensor produces a roughly three- to sevenfold effect on the open–closed equilibrium, corresponding to a coupling energy of ∼1.3–2 kT per sensor. Such coupling is not only opposite in sign to the coupling in K+ channels, but also much weaker.

scholarly journals Effective Activation of BKCa Channels by QO-40 (5-(Chloromethyl)-3-(Naphthalen-1-yl)-2-(Trifluoromethyl)Pyrazolo [1,5-a]pyrimidin-7(4H)-one), Known to Be an Opener of KCNQ2/Q3 Channels

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 388
Author(s):  
Wei-Ting Chang ◽  
Sheng-Nan Wu
Keyword(s):  
Single Channel ◽  
Slow Component ◽  
Ionic Channel ◽  
Gh3 Cells ◽  
Bkca Channel ◽  
Bkca Channels ◽  
Gating Charge ◽  
Ramp Voltage ◽  
K Current ◽  
The Mean

QO-40 (5-(chloromethyl)-3-(naphthalene-1-yl)-2-(trifluoromethyl) pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidin-7(4H)-one) is a novel and selective activator of KCNQ2/KCNQ3 K+ channels. However, it remains largely unknown whether this compound can modify any other type of plasmalemmal ionic channel. The effects of QO-40 on ion channels in pituitary GH3 lactotrophs were investigated in this study. QO-40 stimulated Ca2+-activated K+ current (IK(Ca)) with an EC50 value of 2.3 μM in these cells. QO-40-stimulated IK(Ca) was attenuated by the further addition of GAL-021 or paxilline but not by linopirdine or TRAM-34. In inside-out mode, this compound added to the intracellular leaflet of the detached patches stimulated large-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ (BKCa) channels with no change in single-channel conductance; however, there was a decrease in the slow component of the mean closed time of BKCa channels. The KD value required for the QO-40-mediated decrease in the slow component at the mean closure time was 1.96 μM. This compound shifted the steady-state activation curve of BKCa channels to a less positive voltage and decreased the gating charge of the channel. The application of QO-40 also increased the hysteretic strength of BKCa channels elicited by a long-lasting isosceles-triangular ramp voltage. In HEK293T cells expressing α-hSlo, QO-40 stimulated BKCa channel activity. Overall, these findings demonstrate that QO-40 can interact directly with the BKCa channel to increase the amplitude of IK(Ca) in GH3 cells.

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