Characterization of four types of background potassium channels in rat cerebellar granule neurons

Background and tandem-pore potassium channels in magnocellular neurosecretory cells of the rat supraoptic nucleus

Magnocellular neurosecretory cells (MNCs) were isolated from the supraoptic nucleus of rat hypothalamus, and properties of K(+) channels that may regulate the resting membrane potential and the excitability of MNCs were studied. MNCs showed large transient outward currents, typical of vasopressin- and oxytocin-releasing neurons. K(+) channels in MNCs were identified by recording K(+) channels that were open at rest in cell-attached and inside-out patches in symmetrical 150 mM KCl. Eight different K(+) channels were identified and could be distinguished unambiguously by their single-channel kinetics and voltage-dependent rectification. Two K(+) channels could be considered functional correlates of TASK-1 and TASK-3, as judged by their single-channel kinetics and high sensitivity to pH(o). Three K(+) channels showed properties similar to TREK-type tandem-pore K(+) channels (TREK-1, TREK-2 and a novel TREK), as judged by their activation by membrane stretch, intracellular acidosis and arachidonic acid. One K(+) channel was activated by application of pressure, arachidonic acid and alkaline pH(i), and showed single-channel kinetics indistinguishable from those of TRAAK. One K(+) channel showed strong inward rectification and single-channel conductance similar to those of a classical inward rectifier, IRK3. Finally, a K(+) channel whose cloned counterpart has not yet been identified was highly sensitive to extracellular pH near the physiological range similar to those of TASK channels, and was the most active among all K(+) channels. Our results show that in MNCs at rest, eight different types of K(+) channels can be found and six of them belong to the tandem-pore K(+) channel family. Various physiological and pathophysiological conditions may modulate these K(+) channels and regulate the excitability of MNCs.

Pharmacology of neuronal background potassium channels

Background or leak conductances are a major determinant of membrane resting potential and input resistance, two key components of neuronal excitability. The primary structure of the background K(+) channels has been elucidated. They form a family of channels that are molecularly and functionally divergent from the voltage-gated K(+) channels and inward rectifier K(+) channels. In the nervous system, the main representatives of this family are the TASK and TREK channels. They are relatively insensitive to the broad-spectrum K(+) channel blockers tetraethylammonium (TEA), 4-aminopyridine (4-AP), Cs(+), and Ba(2+). They display very little time- or voltage-dependence. Open at rest, they are involved in the maintenance of the resting membrane potential in somatic motoneurones, brainstem respiratory and chemoreceptor neurones, and cerebellar granule cells. TASK and TREK channels are also the targets of many physiological stimuli, including intracellular and extracellular pH and temperature variations, hypoxia, bioactive lipids, and neurotransmitter modulation. Integration of these different signals has major effects on neuronal excitability. Activation of some of these channels by volatile anaesthetics and by other neuroprotective agents, such as riluzole and unsaturated fatty acids, illustrates how the neuronal background K(+) conductances are attractive targets for the development of new drugs.