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Alles SRA, Smith PA. Peripheral Voltage-Gated Cation Channels in Neuropathic Pain and Their Potential as Therapeutic Targets. FRONTIERS IN PAIN RESEARCH 2022; 2:750583. [PMID: 35295464 PMCID: PMC8915663 DOI: 10.3389/fpain.2021.750583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2021] [Accepted: 11/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The persistence of increased excitability and spontaneous activity in injured peripheral neurons is imperative for the development and persistence of many forms of neuropathic pain. This aberrant activity involves increased activity and/or expression of voltage-gated Na+ and Ca2+ channels and hyperpolarization activated cyclic nucleotide gated (HCN) channels as well as decreased function of K+ channels. Because they display limited central side effects, peripherally restricted Na+ and Ca2+ channel blockers and K+ channel activators offer potential therapeutic approaches to pain management. This review outlines the current status and future therapeutic promise of peripherally acting channel modulators. Selective blockers of Nav1.3, Nav1.7, Nav1.8, Cav3.2, and HCN2 and activators of Kv7.2 abrogate signs of neuropathic pain in animal models. Unfortunately, their performance in the clinic has been disappointing; some substances fail to meet therapeutic end points whereas others produce dose-limiting side effects. Despite this, peripheral voltage-gated cation channels retain their promise as therapeutic targets. The way forward may include (i) further structural refinement of K+ channel activators such as retigabine and ASP0819 to improve selectivity and limit toxicity; use or modification of Na+ channel blockers such as vixotrigine, PF-05089771, A803467, PF-01247324, VX-150 or arachnid toxins such as Tap1a; the use of Ca2+ channel blockers such as TTA-P2, TTA-A2, Z 944, ACT709478, and CNCB-2; (ii) improving methods for assessing “pain” as opposed to nociception in rodent models; (iii) recognizing sex differences in pain etiology; (iv) tailoring of therapeutic approaches to meet the symptoms and etiology of pain in individual patients via quantitative sensory testing and other personalized medicine approaches; (v) targeting genetic and biochemical mechanisms controlling channel expression using anti-NGF antibodies such as tanezumab or re-purposed drugs such as vorinostat, a histone methyltransferase inhibitor used in the management of T-cell lymphoma, or cercosporamide a MNK 1/2 inhibitor used in treatment of rheumatoid arthritis; (vi) combination therapy using drugs that are selective for different channel types or regulatory processes; (vii) directing preclinical validation work toward the use of human or human-derived tissue samples; and (viii) application of molecular biological approaches such as clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) technology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sascha R A Alles
- Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM, United States
| | - Peter A Smith
- Department of Pharmacology, Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
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González-Sanabria N, Echeverría F, Segura I, Alvarado-Sánchez R, Latorre R. BK in Double-Membrane Organelles: A Biophysical, Pharmacological, and Functional Survey. Front Physiol 2021; 12:761474. [PMID: 34764886 PMCID: PMC8577798 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2021.761474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2021] [Accepted: 09/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
In the 1970s, calcium-activated potassium currents were recorded for the first time. In 10years, this Ca2+-activated potassium channel was identified in rat skeletal muscle, chromaffin cells and characterized in skeletal muscle membranes reconstituted in lipid bilayers. This calcium- and voltage-activated potassium channel, dubbed BK for “Big K” due to its large ionic conductance between 130 and 300 pS in symmetric K+. The BK channel is a tetramer where the pore-forming α subunit contains seven transmembrane segments. It has a modular architecture containing a pore domain with a highly potassium-selective filter, a voltage-sensor domain and two intracellular Ca2+ binding sites in the C-terminus. BK is found in the plasma membrane of different cell types, the inner mitochondrial membrane (mitoBK) and the nuclear envelope’s outer membrane (nBK). Like BK channels in the plasma membrane (pmBK), the open probability of mitoBK and nBK channels are regulated by Ca2+ and voltage and modulated by auxiliary subunits. BK channels share common pharmacology to toxins such as iberiotoxin, charybdotoxin, paxilline, and agonists of the benzimidazole family. However, the precise role of mitoBK and nBK remains largely unknown. To date, mitoBK has been reported to play a role in protecting the heart from ischemic injury. At the same time, pharmacology suggests that nBK has a role in regulating nuclear Ca2+, membrane potential and expression of eNOS. Here, we will discuss at the biophysical level the properties and differences of mitoBK and nBK compared to those of pmBK and their pharmacology and function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naileth González-Sanabria
- Facultad de Ciencias, Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Felipe Echeverría
- Facultad de Ciencias, Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Ignacio Segura
- Facultad de Ciencias, Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Rosangelina Alvarado-Sánchez
- Facultad de Ciencias, Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Ramon Latorre
- Facultad de Ciencias, Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
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Checchetto V, Leanza L, De Stefani D, Rizzuto R, Gulbins E, Szabo I. Mitochondrial K + channels and their implications for disease mechanisms. Pharmacol Ther 2021; 227:107874. [PMID: 33930454 DOI: 10.1016/j.pharmthera.2021.107874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2020] [Accepted: 04/12/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The field of mitochondrial ion channels underwent a rapid development during the last decade, thanks to the molecular identification of some of the nuclear-encoded organelle channels and to advances in strategies allowing specific pharmacological targeting of these proteins. Thereby, genetic tools and specific drugs aided definition of the relevance of several mitochondrial channels both in physiological as well as pathological conditions. Unfortunately, in the case of mitochondrial K+ channels, efforts of genetic manipulation provided only limited results, due to their dual localization to mitochondria and to plasma membrane in most cases. Although the impact of mitochondrial K+ channels on human diseases is still far from being genuinely understood, pre-clinical data strongly argue for their substantial role in the context of several pathologies, including cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases as well as cancer. Importantly, these channels are druggable targets, and their in-depth investigation could thus pave the way to the development of innovative small molecules with huge therapeutic potential. In the present review we summarize the available experimental evidence that mechanistically link mitochondrial potassium channels to the above pathologies and underline the possibility of exploiting them for therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Luigi Leanza
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Italy
| | | | - Rosario Rizzuto
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Italy
| | - Erich Gulbins
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany
| | - Ildiko Szabo
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Italy; CNR Institute of Neurosciences, Italy.
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Abstract
Rockman et al. in this issue of JGP describe how NS11021 opens BK channels, which make the compound a better tool to probe physiological roles and gating mechanisms of BK channels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianmin Cui
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Center for the Investigation of Membrane Excitability Disorders, Cardiac Bioelectricity and Arrhythmia Center, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO
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Wrzosek A, Augustynek B, Żochowska M, Szewczyk A. Mitochondrial Potassium Channels as Druggable Targets. Biomolecules 2020; 10:E1200. [PMID: 32824877 PMCID: PMC7466137 DOI: 10.3390/biom10081200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2020] [Revised: 08/03/2020] [Accepted: 08/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Mitochondrial potassium channels have been described as important factors in cell pro-life and death phenomena. The activation of mitochondrial potassium channels, such as ATP-regulated or calcium-activated large conductance potassium channels, may have cytoprotective effects in cardiac or neuronal tissue. It has also been shown that inhibition of the mitochondrial Kv1.3 channel may lead to cancer cell death. Hence, in this paper, we examine the concept of the druggability of mitochondrial potassium channels. To what extent are mitochondrial potassium channels an important, novel, and promising drug target in various organs and tissues? The druggability of mitochondrial potassium channels will be discussed within the context of channel molecular identity, the specificity of potassium channel openers and inhibitors, and the unique regulatory properties of mitochondrial potassium channels. Future prospects of the druggability concept of mitochondrial potassium channels will be evaluated in this paper.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Adam Szewczyk
- Laboratory of Intracellular Ion Channels, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland; (A.W.); (B.A.); (M.Ż.)
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Balderas E, Torres NS, Rosa-Garrido M, Chaudhuri D, Toro L, Stefani E, Olcese R. MitoBK Ca channel is functionally associated with its regulatory β1 subunit in cardiac mitochondria. J Physiol 2019; 597:3817-3832. [PMID: 31173379 DOI: 10.1113/jp277769] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2019] [Accepted: 06/03/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
KEY POINTS Association of plasma membrane BKCa channels with BK-β subunits shapes their biophysical properties and physiological roles; however, functional modulation of the mitochondrial BKCa channel (mitoBKCa ) by BK-β subunits is not established. MitoBKCa -α and the regulatory BK-β1 subunit associate in mouse cardiac mitochondria. A large fraction of mitoBKCa display properties similar to that of plasma membrane BKCa when associated with BK-β1 (left-shifted voltage dependence of activation, V1/2 = -55 mV, 12 µm matrix Ca2+ ). In BK-β1 knockout mice, cardiac mitoBKCa displayed a low Po and a depolarized V1/2 of activation (+47 mV at 12 µm matrix Ca2+ ) Co-expression of BKCa with the BK-β1 subunit in HeLa cells doubled the density of BKCa in mitochondria. The present study supports the view that the cardiac mitoBKCa channel is functionally modulated by the BK-β1 subunit; proper targeting and activation of mitoBKCa shapes mitochondrial Ca2+ handling. ABSTRACT Association of the plasma membrane BKCa channel with auxiliary BK-β1-4 subunits profoundly affects the regulatory mechanisms and physiological processes in which this channel participates. However, functional association of mitochondrial BK (mitoBKCa ) with regulatory subunits is unknown. We report that mitoBKCa functionally associates with its regulatory subunit BK-β1 in adult rodent cardiomyocytes. Cardiac mitoBKCa is a calcium- and voltage-activated channel that is sensitive to paxilline with a large conductance for K+ of 300 pS. Additionally, mitoBKCa displays a high open probability (Po ) and voltage half-activation (V1/2 = -55 mV, n = 7) resembling that of plasma membrane BKCa when associated with its regulatory BK-β1 subunit. Immunochemistry assays demonstrated an interaction between mitochondrial BKCa -α and its BK-β1 subunit. Mitochondria from the BK-β1 knockout (KO) mice showed sparse mitoBKCa currents (five patches with mitoBKCa activity out of 28 total patches from n = 5 different hearts), displaying a depolarized V1/2 of activation (+47 mV in 12 µm matrix Ca2+ ). The reduced activity of mitoBKCa was accompanied by a high expression of BKCa transcript in the BK-β1 KO, suggesting a lower abundance of mitoBKCa channels in this genotype. Accordingly, BK-β1subunit increased the localization of BKDEC (i.e. the splice variant of BKCa that specifically targets mitochondria) into mitochondria by two-fold. Importantly, both paxilline-treated and BK-β1 KO mitochondria displayed a more rapid Ca2+ overload, featuring an early opening of the mitochondrial transition pore. We provide strong evidence that mitoBKCa associates with its regulatory BK-β1 subunit in cardiac mitochondria, ensuring proper targeting and activation of the mitoBKCa channel that helps to maintain mitochondrial Ca2+ homeostasis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Enrique Balderas
- Nora Eccles Harrison Cardiovascular Research & Training Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Natalia S Torres
- Nora Eccles Harrison Cardiovascular Research & Training Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Manuel Rosa-Garrido
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Division of Molecular Medicine.,Department of Physiology
| | - Dipayan Chaudhuri
- Nora Eccles Harrison Cardiovascular Research & Training Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Ligia Toro
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Division of Molecular Medicine.,Cardiovascular Research Laboratories.,Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology.,Brain Research Institute, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Enrico Stefani
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Division of Molecular Medicine.,Department of Physiology.,Cardiovascular Research Laboratories.,Brain Research Institute, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Riccardo Olcese
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Division of Molecular Medicine.,Department of Physiology.,Cardiovascular Research Laboratories.,Brain Research Institute, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Bentzen BH, Olesen SP, Rønn LCB, Grunnet M. BK channel activators and their therapeutic perspectives. Front Physiol 2014; 5:389. [PMID: 25346695 PMCID: PMC4191079 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2014.00389] [Citation(s) in RCA: 108] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2014] [Accepted: 09/19/2014] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The large conductance calcium- and voltage-activated K+ channel (KCa1.1, BK, MaxiK) is ubiquitously expressed in the body, and holds the ability to integrate changes in intracellular calcium and membrane potential. This makes the BK channel an important negative feedback system linking increases in intracellular calcium to outward hyperpolarizing potassium currents. Consequently, the channel has many important physiological roles including regulation of smooth muscle tone, neurotransmitter release and neuronal excitability. Additionally, cardioprotective roles have been revealed in recent years. After a short introduction to the structure, function and regulation of BK channels, we review the small organic molecules activating BK channels and how these tool compounds have helped delineate the roles of BK channels in health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo H Bentzen
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Danish Arrhythmia Research Centre, University of Copenhagen Copenhagen, Denmark ; Acesion Pharma Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Søren-Peter Olesen
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Danish Arrhythmia Research Centre, University of Copenhagen Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Morten Grunnet
- Acesion Pharma Copenhagen, Denmark ; H. Lundbeck A/S Copenhagen, Denmark
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9
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Abstract
The field of mitochondrial ion channels has recently seen substantial progress, including the molecular identification of some of the channels. An integrative approach using genetics, electrophysiology, pharmacology, and cell biology to clarify the roles of these channels has thus become possible. It is by now clear that many of these channels are important for energy supply by the mitochondria and have a major impact on the fate of the entire cell as well. The purpose of this review is to provide an up-to-date overview of the electrophysiological properties, molecular identity, and pathophysiological functions of the mitochondrial ion channels studied so far and to highlight possible therapeutic perspectives based on current information.
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Borchert GH, Hlaváčková M, Kolář F. Pharmacological activation of mitochondrial BK(Ca) channels protects isolated cardiomyocytes against simulated reperfusion-induced injury. Exp Biol Med (Maywood) 2013; 238:233-41. [PMID: 23576804 DOI: 10.1177/1535370212474596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The aim of this study was to find out whether opening of mitochondrial large-conductance Ca(2+)-activated potassium channels (BK(Ca)) protects cardiomyocytes against injury caused by simulated ischemia and reperfusion. This study also aimed to determine whether the protective mechanism involves signaling by reactive oxygen species (ROS) and phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K). We used isolated ventricular myocytes, which are believed to contain no functional BK(Ca) channels in the sarcolemma. Cells were isolated from the left ventricles of adult male Wistar rats and subjected to 25-min metabolic inhibition with NaCN and 2-deoxyglucose followed by 30-min re-energization. NS11021 (0.1 μmol/L), a novel BK(Ca) channel opener, or hydrogen peroxide (2 μmol/L) added at re-energization, increased cell survival (the number of rod-shaped cells) and markedly reduced the release of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH). These cytoprotective effects of NS11021 were completely abolished by paxilline, a BK(Ca) inhibitor, or tempol, an antioxidant, but not by wortmannin, an inhibitor of PI3K. NS11021 slightly but significantly increased the fluorescence signal in 2'7'-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (DCF-DA)-loaded myocytes, indicating an increased ROS formation. The NS11021-induced ROS formation was abolished by paxilline or tempol. NS13558 (0.1 μmol/L), an inactive structural analogue of NS11021, affected neither cell survival/LDH release nor DCF-DA fluorescence. These results suggest that pharmacological activation of mitochondrial BK(Ca) channels effectively protects isolated cardiomyocytes against injury associated with simulated reperfusion. The mechanism for this form of protection requires ROS signaling, but not the activation of the PI3K pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gudrun H Borchert
- Department of Developmental Cardiology, Institute of Physiology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Vídeňská 1083, 142 20 Prague, Czech Republic
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Király I, Pataricza J, Bajory Z, Simonsen U, Varro A, Papp JG, Pajor L, Kun A. Involvement of large-conductance Ca(2+) -activated K(+) channels in both nitric oxide and endothelium-derived hyperpolarization-type relaxation in human penile small arteries. Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol 2013; 113:19-24. [PMID: 23414060 DOI: 10.1111/bcpt.12059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2012] [Accepted: 01/28/2013] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Large-conductance Ca(2+) -activated K(+) channels (BKC a ), located on the vascular smooth muscle, play an important role in regulation of vascular tone. In penile corpus cavernosum tissue, opening of BKC a channels leads to relaxation of corporal smooth muscle, which is essential during erection; however, there is little information on the role of BKC a channels located in penile vascular smooth muscle. This study was designed to investigate the involvement of BKC a channels in endothelium-dependent and endothelium-independent relaxation of human intracavernous penile arteries. In human intracavernous arteries obtained in connection with transsexual operations, change in isometric force was recorded in microvascular myographs, and endothelium-dependent [nitric oxide (NO) and endothelium-derived hyperpolarization (EDH)-type] and endothelium-independent (NO-donor) relaxations were measured in contracted arteries. In penile small arteries contracted with phenylephrine, acetylcholine evoked NO- and EDH-type relaxations, which were sensitive to iberiotoxin (IbTX), a selective blocker of BKC a channels. Iberiotoxin also inhibited relaxations induced by a NO-donor, sodium nitroprusside. NS11021, a selective opener of BKC a channels, evoked pronounced relaxations that were inhibited in the presence of IbTX. NS13558, a BKC a -inactive analogue of NS11021, failed to relax human penile small arteries. Our results show that BKC a channels are involved in both NO- and EDH-type relaxation of intracavernous penile arteries obtained from healthy men. The effect of a selective opener of BKC a channels also suggests that direct activation of the channel may be an advantageous approach for treatment of impaired endothelium-dependent relaxation often associated with erectile dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- István Király
- Department of Urology, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
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Wojtovich AP, Nadtochiy SM, Urciuoli WR, Smith CO, Grunnet M, Nehrke K, Brookes PS. A non-cardiomyocyte autonomous mechanism of cardioprotection involving the SLO1 BK channel. PeerJ 2013; 1:e48. [PMID: 23638385 PMCID: PMC3628382 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.48] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2013] [Accepted: 02/19/2013] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Opening of BK-type Ca2+ activated K+ channels protects the heart against ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. However, the location of BK channels responsible for cardioprotection is debated. Herein we confirmed that openers of the SLO1 BK channel, NS1619 and NS11021, were protective in a mouse perfused heart model of IR injury. As anticipated, deletion of the Slo1 gene blocked this protection. However, in an isolated cardiomyocyte model of IR injury, protection by NS1619 and NS11021 was insensitive to Slo1 deletion. These data suggest that protection in intact hearts occurs by a non-cardiomyocyte autonomous, SLO1-dependent, mechanism. In this regard, an in-situ assay of intrinsic cardiac neuronal function (tachycardic response to nicotine) revealed that NS1619 preserved cardiac neurons following IR injury. Furthermore, blockade of synaptic transmission by hexamethonium suppressed cardioprotection by NS1619 in intact hearts. These results suggest that opening SLO1 protects the heart during IR injury, via a mechanism that involves intrinsic cardiac neurons. Cardiac neuronal ion channels may be useful therapeutic targets for eliciting cardioprotection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew P Wojtovich
- Department of Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center , Rochester, NY , USA
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13
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Abstract
The large conductance calcium- and voltage-activated potassium channel (BK(Ca)) is widely expressed at the plasma membrane. This channel is involved in a variety of fundamental cellular functions including excitability, smooth muscle contractility, and Ca(2+) homeostasis, as well as in pathological situations like proinflammatory responses in rheumatoid arthritis, and cancer cell proliferation. Immunochemical, biochemical and pharmacological studies from over a decade have intermittently shown the presence of BK(Ca) in intracellular organelles. To date, intracellular BK(Ca) (iBK(Ca)) has been localized in the mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, nucleus and Golgi apparatus but its functional role remains largely unknown except for the mitochondrial BK(Ca) whose opening is thought to play a role in protecting the heart from ischaemic injury. In the nucleus, pharmacology suggests a role in regulating nuclear Ca(2+), membrane potential and eNOS expression. Establishing the molecular correlates of iBK(Ca), the mechanisms defining iBK(Ca) organelle-specific targeting, and their modulation are challenging questions. This review summarizes iBK(Ca) channels, their possible functions, and efforts to identify their molecular correlates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harpreet Singh
- Department of Anesthesiology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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