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Xu M, Neelands T, Powers AS, Liu Y, Miller SD, Pintilie GD, Bois JD, Dror RO, Chiu W, Maduke M. CryoEM structures of the human CLC-2 voltage-gated chloride channel reveal a ball-and-chain gating mechanism. eLife 2024; 12:RP90648. [PMID: 38345841 PMCID: PMC10942593 DOI: 10.7554/elife.90648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/15/2024] Open
Abstract
CLC-2 is a voltage-gated chloride channel that contributes to electrical excitability and ion homeostasis in many different tissues. Among the nine mammalian CLC homologs, CLC-2 is uniquely activated by hyperpolarization, rather than depolarization, of the plasma membrane. The molecular basis for the divergence in polarity of voltage gating among closely related homologs has been a long-standing mystery, in part because few CLC channel structures are available. Here, we report cryoEM structures of human CLC-2 at 2.46 - 2.76 Å, in the presence and absence of the selective inhibitor AK-42. AK-42 binds within the extracellular entryway of the Cl--permeation pathway, occupying a pocket previously proposed through computational docking studies. In the apo structure, we observed two distinct conformations involving rotation of one of the cytoplasmic C-terminal domains (CTDs). In the absence of CTD rotation, an intracellular N-terminal 15-residue hairpin peptide nestles against the TM domain to physically occlude the Cl--permeation pathway. This peptide is highly conserved among species variants of CLC-2 but is not present in other CLC homologs. Previous studies suggested that the N-terminal domain of CLC-2 influences channel properties via a "ball-and-chain" gating mechanism, but conflicting data cast doubt on such a mechanism, and thus the structure of the N-terminal domain and its interaction with the channel has been uncertain. Through electrophysiological studies of an N-terminal deletion mutant lacking the 15-residue hairpin peptide, we support a model in which the N-terminal hairpin of CLC-2 stabilizes a closed state of the channel by blocking the cytoplasmic Cl--permeation pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengyuan Xu
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Torben Neelands
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Alexander S Powers
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
- Department of Computer Science, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
- Department of Structural Biology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
- Institute for Computational and Mathematical Engineering, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Yan Liu
- Division of CryoEM and Bioimaging, SSRL, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Steven D Miller
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Grigore D Pintilie
- Department of Bioengineering and Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - J Du Bois
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Ron O Dror
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
- Department of Computer Science, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
- Department of Structural Biology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
- Institute for Computational and Mathematical Engineering, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Wah Chiu
- Division of CryoEM and Bioimaging, SSRL, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
- Department of Bioengineering and Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Merritt Maduke
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
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Xu M, Neelands T, Powers AS, Liu Y, Miller SD, Pintilie G, Bois JD, Dror RO, Chiu W, Maduke M. CryoEM structures of the human CLC-2 voltage gated chloride channel reveal a ball and chain gating mechanism. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.08.13.553136. [PMID: 37645939 PMCID: PMC10462068 DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.13.553136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
CLC-2 is a voltage-gated chloride channel that contributes to electrical excitability and ion homeostasis in many different mammalian tissues and cell types. Among the nine mammalian CLC homologs, CLC-2 is uniquely activated by hyperpolarization, rather than depolarization, of the plasma membrane. The molecular basis for the divergence in polarity of voltage gating mechanisms among closely related CLC homologs has been a long-standing mystery, in part because few CLC channel structures are available, and those that exist exhibit high conformational similarity. Here, we report cryoEM structures of human CLC-2 at 2.46 - 2.76 Å, in the presence and absence of the potent and selective inhibitor AK-42. AK-42 binds within the extracellular entryway of the Cl--permeation pathway, occupying a pocket previously proposed through computational docking studies. In the apo structure, we observed two distinct apo conformations of CLC-2 involving rotation of one of the cytoplasmic C-terminal domains (CTDs). In the absence of CTD rotation, an intracellular N-terminal 15-residue hairpin peptide nestles against the TM domain to physically occlude the Cl--permeation pathway from the intracellular side. This peptide is highly conserved among species variants of CLC-2 but is not present in any other CLC homologs. Previous studies suggested that the N-terminal domain of CLC-2 influences channel properties via a "ball-and-chain" gating mechanism, but conflicting data cast doubt on such a mechanism, and thus the structure of the N-terminal domain and its interaction with the channel has been uncertain. Through electrophysiological studies of an N-terminal deletion mutant lacking the 15-residue hairpin peptide, we show that loss of this short sequence increases the magnitude and decreases the rectification of CLC-2 currents expressed in mammalian cells. Furthermore, we show that with repetitive hyperpolarization WT CLC-2 currents increase in resemblance to the hairpin-deleted CLC-2 currents. These functional results combined with our structural data support a model in which the N-terminal hairpin of CLC-2 stabilizes a closed state of the channel by blocking the cytoplasmic Cl--permeation pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengyuan Xu
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Torben Neelands
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Alexander S. Powers
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
- Department of Computer Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
- Department of Structural Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
- Institute for Computational and Mathematical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Yan Liu
- Division of CryoEM and Bioimaging, SSRL, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Stanford University, Menlo Park 94025
| | - Steven D. Miller
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Grigore Pintilie
- Department of Bioengineering and Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University, Stanford, 94305
| | - J. Du Bois
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Ron O. Dror
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
- Department of Computer Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
- Department of Structural Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
- Institute for Computational and Mathematical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Wah Chiu
- Division of CryoEM and Bioimaging, SSRL, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Stanford University, Menlo Park 94025
- Department of Bioengineering and Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University, Stanford, 94305
| | - Merritt Maduke
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
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Cuppoletti J, Tewari KP, Chakrabarti J, Malinowska DH. Identification of the fatty acid activation site on human ClC-2. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 2017; 312:C707-C723. [PMID: 28424169 DOI: 10.1152/ajpcell.00267.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2016] [Revised: 04/11/2017] [Accepted: 04/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Fatty acids (including lubiprostone and cobiprostone) are human ClC-2 (hClC-2) Cl- channel activators. Molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying this activation were examined. Role of a four-amino acid PKA activation site, RGET691, of hClC-2 was investigated using wild-type (WT) and mutant (AGET, RGEA, and AGAA) hClC-2 expressed in 293EBNA cells as well as involvement of PKA, intracellular cAMP concentration ([cAMP]i), EP2, or EP4 receptor agonist activity. All fatty acids [lubiprostone, cobiprostone, eicosatetraynoic acid (ETYA), oleic acid, and elaidic acid] caused significant rightward shifts in concentration-dependent Cl- current activation (increasing EC50s) with mutant compared with WT hClC-2 channels, without changing time and voltage dependence, current-voltage rectification, or methadone inhibition of the channel. As with lubiprostone, cobiprostone activation of hClC-2 occurred with PKA inhibitor (myristoylated protein kinase inhibitor) present or when using double PKA activation site (RRAA655/RGEA691) mutant. Cobiprostone did not activate human CFTR. Fatty acids did not increase [cAMP]i in hClC-2/293EBNA or T84 cells. Using T84 CFTR knockdown cells, cobiprostone increased hClC-2 Cl- currents without increasing [cAMP]i, while PGE2 and forskolin-IBMX increased both. Fatty acids were not agonists of EP2 or EP4 receptors. L-161,982, a supposed EP4-selective inhibitor, had no effect on lubiprostone-activated hClC-2 Cl- currents but significantly decreased T84 cell barrier function measured by transepithelial resistance and fluorescent dextran transepithelial movement. The present findings show that RGET691 of hClC-2 (possible binding site) plays an important functional role in fatty acid activation of hClC-2. PKA, [cAMP]i, and EP2 or EP4 receptors are not involved. These studies provide the molecular basis for fatty acid regulation of hClC-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- John Cuppoletti
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
| | - Kirti P Tewari
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
| | - Jayati Chakrabarti
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
| | - Danuta H Malinowska
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
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Miyazaki H, Yamada T, Parton A, Morrison R, Kim S, Beth AH, Strange K. CLC anion channel regulatory phosphorylation and conserved signal transduction domains. Biophys J 2012; 103:1706-18. [PMID: 23083714 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2012.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2012] [Revised: 08/20/2012] [Accepted: 09/04/2012] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
The signaling mechanisms that regulate CLC anion channels are poorly understood. Caenorhabditis elegans CLH-3b is a member of the CLC-1/2/Ka/Kb channel subfamily. CLH-3b is activated by meiotic cell-cycle progression and cell swelling. Inhibition is brought about by GCK-3 kinase-mediated phosphorylation of S742 and S747 located on a ∼176 amino acid disordered domain linking CBS1 and CBS2. Much of the inter-CBS linker is dispensable for channel regulation. However, deletion of a 14 amino acid activation domain encompassing S742 and S747 inhibits channel activity to the same extent as GCK-3. The crystal structure of CmCLC demonstrated that CBS2 interfaces extensively with an intracellular loop connecting membrane helices H and I, the C-terminus of helix D, and a short linker connecting helix R to CBS1. Point mutagenesis of this interface identified two highly conserved aromatic amino acid residues located in the H-I loop and the first α-helix (α1) of CBS2. Mutation of either residue to alanine rendered CLH-3b insensitive to GCK-3 inhibition. We suggest that the dephosphorylated activation domain normally interacts with CBS1 and/or CBS2, and that conformational information associated with this interaction is transduced through a conserved signal transduction module comprising the H-I loop and CBS2 α1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroaki Miyazaki
- Boylan Center for Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory, Salisbury Cove, Maine, USA
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Movement of hClC-1 C-termini during common gating and limits on their cytoplasmic location. Biochem J 2011; 436:415-28. [DOI: 10.1042/bj20102153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Functionally, the dimeric human skeletal muscle chloride channel hClC-1 is characterized by two distinctive gating processes, fast (protopore) gating and slow (common) gating. Of these, common gating is poorly understood, but extensive conformational rearrangement is suspected. To examine this possibility, we used FRET (fluorescence resonance energy transfer) and assessed the effects of manipulating the common-gating process. Closure of the common gate was accompanied by a separation of the C-termini, whereas, with opening, the C-termini approached each other more closely. These movements were considerably smaller than those seen in ClC-0. To estimate the C-terminus depth within the cytoplasm we constructed a pair of split hClC-1 fragments tagged extracellularly and intracellularly respectively. These not only combined appropriately to rescue channel function, but we detected positive FRET between them. This restricts the C-termini of hClC-1 to a position close to its membrane-resident domain. From mutants in which fast or common gating were affected, FRET revealed a close linkage between the two gating processes with the carboxyl group of Glu232 apparently acting as the final effector for both.
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Strange K. Putting the pieces together: a crystal clear window into CLC anion channel regulation. Channels (Austin) 2011; 5:101-5. [PMID: 21317557 DOI: 10.4161/chan.5.2.14694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
CLC anion transport proteins function as Cl (-) channels and Cl (-) /H (+) exchangers and are found in all major groups of life including archaebacteria. Early electrophysiological studies suggested that CLC anion channels have two pores that are opened and closed independently by a "fast" gating process operating on a millisecond timescale, and a "common" or "slow" gate that opens and closes both pores simultaneously with a timescale of seconds (Figure 1A). Subsequent biochemical and molecular experiments suggested that CLC channels/transporters are homodomeric proteins ( 1-3) .
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Strange
- Boylan Center for Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory; Salisbury Cove, ME, USA.
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Duran C, Thompson CH, Xiao Q, Hartzell HC. Chloride channels: often enigmatic, rarely predictable. Annu Rev Physiol 2010; 72:95-121. [PMID: 19827947 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-physiol-021909-135811] [Citation(s) in RCA: 241] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Until recently, anion (Cl(-)) channels have received considerably less attention than cation channels. One reason for this may be that many Cl(-) channels perform functions that might be considered cell-biological, like fluid secretion and cell volume regulation, whereas cation channels have historically been associated with cellular excitability, which typically happens more rapidly. In this review, we discuss the recent explosion of interest in Cl(-) channels, with special emphasis on new and often surprising developments over the past five years. This is exemplified by the findings that more than half of the ClC family members are antiporters, and not channels, as was previously thought, and that bestrophins, previously prime candidates for Ca(2+)-activated Cl(-) channels, have been supplanted by the newly discovered anoctamins and now hold a tenuous position in the Cl(-) channel world.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charity Duran
- Department of Cell Biology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
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Physiological roles of CLC Cl−/H+ exchangers in renal proximal tubules. Pflugers Arch 2008; 458:23-37. [DOI: 10.1007/s00424-008-0597-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2008] [Revised: 09/22/2008] [Accepted: 09/26/2008] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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Jentsch TJ. CLC chloride channels and transporters: from genes to protein structure, pathology and physiology. Crit Rev Biochem Mol Biol 2008; 43:3-36. [PMID: 18307107 DOI: 10.1080/10409230701829110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 277] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
CLC genes are expressed in species from bacteria to human and encode Cl(-)-channels or Cl(-)/H(+)-exchangers. CLC proteins assemble to dimers, with each monomer containing an ion translocation pathway. Some mammalian isoforms need essential beta -subunits (barttin and Ostm1). Crystal structures of bacterial CLC Cl(-)/H(+)-exchangers, combined with transport analysis of mammalian and bacterial CLCs, yielded surprising insights into their structure and function. The large cytosolic carboxy-termini of eukaryotic CLCs contain CBS domains, which may modulate transport activity. Some of these have been crystallized. Mammals express nine CLC isoforms that differ in tissue distribution and subcellular localization. Some of these are plasma membrane Cl(-) channels, which play important roles in transepithelial transport and in dampening muscle excitability. Other CLC proteins localize mainly to the endosomal-lysosomal system where they may facilitate luminal acidification or regulate luminal chloride concentration. All vesicular CLCs may be Cl(-)/H(+)-exchangers, as shown for the endosomal ClC-4 and -5 proteins. Human diseases and knockout mouse models have yielded important insights into their physiology and pathology. Phenotypes and diseases include myotonia, renal salt wasting, kidney stones, deafness, blindness, male infertility, leukodystrophy, osteopetrosis, lysosomal storage disease and defective endocytosis, demonstrating the broad physiological role of CLC-mediated anion transport.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas J Jentsch
- Leibniz-Institut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP) and Max-Delbrück-Centrum für Molekulare Medizin (MDC), Berlin, Germany.
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Abstract
CLC-0 and cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) Cl−channels play important roles in Cl−transport across cell membranes. These two proteins belong to, respectively, the CLC and ABC transport protein families whose members encompass both ion channels and transporters. Defective function of members in these two protein families causes various hereditary human diseases. Ion channels and transporters were traditionally viewed as distinct entities in membrane transport physiology, but recent discoveries have blurred the line between these two classes of membrane transport proteins. CLC-0 and CFTR can be considered operationally as ligand-gated channels, though binding of the activating ligands appears to be coupled to an irreversible gating cycle driven by an input of free energy. High-resolution crystallographic structures of bacterial CLC proteins and ABC transporters have led us to a better understanding of the gating properties for CLC and CFTR Cl−channels. Furthermore, the joined force between structural and functional studies of these two protein families has offered a unique opportunity to peek into the evolutionary link between ion channels and transporters. A promising byproduct of this exercise is a deeper mechanistic insight into how different transport proteins work at a fundamental level.
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