The epithelial potassium channel Kir7.1 is stimulated by progesterone

The choroid plexus (CP) epithelium secretes cerebrospinal fluid and plays an important role in healthy homeostasis of the brain. CP function can be influenced by sex steroid hormones; however, the precise molecular mechanism of such regulation is not well understood. Here, using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings from male and female murine CP cells, we show that application of progesterone resulted in specific and strong potentiation of the inwardly rectifying potassium channel Kir7.1, an essential protein that is expressed in CP and is required for survival. The potentiation was progesterone specific and independent of other known progesterone receptors expressed in CP. This effect was recapitulated with recombinant Kir7.1, as well as with endogenous Kir7.1 expressed in the retinal pigment epithelium. Current-clamp studies further showed a progesterone-induced hyperpolarization of CP cells. Our results provide evidence of a progesterone-driven control of tissues in which Kir7.1 is present.

A developmental stage- and Kidins220-dependent switch in astrocyte responsiveness to brain-derived neurotrophic factor

Astroglial cells are key to maintain nervous system homeostasis. Neurotrophins are known for their pleiotropic effects on neuronal physiology, but also exert complex functions onto glial cells. In this work, we investigated: (i) the signaling competence of embryonic and postnatal primary cortical astrocytes exposed to brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF); and (ii) the role of Kinase D interacting substrate (Kidins220), a transmembrane scaffold protein that mediates neurotrophin signaling in neurons, in the astrocyte response to BDNF. We found a shift from a kinase-based response in embryonic cells to a predominantly [Ca2+]i-based response in postnatal cultures associated with the decreased expression of the full-length BDNF receptor TrkB, with a contribution of Kidins220 to the BDNF-activated kinase and [Ca2+]i pathways. Finally, Kidins220 participates in astrocytes’ homeostatic function by controlling the expression of the inwardly rectifying potassium channel (Kir) 4.1 and the metabolic balance of embryonic astrocytes. Overall, our data contribute to the understanding of the complex role played by astrocytes within the central nervous system and identify Kidins220 as a novel actor in the increasing number of pathologies characterized by astrocytic dysfunctions.

Chloride oscillation in pacemaker neurons regulates circadian rhythms through a chloride-sensing WNK kinase signaling cascade

Central pacemaker neurons regulate circadian rhythms and undergo diurnal variation in electrical activity in mammals and flies. In mammals, circadian variation in the intracellular chloride concentration of pacemaker neurons has been proposed to influence the response to GABAergic neurotransmission through GABAA receptor chloride channels. However, results have been contradictory, and a recent study demonstrated circadian variation in pacemaker neuron chloride without an effect on GABA response. Therefore, whether and how intracellular chloride regulates circadian rhythms remains controversial. Here, we demonstrate a signaling role for intracellular chloride in the Drosophila ventral lateral (LNv) pacemaker neurons. In control flies, intracellular chloride increases in LNv neurons over the course of the morning. Chloride transport through the sodium-potassium-2-chloride (NKCC) and potassium-chloride (KCC) cotransporters is a major determinant of intracellular chloride concentrations. Drosophila melanogaster with loss-of-function mutations in the NKCC encoded by Ncc69 have abnormally low intracellular chloride six hours after lights on, and a lengthened circadian period. Loss of kcc, which is expected to increase intracellular chloride, suppresses the long-period phenotype of Ncc69 mutant flies. Activation of a chloride-inhibited kinase cascade, consisting of the WNK (With No Lysine (K)) kinase and its downstream substrate, Fray, is necessary and sufficient to prolong period length. Fray activation of an inwardly rectifying potassium channel, Irk1, is also required for the long-period phenotype. These results indicate that the NKCC-dependent rise in intracellular chloride in Drosophila LNv pacemaker neurons restrains WNK-Fray signaling and overactivation of an inwardly rectifying potassium channel to maintain normal circadian period length.

Unconventional voltage sensing in an inwardly rectifying potassium channel

Inwardly rectifying potassium channels are generally thought to achieve their physiological voltage dependence via an “extrinsic” mechanism involving voltage-dependent block by polyamines. A surprising finding of polyamine-independent gating of Kir4.1/Kir5.1 heteromeric channels suggests a mechanism of voltage dependence arising from interactions with permeating ions.

Genetic Ablation of G Protein-Gated Inwardly Rectifying K+ Channels Prevents Training-Induced Sinus Bradycardia

Background: Endurance athletes are prone to bradyarrhythmias, which in the long-term may underscore the increased incidence of pacemaker implantation reported in this population. Our previous work in rodent models has shown training-induced sinus bradycardia to be due to microRNA (miR)-mediated transcriptional remodeling of the HCN4 channel, leading to a reduction of the “funny” (If) current in the sinoatrial node (SAN).Objective: To test if genetic ablation of G-protein-gated inwardly rectifying potassium channel, also known as IKACh channels prevents sinus bradycardia induced by intensive exercise training in mice.Methods: Control wild-type (WT) and mice lacking GIRK4 (Girk4–/–), an integral subunit of IKACh were assigned to trained or sedentary groups. Mice in the trained group underwent 1-h exercise swimming twice a day for 28 days, 7 days per week. We performed electrocardiogram recordings and echocardiography in both groups at baseline, during and after the training period. At training cessation, mice were euthanized and SAN tissues were isolated for patch clamp recordings in isolated SAN cells and molecular profiling by quantitative PCR (qPCR) and western blotting.Results: At swimming cessation trained WT mice presented with a significantly lower resting HR that was reversible by acute IKACh block whereas Girk4–/– mice failed to develop a training-induced sinus bradycardia. In line with HR reduction, action potential rate, density of If, as well as of T- and L-type Ca2+ currents (ICaT and ICaL) were significantly reduced only in SAN cells obtained from WT-trained mice. If reduction in WT mice was concomitant with downregulation of HCN4 transcript and protein, attributable to increased expression of corresponding repressor microRNAs (miRs) whereas reduced ICaL in WT mice was associated with reduced Cav1.3 protein levels. Strikingly, IKACh ablation suppressed all training-induced molecular remodeling observed in WT mice.Conclusion: Genetic ablation of cardiac IKACh in mice prevents exercise-induced sinus bradycardia by suppressing training induced remodeling of inward currents If, ICaT and ICaL due in part to the prevention of miR-mediated transcriptional remodeling of HCN4 and likely post transcriptional remodeling of Cav1.3. Strategies targeting cardiac IKACh may therefore represent an alternative to pacemaker implantation for bradyarrhythmias seen in some veteran athletes.

Optically activated, customizable, excitable cells

Genetically encoded fluorescent biosensors are powerful tools for studying complex signaling in the nervous system, and now both Ca2+ and voltage sensors are available to study the signaling behavior of entire neural circuits. There is a pressing need for improved sensors, but improving them is challenging because testing them involves a low throughput, labor-intensive processes. Our goal was to create synthetic, excitable cells that can be activated with brief pulses of blue light and serve as a medium throughput platform for screening the next generation of sensors. In this live cell system, blue light activates an adenylyl cyclase enzyme (bPAC) that increases intracellular cAMP (Stierl M et al. 2011). In turn, the cAMP opens a cAMP-gated ion channel. This produces slow, whole-cell Ca2+ transients and voltage changes. To increase the speed of these transients, we add the inwardly rectifying potassium channel Kir2.1, the bacterial voltage-gated sodium channel NAVROSD, and Connexin-43. The result is a highly reproducible, medium-throughput, live cell system that can be used to screen voltage and Ca2+ sensors.

Downregulation of GIRK2 Mediated by PPARγ Inhibition in DRG Contributes to the Neuropathic Pain Induced by Spare Nerve Injury

Neuropathic pain, as the most common chronic and intractable neurological disorder, seriously endangers the health and even life of patients. Due to the unclear mechanism, there is no effective treatment for neuropathic pain at present. Here, we used spared nerve injury (SNI) rat model to investigate the underlying mechanism involved in neuropathic pain. We found that SNI significantly decreased the expression of G protein-coupled inwardly rectifying potassium channel subunit 2 (GIRK2) and peroxisome proliferation-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) in dorsal root ganglion (DRG). Activation of GIRK2 by intrathecal injection of activators-ML-297 or overexpression of GIRK2 by intrathecal injection of adenovirus associated virus (AAVs)-AAV-GIRK2-EGFP remarkably attenuated the mechanical allodynia induced by SNI in rats. Similarly, activation or overexpression of PPARγ also relieved the SNI-induced mechanical allodynia. We further found that the expression of PPARγ was co-localized with GIRK2-positive neurons, and overexpression of PPARγ rescued the down-regulation of GIRK2 induced by SNI. The results of chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays further showed that PPARγ was bound to the potential binding site in the promoter region of GIRK2, and overexpression of PPARγ recovered the binding in GIRK2 promoter region in DRG, which was decreased by SNI. Altogether, our results suggested that the reduction of PPARγ induced downregulation of GIRK2 in DRG, whichwas involved in SNI-induced mechanical allodynia.

Kir6.1 improves cardiac dysfunction in diabetic cardiomyopathy via the AKT-Foxo1 signaling pathway

Background: Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) severely impairs the health of diabetic patients. Previous studies have shown that the expression of inwardly rectifying potassium channel 6.1 (Kir6.1) in heart mitochondria is significantly reduced in type 1 diabetes. However, whether its expression and function are changed and what role it plays in type 2 DCM have not been reported. This study investigated the role and mechanism of Kir6.1 in DCM.Methods: The cardiac function in mice was analyzed by echocardiography, ELISA, hematoxylin and eosin staining, TUNEL and transmission electron microscopy. The mitochondrial function in cardiomyocytes was measured by the oxygen consumption rate and the mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm). Kir6.1 expression at the mRNA and protein levels was analyzed by quantitative real-time PCR and western blotting (WB), respectively. The protein expression of t-AKT, p-AKT, t-Foxo1, and p-Foxo1 was analyzed by WB.Results: We found that the cardiac function and the Kir6.1 expression in DCM mice were decreased. Kir6.1 overexpression improved cardiac dysfunction and upregulated the phosphorylation of AKT and Foxo1 in the DCM mouse model. Furthermore, Kir6.1 overexpression also improved cardiomyocyte dysfunction and upregulated the phosphorylation of AKT and Foxo1 in cardiomyocytes with insulin resistance. In contrast, cardiac-specific Kir6.1 knockout aggravated the cardiac dysfunction and downregulated the phosphorylation of AKT and Foxo1 in DCM mice. Furthermore, Foxo1 activation downregulated the expression of Kir6.1 and decreased the ΔΨm in cardiomyocytes. In contrast, Foxo1 inactivation upregulated the expression of Kir6.1 and increased the ΔΨm in cardiomyocytes. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assay demonstrated that the Kir6.1 promoter region contains a functional Foxo1-binding site .Conclusions: Kir6.1 improves cardiac dysfunction in DCM, probably through the AKT-Foxo1 signaling pathway. Moreover, the crosstalk between Kir6.1 and the AKT-Foxo1 signaling pathway may provide new strategies for reversing the defective signaling in DCM.