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Yao X, Gao S, Yan N. Structural biology of voltage-gated calcium channels. Channels (Austin) 2024; 18:2290807. [PMID: 38062897 PMCID: PMC10761187 DOI: 10.1080/19336950.2023.2290807] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Voltage-gated calcium (Cav) channels mediate Ca2+ influx in response to membrane depolarization, playing critical roles in diverse physiological processes. Dysfunction or aberrant regulation of Cav channels can lead to life-threatening consequences. Cav-targeting drugs have been clinically used to treat cardiovascular and neuronal disorders for several decades. This review aims to provide an account of recent developments in the structural dissection of Cav channels. High-resolution structures have significantly advanced our understanding of the working and disease mechanisms of Cav channels, shed light on the molecular basis for their modulation, and elucidated the modes of actions (MOAs) of representative drugs and toxins. The progress in structural studies of Cav channels lays the foundation for future drug discovery efforts targeting Cav channelopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xia Yao
- TaiKang Center for Life and Medical Sciences, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Shuai Gao
- TaiKang Center for Life and Medical Sciences, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Nieng Yan
- Beijing Frontier Research Center for Biological Structures, State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Tsinghua-Peking Joint Center for Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
- Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation, Shenzhen, China
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2
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Huang L, Jiao Y, Xia H, Li H, Yu J, Que Y, Zeng Z, Fan C, Wang C, Yang C, Chang J. Strontium zinc silicate simultaneously alleviates osteoporosis and sarcopenia in tail-suspended rats via Piezo1-mediated Ca 2+ signaling. J Orthop Translat 2024; 48:146-155. [PMID: 39229332 PMCID: PMC11369381 DOI: 10.1016/j.jot.2024.07.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2024] [Revised: 07/30/2024] [Accepted: 07/31/2024] [Indexed: 09/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Long-term physical inactivity probably leads to a co-existence of osteoporosis and sarcopenia which result in a high risk of falls, fractures, disability and even mortality. However, universally applicable and feasible approaches are lacking in the concurrent treatment of osteoporosis and sarcopenia. In this study, we evaluated the effect of strontium zinc silicate bioceramic (SZS) extract on osteoporosis and sarcopenia and explored its underlying mechanisms. Methods Hindlimb osteoporosis and sarcopenia were established in a tail-suspended rat model. The bones were conducted μCT scanning, histological examination, and gene expression analysis, and the muscles were conducted histological examination and gene expression analysis. In vitro, the effect of SZS extract on osteoblasts was determined by alizarin red S staining, immunofluorescence and qPCR. Similarly, the effect of SZS extract on myoblasts was determined by immunofluorescence and qPCR.. At last, the role of Piezo1 and the change of intracellular calcium ion (Ca2+) were explored through blockading the Piezo1 by GsMTx4 in MC3T3-E1 and C2C12 cells, respectively. Results We found that SZS extract could concurrently and efficiently prevent bone structure deterioration, muscle atrophy and fibrosis in hind limbs of the tail-suspended rats. The in vivo study also showed that SZS extract could upregulate the mRNA expression of Piezo1, thereby maintaining the homeostasis of bones and muscles. In vitro study demonstrated that SZS extract could promote the proliferation and differentiation of MC3T3-E1 and C2C12 cells by increasing the intracellular Ca2+ in a Piezo1-dependent manner. Conclusion This study demonstrated that SZS extract could increase Piezo1-mediated intracellular Ca2+, and facilitate osteogenic differentiation of osteoblast and myogenic differentiation of myoblasts, contributing to alleviation of osteoporosis and sarcopenia in a tail-suspended rat model. The translational potential of this article The current study might provide a universally applicable and efficient strategy to treat musculoskeletal disorders based on bioactive ceramics. The verification of the role of Piezo1-modulated intracellular Ca2+ during osteogenesis and myogenesis provided a possible therapeutic target against mechanical related diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lingwei Huang
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- College of Materials Science and Opto-electronic Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Yiren Jiao
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
| | - Hangbin Xia
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- School of Ophthalmology and Optometry, School of Biomedical Engineering, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325027, China
| | - Huili Li
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- School of Ophthalmology and Optometry, School of Biomedical Engineering, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325027, China
| | - Jing Yu
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
| | - Yumei Que
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
| | - Zhen Zeng
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- College of Materials Science and Opto-electronic Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Chen Fan
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
| | - Chen Wang
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
| | - Chen Yang
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
| | - Jiang Chang
- Joint Centre of Translational Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for Tissue Repair Materials, Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, 325000, China
- Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200050, China
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3
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Huang J, Pan X, Yan N. Structural biology and molecular pharmacology of voltage-gated ion channels. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 2024:10.1038/s41580-024-00763-7. [PMID: 39103479 DOI: 10.1038/s41580-024-00763-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/26/2024] [Indexed: 08/07/2024]
Abstract
Voltage-gated ion channels (VGICs), including those for Na+, Ca2+ and K+, selectively permeate ions across the cell membrane in response to changes in membrane potential, thus participating in physiological processes involving electrical signalling, such as neurotransmission, muscle contraction and hormone secretion. Aberrant function or dysregulation of VGICs is associated with a diversity of neurological, psychiatric, cardiovascular and muscular disorders, and approximately 10% of FDA-approved drugs directly target VGICs. Understanding the structure-function relationship of VGICs is crucial for our comprehension of their working mechanisms and role in diseases. In this Review, we discuss how advances in single-particle cryo-electron microscopy have afforded unprecedented structural insights into VGICs, especially on their interactions with clinical and investigational drugs. We present a comprehensive overview of the recent advances in the structural biology of VGICs, with a focus on how prototypical drugs and toxins modulate VGIC activities. We explore how these structures elucidate the molecular basis for drug actions, reveal novel pharmacological sites, and provide critical clues to future drug discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Huang
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Xiaojing Pan
- Institute of Bio-Architecture and Bio-Interactions (IBABI), Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation (SMART), Shenzhen, Guangdong, China.
| | - Nieng Yan
- Institute of Bio-Architecture and Bio-Interactions (IBABI), Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation (SMART), Shenzhen, Guangdong, China.
- Beijing Frontier Research Center for Biological Structure, Tsinghua-Peking Joint Center for Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
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4
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Liu C, Xue L, Song C. Calcium binding and permeation in TRPV channels: Insights from molecular dynamics simulations. J Gen Physiol 2023; 155:e202213261. [PMID: 37728593 PMCID: PMC10510737 DOI: 10.1085/jgp.202213261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2022] [Revised: 05/21/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 09/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Some calcium channels selectively permeate Ca2+, despite the high concentration of monovalent ions in the surrounding environment, which is essential for many physiological processes. Without atomistic and dynamical ion permeation details, the underlying mechanism of Ca2+ selectivity has long been an intensively studied, yet controversial, topic. This study takes advantage of the homologous Ca2+-selective TRPV6 and non-selective TRPV1 and utilizes the recently solved open-state structures and a newly developed multisite calcium model to investigate the ion binding and permeation features in TRPV channels by molecular dynamics simulations. Our results revealed that the open-state TRPV6 and TRPV1 show distinct ion binding patterns in the selectivity filter, which lead to different ion permeation features. Two Ca2+ ions simultaneously bind to the selectivity filter of TRPV6 compared with only one Ca2+ in the case of TRPV1. Multiple Ca2+ binding at the selectivity filter of TRPV6 permeated in a concerted manner, which could efficiently block the permeation of Na+. Cations of various valences differentiate between the binding sites at the entrance of the selectivity filter in TRPV6. Ca2+ preferentially binds to the central site with a higher probability of permeation, repelling Na+ to a peripheral site. Therefore, we believe that ion binding competition at the selectivity filter of calcium channels, including the binding strength and number of binding sites, determines Ca2+ selectivity under physiological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunhong Liu
- Center for Quantitative Biology, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Lingfeng Xue
- Center for Quantitative Biology, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Chen Song
- Center for Quantitative Biology, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, China
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5
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Catterall WA. Voltage gated sodium and calcium channels: Discovery, structure, function, and Pharmacology. Channels (Austin) 2023; 17:2281714. [PMID: 37983307 PMCID: PMC10761118 DOI: 10.1080/19336950.2023.2281714] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Voltage-gated sodium channels initiate action potentials in nerve and muscle, and voltage-gated calcium channels couple depolarization of the plasma membrane to intracellular events such as secretion, contraction, synaptic transmission, and gene expression. In this Review and Perspective article, I summarize early work that led to identification, purification, functional reconstitution, and determination of the amino acid sequence of the protein subunits of sodium and calcium channels and showed that their pore-forming subunits are closely related. Decades of study by antibody mapping, site-directed mutagenesis, and electrophysiological recording led to detailed two-dimensional structure-function maps of the amino acid residues involved in voltage-dependent activation and inactivation, ion permeation and selectivity, and pharmacological modulation. Most recently, high-resolution three-dimensional structure determination by X-ray crystallography and cryogenic electron microscopy has revealed the structural basis for sodium and calcium channel function and pharmacological modulation at the atomic level. These studies now define the chemical basis for electrical signaling and provide templates for future development of new therapeutic agents for a range of neurological and cardiovascular diseases.
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Chan C, Yuan CC, McCoy JG, Ward PS, Grabarek Z. The mitochondrial calcium uniporter transports Ca 2+ via a ligand-relay mechanism. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.06.17.545435. [PMID: 37398228 PMCID: PMC10312793 DOI: 10.1101/2023.06.17.545435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/04/2023]
Abstract
The mitochondrial calcium uniporter (mtCU) is a multicomponent Ca 2+ -specific channel that imparts mitochondria with the capacity to sense the cytosolic calcium signals. The metazoan mtCU comprises the pore-forming subunit MCU and the essential regulator EMRE, arranged in a tetrameric channel complex, and the Ca 2+ sensing peripheral proteins MICU1-3. The mechanism of mitochondrial Ca 2+ uptake by mtCU and its regulation is poorly understood. Our analysis of MCU structure and sequence conservation, combined with molecular dynamics simulations, mutagenesis, and functional studies, led us to conclude that the Ca 2+ conductance of MCU is driven by a ligand-relay mechanism, which depends on stochastic structural fluctuations in the conserved DxxE sequence. In the tetrameric structure of MCU, the four glutamate side chains of DxxE (the E-ring) chelate Ca 2+ directly in a high-affinity complex (site 1), which blocks the channel. The four glutamates can also switch to a hydrogen bond-mediated interaction with an incoming hydrated Ca 2+ transiently sequestered within the D-ring of DxxE (site 2), thus releasing the Ca 2+ bound at site 1. This process depends critically on the structural flexibility of DxxE imparted by the adjacent invariant Pro residue. Our results suggest that the activity of the uniporter can be regulated through the modulation of local structural dynamics. A preliminary account of this work was presented at the 67 th Annual Meeting of the Biophysical Society in San Diego, CA, February 18-22, 2023.
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Tsai CW, Liu TY, Chao FY, Tu YC, Rodriguez MX, Van Keuren AM, Ma Z, Bankston J, Tsai MF. Evidence supporting the MICU1 occlusion mechanism and against the potentiation model in the mitochondrial calcium uniporter complex. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2217665120. [PMID: 37036971 PMCID: PMC10120041 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2217665120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Accepted: 03/03/2023] [Indexed: 04/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The mitochondrial calcium uniporter is a Ca2+ channel that imports cytoplasmic Ca2+ into the mitochondrial matrix to regulate cell bioenergetics, intracellular Ca2+ signaling, and apoptosis. The uniporter contains the pore-forming MCU subunit, an auxiliary EMRE protein, and the regulatory MICU1/MICU2 subunits. Structural and biochemical studies have suggested that MICU1 gates MCU by blocking/unblocking the pore. However, mitoplast patch-clamp experiments argue that MICU1 does not block, but instead potentiates MCU via allosteric mechanisms. Here, we address this direct clash of the proposed MICU1 function. Supporting the MICU1-occlusion mechanism, patch-clamp demonstrates that purified MICU1 strongly suppresses MCU Ca2+ currents, and this inhibition is abolished by mutating the MCU-interacting K126 residue. Moreover, a membrane-depolarization assay shows that MICU1 prevents MCU-mediated Na+ flux into intact mitochondria under Ca2+-free conditions. Examining the observations underlying the potentiation model, we found that MICU1 occlusion was not detected in mitoplasts not because MICU1 cannot block, but because MICU1 dissociates from the uniporter complex. Furthermore, MICU1 depletion reduces uniporter transport not because MICU1 can potentiate MCU, but because EMRE is down-regulated. These results firmly establish the molecular mechanisms underlying the physiologically crucial process of uniporter regulation by MICU1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chen-Wei Tsai
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO80045
| | - Tsung-Yun Liu
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO80045
| | - Fan-Yi Chao
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO80045
| | - Yung-Chi Tu
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO80045
| | - Madison X. Rodriguez
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO80045
| | - Anna M. Van Keuren
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO80045
| | - Zhiwei Ma
- Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO65211
| | - John Bankston
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO80045
| | - Ming-Feng Tsai
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO80045
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Agrawal A, Wang K, Polonchuk L, Cooper J, Hendrix M, Gavaghan DJ, Mirams GR, Clerx M. Models of the cardiac L-type calcium current: A quantitative review. WIREs Mech Dis 2023; 15:e1581. [PMID: 36028219 PMCID: PMC10078428 DOI: 10.1002/wsbm.1581] [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] [Received: 03/25/2022] [Revised: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 07/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
The L-type calcium current (I CaL ) plays a critical role in cardiac electrophysiology, and models ofI CaL are vital tools to predict arrhythmogenicity of drugs and mutations. Five decades of measuring and modelingI CaL have resulted in several competing theories (encoded in mathematical equations). However, the introduction of new models has not typically been accompanied by a data-driven critical comparison with previous work, so that it is unclear which model is best suited for any particular application. In this review, we describe and compare 73 published mammalianI CaL models and use simulated experiments to show that there is a large variability in their predictions, which is not substantially diminished when grouping by species or other categories. We provide model code for 60 models, list major data sources, and discuss experimental and modeling work that will be required to reduce this huge list of competing theories and ultimately develop a community consensus model ofI CaL . This article is categorized under: Cardiovascular Diseases > Computational Models Cardiovascular Diseases > Molecular and Cellular Physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aditi Agrawal
- Computational Biology & Health Informatics, Department of Computer ScienceUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
| | - Ken Wang
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Innovation Center BaselF. Hoffmann‐La Roche Ltd.BaselSwitzerland
| | - Liudmila Polonchuk
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Innovation Center BaselF. Hoffmann‐La Roche Ltd.BaselSwitzerland
| | - Jonathan Cooper
- Centre for Advanced Research ComputingUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Maurice Hendrix
- Centre for Mathematical Medicine & Biology, School of Mathematical SciencesUniversity of NottinghamNottinghamUK
- Digital Research Service, Information SciencesUniversity of NottinghamNottinghamUK
| | - David J. Gavaghan
- Computational Biology & Health Informatics, Department of Computer ScienceUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
| | - Gary R. Mirams
- Centre for Mathematical Medicine & Biology, School of Mathematical SciencesUniversity of NottinghamNottinghamUK
| | - Michael Clerx
- Centre for Mathematical Medicine & Biology, School of Mathematical SciencesUniversity of NottinghamNottinghamUK
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Delgado BD, Long SB. Mechanisms of ion selectivity and throughput in the mitochondrial calcium uniporter. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eade1516. [PMID: 36525497 PMCID: PMC9757755 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ade1516] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The mitochondrial calcium uniporter, which regulates aerobic metabolism by catalyzing mitochondrial Ca2+ influx, is arguably the most selective ion channel known. The mechanisms for this exquisite Ca2+ selectivity have not been defined. Here, using a reconstituted system, we study the electrical properties of the channel's minimal Ca2+-conducting complex, MCU-EMRE, from Tribolium castaneum to probe ion selectivity mechanisms. The wild-type TcMCU-EMRE complex recapitulates hallmark electrophysiological properties of endogenous Uniporter channels. Through interrogation of pore-lining mutants, we find that a ring of glutamate residues, the "E-locus," serves as the channel's selectivity filter. Unexpectedly, a nearby "D-locus" at the mouth of the pore has diminutive influence on selectivity. Anomalous mole fraction effects indicate that multiple Ca2+ ions are accommodated within the E-locus. By facilitating ion-ion interactions, the E-locus engenders both exquisite Ca2+ selectivity and high ion throughput. Direct comparison with structural information yields the basis for selective Ca2+ conduction by the channel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryce D. Delgado
- Structural Biology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Avenue, New York, NY 10065, USA
- Graduate Program in Biochemistry and Structural Biology, Cell and Developmental Biology, and Molecular Biology, Weill Cornell Medicine Graduate School of Medical Sciences, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | - Stephen B. Long
- Structural Biology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Avenue, New York, NY 10065, USA
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10
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Mikhailova VB, Karpushev AV, Vavilova VD, Klimenko ES, Tulintseva T, Yudina YS, Vasichkina ES, Zhorov BS, Kostareva A. Functional Analysis of SCN5A Genetic Variants Associated with Brugada Syndrome. Cardiology 2021; 147:35-46. [PMID: 34628415 DOI: 10.1159/000519857] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2020] [Accepted: 09/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Brugada syndrome (BrS) is a rare inherited cardiac arrhythmia with increased risk of sudden cardiac death. Mutations in gene SCN5A, which encodes the α-subunit of cardiac voltage-gated sodium channel NaV1.5, have been identified in over 20% of patients with BrS. However, only a small fraction of NaV1.5 variants, which are associated with BrS, are characterized in electrophysiological experiments. RESULTS Here we explored variants V281A and L1582P, which were found in our patients with BrS, and variants F543L and K1419E, which are reportedly associated with BrS. Heterologous expression of the variants in CHO-K1 cells and the Western blot analysis demonstrated that each variant appeared at the cell surface. We further measured sodium current in the whole-cell voltage clamp configuration. Variant F543L produced robust sodium current with a hyperpolarizing shift in the voltage dependence of steady-state fast inactivation. Other variants did not produce detectable sodium currents, indicating a complete loss of function. In a recent cryoEM structure of the hNaV1.5 channel, residues V281, K1419, and L1582 are in close contacts with residues whose mutations are reportedly associated with BrS, indicating functional importance of respective contacts. CONCLUSIONS Our results support the notion that loss of function of NaV1.5 or decrease of the channel activity is involved in the pathogenesis of BrS.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alexey V Karpushev
- Almazov National Medical Research Centre, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
| | - Viola D Vavilova
- Almazov National Medical Research Centre, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
| | | | - Tatyana Tulintseva
- Almazov National Medical Research Centre, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
| | - Yulia S Yudina
- Almazov National Medical Research Centre, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
| | - Elena S Vasichkina
- Almazov National Medical Research Centre, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
| | - Boris S Zhorov
- Almazov National Medical Research Centre, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation.,Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry, RAS, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation.,Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Anna Kostareva
- Almazov National Medical Research Centre, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation.,Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
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11
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Garg V, Suzuki J, Paranjpe I, Unsulangi T, Boyman L, Milescu LS, Lederer WJ, Kirichok Y. The mechanism of MICU-dependent gating of the mitochondrial Ca 2+uniporter. eLife 2021; 10:e69312. [PMID: 34463251 PMCID: PMC8437439 DOI: 10.7554/elife.69312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2021] [Accepted: 08/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Ca2+ entry into mitochondria is through the mitochondrial calcium uniporter complex (MCUcx), a Ca2+-selective channel composed of five subunit types. Two MCUcx subunits (MCU and EMRE) span the inner mitochondrial membrane, while three Ca2+-regulatory subunits (MICU1, MICU2, and MICU3) reside in the intermembrane space. Here, we provide rigorous analysis of Ca2+ and Na+ fluxes via MCUcx in intact isolated mitochondria to understand the function of MICU subunits. We also perform direct patch clamp recordings of macroscopic and single MCUcx currents to gain further mechanistic insights. This comprehensive analysis shows that the MCUcx pore, composed of the EMRE and MCU subunits, is not occluded nor plugged by MICUs during the absence or presence of extramitochondrial Ca2+ as has been widely reported. Instead, MICUs potentiate activity of MCUcx as extramitochondrial Ca2+ is elevated. MICUs achieve this by modifying the gating properties of MCUcx allowing it to spend more time in the open state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vivek Garg
- Department of Physiology, University of California San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
- Department of Physiology, University of MarylandBaltimoreUnited States
| | - Junji Suzuki
- Department of Physiology, University of California San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| | - Ishan Paranjpe
- Department of Physiology, University of California San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| | - Tiffany Unsulangi
- Department of Physiology, University of California San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| | - Liron Boyman
- Department of Physiology, University of MarylandBaltimoreUnited States
| | - Lorin S Milescu
- Department of Biology, University of MarylandCollege ParkUnited States
| | | | - Yuriy Kirichok
- Department of Physiology, University of California San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
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12
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Cao E. Structural mechanisms of transient receptor potential ion channels. J Gen Physiol 2021; 152:133640. [PMID: 31972006 PMCID: PMC7054860 DOI: 10.1085/jgp.201811998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2019] [Accepted: 01/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channels are evolutionarily ancient sensory proteins that detect and integrate a wide range of physical and chemical stimuli. TRP channels are fundamental for numerous biological processes and are therefore associated with a multitude of inherited and acquired human disorders. In contrast to many other major ion channel families, high-resolution structures of TRP channels were not available before 2013. Remarkably, however, the subsequent “resolution revolution” in cryo-EM has led to an explosion of TRP structures in the last few years. These structures have confirmed that TRP channels assemble as tetramers and resemble voltage-gated ion channels in their overall architecture. But beyond the relatively conserved transmembrane core embedded within the lipid bilayer, each TRP subtype appears to be endowed with a unique set of soluble domains that may confer diverse regulatory mechanisms. Importantly, TRP channel structures have revealed sites and mechanisms of action of numerous synthetic and natural compounds, as well as those for endogenous ligands such as lipids, Ca2+, and calmodulin. Here, I discuss these recent findings with a particular focus on the conserved transmembrane region and how these structures may help to rationally target this important class of ion channels for the treatment of numerous human conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erhu Cao
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT
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13
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Structural mechanisms of gating and selectivity of human rod CNGA1 channel. Neuron 2021; 109:1302-1313.e4. [PMID: 33651975 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2020] [Revised: 01/22/2021] [Accepted: 02/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Mammalian cyclic nucleotide-gated (CNG) channels play an essential role in the signal transduction of the visual and olfactory sensory systems. Here we reveal the structural mechanism of ligand gating in human rod CNGA1 channel by determining its cryo-EM structures in both the apo closed and cGMP-bound open states. Distinct from most other members of voltage-gated tetrameric cation channels, CNGA1 forms a central channel gate in the middle of the membrane, occluding the central cavity. Structural analyses of ion binding profiles in the selectivity filters of the wild-type channel and the E365Q filter mutant allow us to unambiguously define the two Ca2+ binding sites inside the selectivity filter, providing structural insights into Ca2+ blockage and permeation in CNG channels. The structure of the E365Q mutant also reveals two alternative side-chain conformations at Q365, providing a plausible explanation for the voltage-dependent gating of CNG channel acquired upon E365 mutation.
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14
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Levy A, de Souza JP, Bazant MZ. Breakdown of electroneutrality in nanopores. J Colloid Interface Sci 2020; 579:162-176. [PMID: 32590157 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2020.05.109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2020] [Revised: 05/14/2020] [Accepted: 05/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Ion transport in extremely narrow nanochannels has gained increasing interest in recent years due to unique physical properties at the nanoscale and the technological advances that allow us to study them. It is tempting to approach this confined regime with the theoretical tools and knowledge developed for membranes and microfluidic devices, and naively apply continuum models, such as the Poisson-Nernst-Planck and Navier-Stokes equations. However, it turns out that some of the most basic principles we take for granted in larger systems, such as the complete screening of surface charge by counter-ions, can break down under extreme confinement. We show that in a truly one-dimensional system of ions interacting with three-dimensional electrostatic interactions, the screening length is exponentially large, and can easily exceed the macroscopic length of a nanotube. Without screening, electroneutrality breaks down within the nanotube, with fundamental consequences for ion transport and electrokinetic phenomena. In this work, we build a general theoretical framework for electroneutrality breakdown in nanopores, focusing on the most interesting case of a one-dimensional nanotube, and show how it provides an elegant interpretation for the peculiar scaling observed in experimental measurements of ionic conductance in carbon nanotubes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amir Levy
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 USA
| | - J Pedro de Souza
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 USA
| | - Martin Z Bazant
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 USA; Department of Mathematics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 USA.
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15
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Meyer JO, Dahimene S, Page KM, Ferron L, Kadurin I, Ellaway JIJ, Zhao P, Patel T, Rothwell SW, Lin P, Pratt WS, Dolphin AC. Disruption of the Key Ca 2+ Binding Site in the Selectivity Filter of Neuronal Voltage-Gated Calcium Channels Inhibits Channel Trafficking. Cell Rep 2020; 29:22-33.e5. [PMID: 31577951 PMCID: PMC6899504 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2019.08.079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2018] [Revised: 06/20/2019] [Accepted: 08/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Voltage-gated calcium channels are exquisitely Ca2+ selective, conferred primarily by four conserved pore-loop glutamate residues contributing to the selectivity filter. There has been little previous work directly measuring whether the trafficking of calcium channels requires their ability to bind Ca2+ in the selectivity filter or to conduct Ca2+. Here, we examine trafficking of neuronal CaV2.1 and 2.2 channels with mutations in their selectivity filter and find reduced trafficking to the cell surface in cell lines. Furthermore, in hippocampal neurons, there is reduced trafficking to the somatic plasma membrane, into neurites, and to presynaptic terminals. However, the CaV2.2 selectivity filter mutants are still influenced by auxiliary α2δ subunits and, albeit to a reduced extent, by β subunits, indicating the channels are not grossly misfolded. Our results indicate that Ca2+ binding in the pore of CaV2 channels may promote their correct trafficking, in combination with auxiliary subunits. Furthermore, physiological studies utilizing selectivity filter mutant CaV channels should be interpreted with caution. Selectivity filter mutations in CaV2 channels block inward Ba2+ currents Surprisingly, these mutations severely reduce trafficking of the CaV2 channels Pore mutant N-type channels show reduced expression in presynaptic terminals Pore mutant channels still require β and α2δ and thus are not grossly misfolded
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Affiliation(s)
- James O Meyer
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Shehrazade Dahimene
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Karen M Page
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Laurent Ferron
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Ivan Kadurin
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Joseph I J Ellaway
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Pengxiang Zhao
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Tarun Patel
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Simon W Rothwell
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Peipeng Lin
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Wendy S Pratt
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Annette C Dolphin
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK.
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16
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Zhang C, Tian J, Qi S, Yang B, Dong Z. Highly Efficient Exclusion of Alkali Metal Ions via Electrostatic Repulsion Inside Positively Charged Channels. NANO LETTERS 2020; 20:3627-3632. [PMID: 32323993 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.0c00567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Understanding of the structure-function relationships of natural protein channels remains a challenging task because of their unattainable physiological functions in terms of selectivity. To achieve this, a synthetic system of chemically modified channels has been constructed based on helical polymer scaffolds. Here, we report a type of positively charged channels in which multiple quaternary ammonium groups are covalently modified on the lumen surface of helical polymer while the helical conformation is intact. Compared to unmodified channels, the existence of multiple charged groups in the cavity not only makes the lumen size narrower but also essentially changes the channel properties without obstructing channel structure. Our study indicates that positively charged channels preferentially transport anions with size-dependent selectivity, whereas alkali metal ions are almost completely suppressed by electrostatic repulsion. As a consequence, a specific artificial channel with high Cl-/Na+ selectivity ratio of 41:1 is obtained.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenyang Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Qianjin Street 2699, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Jun Tian
- State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Qianjin Street 2699, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Shuaiwei Qi
- State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Qianjin Street 2699, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Bing Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Qianjin Street 2699, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Zeyuan Dong
- State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Qianjin Street 2699, Changchun 130012, China
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17
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De Marchi U, Fernandez-Martinez S, de la Fuente S, Wiederkehr A, Santo-Domingo J. Mitochondrial ion channels in pancreatic β-cells: Novel pharmacological targets for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes. Br J Pharmacol 2020; 178:2077-2095. [PMID: 32056196 PMCID: PMC8246559 DOI: 10.1111/bph.15018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2019] [Revised: 01/29/2020] [Accepted: 01/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Pancreatic beta‐cells are central regulators of glucose homeostasis. By tightly coupling nutrient sensing and granule exocytosis, beta‐cells adjust the secretion of insulin to the circulating blood glucose levels. Failure of beta‐cells to augment insulin secretion in insulin‐resistant individuals leads progressively to impaired glucose tolerance, Type 2 diabetes, and diabetes‐related diseases. Mitochondria play a crucial role in β‐cells during nutrient stimulation, linking the metabolism of glucose and other secretagogues to the generation of signals that promote insulin secretion. Mitochondria are double‐membrane organelles containing numerous channels allowing the transport of ions across both membranes. These channels regulate mitochondrial energy production, signalling, and cell death. The mitochondria of β‐cells express ion channels whose physio/pathological role is underappreciated. Here, we describe the mitochondrial ion channels identified in pancreatic β‐cells, we further discuss the possibility of targeting specific β‐cell mitochondrial channels for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes, and we finally highlight the evidence from clinical studies. LINKED ARTICLES This article is part of a themed issue on Cellular metabolism and diseases. To view the other articles in this section visit http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bph.v178.10/issuetoc
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Silvia Fernandez-Martinez
- Division of Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, Centre de Recherche Clinique, HUG, Genève, Switzerland
| | - Sergio de la Fuente
- Center for Translational Medicine, Department of Medicine, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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18
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Yelshanskaya MV, Nadezhdin KD, Kurnikova MG, Sobolevsky AI. Structure and function of the calcium-selective TRP channel TRPV6. J Physiol 2020; 599:2673-2697. [PMID: 32073143 DOI: 10.1113/jp279024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2019] [Accepted: 02/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Epithelial calcium channel TRPV6 is a member of the vanilloid subfamily of TRP channels that is permeable to cations and highly selective to Ca2+ ; it shows constitutive activity regulated negatively by Ca2+ and positively by phosphoinositol and cholesterol lipids. In this review, we describe the molecular structure of TRPV6 and discuss how its structural elements define its unique functional properties. High Ca2+ selectivity of TRPV6 originates from the narrow selectivity filter, where Ca2+ ions are directly coordinated by a ring of anionic aspartate side chains. Divalent cations Ca2+ and Ba2+ permeate TRPV6 pore according to the knock-off mechanism, while tight binding of Gd3+ to the aspartate ring blocks the channel and prevents Na+ from permeating the pore. The iris-like channel opening is accompanied by an α-to-π helical transition in the pore-lining transmembrane helix S6. As a result of this transition, the intracellular halves of the S6 helices bend and rotate by about 100 deg, exposing different residues to the channel pore in the open and closed states. Channel opening is also associated with changes in occupancy of the transmembrane domain lipid binding sites. The inhibitor 2-aminoethoxydiphenyl borate (2-APB) binds to TRPV6 in a pocket formed by the cytoplasmic half of the S1-S4 transmembrane helical bundle and shifts open-closed channel equilibrium towards the closed state by outcompeting lipids critical for activation. Ca2+ inhibits TRPV6 via binding to calmodulin (CaM), which mediates Ca2+ -dependent inactivation. The TRPV6-CaM complex exhibits 1:1 stoichiometry; one TRPV6 tetramer binds both CaM lobes, which adopt a distinct head-to-tail arrangement. The CaM C-terminal lobe plugs the channel through a unique cation-π interaction by inserting the side chain of lysine K115 into a tetra-tryptophan cage at the ion channel pore intracellular entrance. Recent studies of TRPV6 structure and function described in this review advance our understanding of the role of this channel in physiology and pathophysiology and inform new therapeutic design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria V Yelshanskaya
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, 650 West 168th Street, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Kirill D Nadezhdin
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, 650 West 168th Street, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Maria G Kurnikova
- Chemistry Department, Carnegie Mellon University, 4400 Fifth Ave, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA
| | - Alexander I Sobolevsky
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, 650 West 168th Street, New York, NY, 10032, USA
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19
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The Ca 2+ permeation mechanism of the ryanodine receptor revealed by a multi-site ion model. Nat Commun 2020; 11:922. [PMID: 32066742 PMCID: PMC7026163 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-14573-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2019] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Ryanodine receptors (RyR) are ion channels responsible for the release of Ca2+ from the sarco/endoplasmic reticulum and play a crucial role in the precise control of Ca2+ concentration in the cytosol. The detailed permeation mechanism of Ca2+ through RyR is still elusive. By using molecular dynamics simulations with a specially designed Ca2+ model, we show that multiple Ca2+ ions accumulate in the upper selectivity filter of RyR1, but only one Ca2+ can occupy and translocate in the narrow pore at a time, assisted by electrostatic repulsion from the Ca2+ within the upper selectivity filter. The Ca2+ is nearly fully hydrated with the first solvation shell intact during the whole permeation process. These results suggest a remote knock-on permeation mechanism and one-at-a-time occupation pattern for the hydrated Ca2+ within the narrow pore, uncovering the basis underlying the high permeability and low selectivity of the RyR channels.
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20
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Catterall WA, Lenaeus MJ, Gamal El-Din TM. Structure and Pharmacology of Voltage-Gated Sodium and Calcium Channels. Annu Rev Pharmacol Toxicol 2020; 60:133-154. [PMID: 31537174 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-pharmtox-010818-021757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 132] [Impact Index Per Article: 33.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Voltage-gated sodium and calcium channels are evolutionarily related transmembrane signaling proteins that initiate action potentials, neurotransmission, excitation-contraction coupling, and other physiological processes. Genetic or acquired dysfunction of these proteins causes numerous diseases, termed channelopathies, and sodium and calcium channels are the molecular targets for several major classes of drugs. Recent advances in the structural biology of these proteins using X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy have given new insights into the molecular basis for their function and pharmacology. Here we review this recent literature and integrate findings on sodium and calcium channels to reveal the structural basis for their voltage-dependent activation, fast and slow inactivation, ion conductance and selectivity, and complex pharmacology at the atomic level. We conclude with the theme that new understanding of the diseases and therapeutics of these channels will be derived from application of the emerging structural principles from these recent structural analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- William A Catterall
- Department of Pharmacology and Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA;
| | - Michael J Lenaeus
- Department of Pharmacology and Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA;
| | - Tamer M Gamal El-Din
- Department of Pharmacology and Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA;
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21
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Wang Y, Nguyen NX, She J, Zeng W, Yang Y, Bai XC, Jiang Y. Structural Mechanism of EMRE-Dependent Gating of the Human Mitochondrial Calcium Uniporter. Cell 2019; 177:1252-1261.e13. [PMID: 31080062 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2019.03.050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2018] [Revised: 02/09/2019] [Accepted: 03/27/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Mitochondrial calcium uptake is crucial to the regulation of eukaryotic Ca2+ homeostasis and is mediated by the mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU). While MCU alone can transport Ca2+ in primitive eukaryotes, metazoans require an essential single membrane-spanning auxiliary component called EMRE to form functional channels; however, the molecular mechanism of EMRE regulation remains elusive. Here, we present the cryo-EM structure of the human MCU-EMRE complex, which defines the interactions between MCU and EMRE as well as pinpoints the juxtamembrane loop of MCU and extended linker of EMRE as the crucial elements in the EMRE-dependent gating mechanism among metazoan MCUs. The structure also features the dimerization of two MCU-EMRE complexes along an interface at the N-terminal domain (NTD) of human MCU that is a hotspot for post-translational modifications. Thus, the human MCU-EMRE complex, which constitutes the minimal channel components among metazoans, provides a framework for future mechanistic studies on MCU.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Wang
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA; Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Nam X Nguyen
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA; Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Ji She
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA; Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Weizhong Zeng
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA; Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Yi Yang
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA; Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Xiao-Chen Bai
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA; Department of Cell Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
| | - Youxing Jiang
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA; Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
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22
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Phillips CB, Tsai CW, Tsai MF. The conserved aspartate ring of MCU mediates MICU1 binding and regulation in the mitochondrial calcium uniporter complex. eLife 2019; 8:41112. [PMID: 30638448 PMCID: PMC6347451 DOI: 10.7554/elife.41112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2018] [Accepted: 01/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The mitochondrial calcium uniporter is a Ca2+ channel that regulates intracellular Ca2+ signaling, oxidative phosphorylation, and apoptosis. It contains the pore-forming MCU protein, which possesses a DIME sequence thought to form a Ca2+ selectivity filter, and also regulatory EMRE, MICU1, and MICU2 subunits. To properly carry out physiological functions, the uniporter must stay closed in resting conditions, becoming open only when stimulated by intracellular Ca2+ signals. This Ca2+-dependent activation, known to be mediated by MICU subunits, is not well understood. Here, we demonstrate that the DIME-aspartate mediates a Ca2+-modulated electrostatic interaction with MICU1, forming an MICU1 contact interface with a nearby Ser residue at the cytoplasmic entrance of the MCU pore. A mutagenesis screen of MICU1 identifies two highly-conserved Arg residues that might contact the DIME-Asp. Perturbing MCU-MICU1 interactions elicits unregulated, constitutive Ca2+ flux into mitochondria. These results indicate that MICU1 confers Ca2+-dependent gating of the uniporter by blocking/unblocking MCU.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Chen-Wei Tsai
- Department of Biochemistry, Brandeis University, Waltham, United States.,Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States
| | - Ming-Feng Tsai
- Department of Biochemistry, Brandeis University, Waltham, United States.,Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States
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23
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Abstract
This review will first describe the importance of Ca2+ entry for function of excitable cells, and the subsequent discovery of voltage-activated calcium conductances in these cells. This finding was rapidly followed by the identification of multiple subtypes of calcium conductance in different tissues. These were initially termed low- and high-voltage activated currents, but were then further subdivided into L-, N-, PQ-, R- and T-type calcium currents on the basis of differing pharmacology, voltage-dependent and kinetic properties, and single channel conductance. Purification of skeletal muscle calcium channels allowed the molecular identification of the pore-forming and auxiliary α2δ, β and ϒ subunits present in these calcium channel complexes. These advances then led to the cloning of the different subunits, which permitted molecular characterisation, to match the cloned channels with physiological function. Studies with knockout and other mutant mice then allowed further investigation of physiological and pathophysiological roles of calcium channels. In terms of pharmacology, cardiovascular L-type channels are targets for the widely used antihypertensive 1,4-dihydropyridines and other calcium channel blockers, N-type channels are a drug target in pain, and α2δ-1 is the therapeutic target of the gabapentinoid drugs, used in neuropathic pain. Recent structural advances have allowed a deeper understanding of Ca2+ permeation through the channel pore and the structure of both the pore-forming and auxiliary subunits. Voltage-gated calcium channels are subject to multiple pathways of modulation by G-protein and second messenger regulation. Furthermore, their trafficking pathways, subcellular localisation and functional specificity are the subjects of active investigation.
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24
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Napolitano LMR, Marchesi A, Rodriguez A, De March M, Onesti S, Laio A, Torre V. The permeation mechanism of organic cations through a CNG mimic channel. PLoS Comput Biol 2018; 14:e1006295. [PMID: 30071012 PMCID: PMC6091977 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2018] [Revised: 08/14/2018] [Accepted: 06/12/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Several channels, ranging from TRP receptors to Gap junctions, allow the exchange of small organic solute across cell membrane. However, very little is known about the molecular mechanism of their permeation. Cyclic Nucleotide Gated (CNG) channels, despite their homology with K+ channels and in contrast with them, allow the passage of larger methylated and ethylated ammonium ions like dimethylammonium (DMA) and ethylammonium (EA). We combined electrophysiology and molecular dynamics simulations to examine how DMA interacts with the pore and permeates through it. Due to the presence of hydrophobic groups, DMA enters easily in the channel and, unlike the alkali cations, does not need to cross any barrier. We also show that while the crystal structure is consistent with the presence of a single DMA ion at full occupancy, the channel is able to conduct a sizable current of DMA ions only when two ions are present inside the channel. Moreover, the second DMA ion dramatically changes the free energy landscape, destabilizing the crystallographic binding site and lowering by almost 25 kJ/mol the binding affinity between DMA and the channel. Based on the results of the simulation the experimental electron density maps can be re-interpreted with the presence of a second ion at lower occupancy. In this mechanism the flexibility of the channel plays a key role, extending the classical multi-ion permeation paradigm in which conductance is enhanced by the plain interaction between the ions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luisa M. R. Napolitano
- International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
- Structural Biology Laboratory, Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A., Basovizza, Trieste, Italy
| | - Arin Marchesi
- INSERM U1006, Aix-Marseille Université, Parc Scientifique et Technologique de Luminy, Marseille, France
| | - Alex Rodriguez
- International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
| | - Matteo De March
- Structural Biology Laboratory, Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A., Basovizza, Trieste, Italy
| | - Silvia Onesti
- Structural Biology Laboratory, Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A., Basovizza, Trieste, Italy
| | - Alessandro Laio
- International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
- ICTP, International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Trieste, Italy
| | - Vincent Torre
- International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
- Cixi Institute of Biomedical Engineering (CNITECH), Nigbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Zhejiang, P.R. China
- Center of Systems Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Suzhou Institute of Systems Medicine, Suzhou Industrial Park, Suzhou, Jiangsu, P.R. China
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25
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Nguyen NX, Armache JP, Lee C, Yang Y, Zeng W, Mootha VK, Cheng Y, Bai XC, Jiang Y. Cryo-EM structure of a fungal mitochondrial calcium uniporter. Nature 2018; 559:570-574. [PMID: 29995855 PMCID: PMC6063787 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0333-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 106] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2018] [Accepted: 05/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) is a highly selective calcium channel localized to the inner mitochondrial membrane. Here, we describe the structure of an MCU orthologue from the fungus Neosartorya fischeri (NfMCU) determined to 3.8 Å resolution by phase-plate cryo-electron microscopy. The channel is a homotetramer with two-fold symmetry in its amino-terminal domain (NTD) that adopts a similar structure to that of human MCU. The NTD assembles as a dimer of dimers to form a tetrameric ring that connects to the transmembrane domain through an elongated coiled-coil domain. The ion-conducting pore domain maintains four-fold symmetry, with the selectivity filter positioned at the start of the pore-forming TM2 helix. The aspartate and glutamate sidechains of the conserved DIME motif are oriented towards the central axis and separated by one helical turn. The structure of NfMCU offers insights into channel assembly, selective calcium permeation, and inhibitor binding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nam X Nguyen
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Jean-Paul Armache
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Keck Advanced Microscopy Laboratory, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Changkeun Lee
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
- Amgen Discovery Research, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Yi Yang
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Weizhong Zeng
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Vamsi K Mootha
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Molecular Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Yifan Cheng
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Keck Advanced Microscopy Laboratory, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Xiao-Chen Bai
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
| | - Youxing Jiang
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
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Sakipov S, Sobolevsky AI, Kurnikova MG. Ion Permeation Mechanism in Epithelial Calcium Channel TRVP6. Sci Rep 2018; 8:5715. [PMID: 29632318 PMCID: PMC5890290 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-23972-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2018] [Accepted: 03/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Calcium is the most abundant metal in the human body that plays vital roles as a cellular electrolyte as well as the smallest and most frequently used signaling molecule. Calcium uptake in epithelial tissues is mediated by tetrameric calcium-selective transient receptor potential (TRP) channels TRPV6 that are implicated in a variety of human diseases, including numerous forms of cancer. We used TRPV6 crystal structures as templates for molecular dynamics simulations to identify ion binding sites and to study the permeation mechanism of calcium and other ions through TRPV6 channels. We found that at low Ca2+ concentrations, a single calcium ion binds at the selectivity filter narrow constriction formed by aspartates D541 and allows Na+ permeation. In the presence of ions, no water binds to or crosses the pore constriction. At high Ca2+ concentrations, calcium permeates the pore according to the knock-off mechanism that includes formation of a short-lived transition state with three calcium ions bound near D541. For Ba2+, the transition state lives longer and the knock-off permeation occurs slower. Gd3+ binds at D541 tightly, blocks the channel and prevents Na+ from permeating the pore. Our results provide structural foundations for understanding permeation and block in tetrameric calcium-selective ion channels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Serzhan Sakipov
- Chemistry Department, Carnegie Mellon University, 4400 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA
| | - Alexander I Sobolevsky
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, 650 West 168th St., New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Maria G Kurnikova
- Chemistry Department, Carnegie Mellon University, 4400 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA.
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Guardiani C, Fedorenko OA, Roberts SK, Khovanov IA. On the selectivity of the NaChBac channel: an integrated computational and experimental analysis of sodium and calcium permeation. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2018; 19:29840-29854. [PMID: 29090695 DOI: 10.1039/c7cp05928k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Ion channel selectivity is essential for their function, yet the molecular basis of a channel's ability to select between ions is still rather controversial. In this work, using a combination of molecular dynamics simulations and electrophysiological current measurements we analyze the ability of the NaChBac channel to discriminate between calcium and sodium. Our simulations show that a single calcium ion can access the Selectivity Filter (SF) interacting so strongly with the glutamate ring so as to remain blocked inside. This is consistent with the tiny calcium currents recorded in our patch-clamp experiments. Two reasons explain this scenario. The first is the higher free energy of ion/SF binding of Ca2+ with respect to Na+. The second is the strong electrostatic repulsion exerted by the resident ion that turns back a second potentially incoming Ca2+, preventing the knock-on permeation mechanism. Finally, we analyzed the possibility of the Anomalous Mole Fraction Effect (AMFE), i.e. the ability of micromolar Ca2+ concentrations to block Na+ currents. Current measurements in Na+/Ca2+ mixed solutions excluded the AMFE, in agreement with metadynamics simulations showing the ability of a sodium ion to by-pass and partially displace the resident calcium. Our work supports a new scenario for Na+/Ca2+ selectivity in the bacterial sodium channel, challenging the traditional notion of an exclusion mechanism strictly confining Ca2+ ions outside the channel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlo Guardiani
- School of Engineering, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK.
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28
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The chemical basis for electrical signaling. Nat Chem Biol 2017; 13:455-463. [PMID: 28406893 DOI: 10.1038/nchembio.2353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 122] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2016] [Accepted: 01/26/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Electrical signals generated by minute currents of ions moving across cell membranes are central to all rapid processes in biology. Initiation and propagation of electrical signals requires voltage-gated sodium (NaV) and calcium (CaV) channels. These channels contain a tetramer of membrane-bound subunits or domains comprising a voltage sensor and a pore module. Voltage-dependent activation occurs as membrane depolarization drives outward movements of positive gating changes in the voltage sensor via a sliding-helix mechanism, which leads to a conformational change in the pore module that opens its intracellular activation gate. A unique negatively charged site in the selectivity filter conducts hydrated Na+ or Ca2+ rapidly and selectively. Ion conductance is terminated by voltage-dependent inactivation, which causes asymmetric pore collapse. This Review focuses on recent advances in structure and function of NaV and CaV channels that expand our current understanding of the chemical basis for electrical signaling mechanisms conserved from bacteria to humans.
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Kim DM, Nimigean CM. Voltage-Gated Potassium Channels: A Structural Examination of Selectivity and Gating. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Biol 2016; 8:a029231. [PMID: 27141052 PMCID: PMC4852806 DOI: 10.1101/cshperspect.a029231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Voltage-gated potassium channels play a fundamental role in the generation and propagation of the action potential. The discovery of these channels began with predictions made by early pioneers, and has culminated in their extensive functional and structural characterization by electrophysiological, spectroscopic, and crystallographic studies. With the aid of a variety of crystal structures of these channels, a highly detailed picture emerges of how the voltage-sensing domain reports changes in the membrane electric field and couples this to conformational changes in the activation gate. In addition, high-resolution structural and functional studies of K(+) channel pores, such as KcsA and MthK, offer a comprehensive picture on how selectivity is achieved in K(+) channels. Here, we illustrate the remarkable features of voltage-gated potassium channels and explain the mechanisms used by these machines with experimental data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dorothy M Kim
- Department of Anesthesiology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York 10065
| | - Crina M Nimigean
- Department of Anesthesiology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York 10065
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Liu XP, Wooltorton JRA, Gaboyard-Niay S, Yang FC, Lysakowski A, Eatock RA. Sodium channel diversity in the vestibular ganglion: NaV1.5, NaV1.8, and tetrodotoxin-sensitive currents. J Neurophysiol 2016; 115:2536-55. [PMID: 26936982 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00902.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2015] [Accepted: 02/02/2016] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Firing patterns differ between subpopulations of vestibular primary afferent neurons. The role of sodium (NaV) channels in this diversity has not been investigated because NaV currents in rodent vestibular ganglion neurons (VGNs) were reported to be homogeneous, with the voltage dependence and tetrodotoxin (TTX) sensitivity of most neuronal NaV channels. RT-PCR experiments, however, indicated expression of diverse NaV channel subunits in the vestibular ganglion, motivating a closer look. Whole cell recordings from acutely dissociated postnatal VGNs confirmed that nearly all neurons expressed NaV currents that are TTX-sensitive and have activation midpoints between -30 and -40 mV. In addition, however, many VGNs expressed one of two other NaV currents. Some VGNs had a small current with properties consistent with NaV1.5 channels: low TTX sensitivity, sensitivity to divalent cation block, and a relatively negative voltage range, and some VGNs showed NaV1.5-like immunoreactivity. Other VGNs had a current with the properties of NaV1.8 channels: high TTX resistance, slow time course, and a relatively depolarized voltage range. In two NaV1.8 reporter lines, subsets of VGNs were labeled. VGNs with NaV1.8-like TTX-resistant current also differed from other VGNs in the voltage dependence of their TTX-sensitive currents and in the voltage threshold for spiking and action potential shape. Regulated expression of NaV channels in primary afferent neurons is likely to selectively affect firing properties that contribute to the encoding of vestibular stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Ping Liu
- Speech and Hearing Bioscience and Technology Program, Harvard-Massachusetts Institute of Technology Health Sciences and Technology Program, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Eaton-Peabody Laboratories, Massachusetts Eye and Ear, and Department of Otology and Laryngology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | | | - Sophie Gaboyard-Niay
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Fu-Chia Yang
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; and
| | - Anna Lysakowski
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois; Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Ruth Anne Eatock
- Eaton-Peabody Laboratories, Massachusetts Eye and Ear, and Department of Otology and Laryngology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; and Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
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Kuzmenkov AI, Grishin EV, Vassilevski AA. Diversity of Potassium Channel Ligands: Focus on Scorpion Toxins. BIOCHEMISTRY (MOSCOW) 2016; 80:1764-99. [DOI: 10.1134/s0006297915130118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
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Yang W, Li Q, Wang SY, Gao F, Qian WJ, Li F, Ji M, Sun XH, Miao Y, Wang Z. Cannabinoid receptor agonists modulate calcium channels in rat retinal müller cells. Neuroscience 2016; 313:213-24. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2015.11.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2015] [Revised: 11/10/2015] [Accepted: 11/17/2015] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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Dagostin AA, Lovell PV, Hilscher MM, Mello CV, Leão RM. Control of Phasic Firing by a Background Leak Current in Avian Forebrain Auditory Neurons. Front Cell Neurosci 2015; 9:471. [PMID: 26696830 PMCID: PMC4674572 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2015.00471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2015] [Accepted: 11/19/2015] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Central neurons express a variety of neuronal types and ion channels that promote firing heterogeneity among their distinct neuronal populations. Action potential (AP) phasic firing, produced by low-threshold voltage-activated potassium currents (VAKCs), is commonly observed in mammalian brainstem neurons involved in the processing of temporal properties of the acoustic information. The avian caudomedial nidopallium (NCM) is an auditory area analogous to portions of the mammalian auditory cortex that is involved in the perceptual discrimination and memorization of birdsong and shows complex responses to auditory stimuli We performed in vitro whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in brain slices from adult zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) and observed that half of NCM neurons fire APs phasically in response to membrane depolarizations, while the rest fire transiently or tonically. Phasic neurons fired APs faster and with more temporal precision than tonic and transient neurons. These neurons had similar membrane resting potentials, but phasic neurons had lower membrane input resistance and time constant. Surprisingly phasic neurons did not express low-threshold VAKCs, which curtailed firing in phasic mammalian brainstem neurons, having similar VAKCs to other NCM neurons. The phasic firing was determined not by VAKCs, but by the potassium background leak conductances, which was more prominently expressed in phasic neurons, a result corroborated by pharmacological, dynamic-clamp, and modeling experiments. These results reveal a new role for leak currents in generating firing diversity in central neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
- André A Dagostin
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Peter V Lovell
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland OR, USA
| | - Markus M Hilscher
- Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte Natal, Brazil ; Institute for Analysis and Scientific Computing, Vienna University of Technology Vienna, Austria
| | - Claudio V Mello
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland OR, USA
| | - Ricardo M Leão
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
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Affiliation(s)
- William A Catterall
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195-7280.
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Catterall WA, Zheng N. Deciphering voltage-gated Na(+) and Ca(2+) channels by studying prokaryotic ancestors. Trends Biochem Sci 2015; 40:526-34. [PMID: 26254514 DOI: 10.1016/j.tibs.2015.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2015] [Revised: 06/25/2015] [Accepted: 07/06/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Voltage-gated sodium channels (NaVs) and calcium channels (CaVs) are involved in electrical signaling, contraction, secretion, synaptic transmission, and other physiological processes activated in response to depolarization. Despite their physiological importance, the structures of these closely related proteins have remained elusive because of their size and complexity. Bacterial NaVs have structures analogous to a single domain of eukaryotic NaVs and CaVs and are their likely evolutionary ancestor. Here we review recent work that has led to new understanding of NaVs and CaVs through high-resolution structural studies of their prokaryotic ancestors. New insights into their voltage-dependent activation and inactivation, ion conductance, and ion selectivity provide realistic structural models for the function of these complex membrane proteins at the atomic level.
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Affiliation(s)
- William A Catterall
- Department of Pharmacology, Box 357280, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
| | - Ning Zheng
- Department of Pharmacology, Box 357280, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Box 357280, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
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36
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Lockless SW. Determinants of cation transport selectivity: Equilibrium binding and transport kinetics. J Gen Physiol 2015; 146:3-13. [PMID: 26078056 PMCID: PMC4485025 DOI: 10.1085/jgp.201511371] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2015] [Accepted: 05/11/2015] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
The crystal structures of channels and transporters reveal the chemical nature of ion-binding sites and, thereby, constrain mechanistic models for their transport processes. However, these structures, in and of themselves, do not reveal equilibrium selectivity or transport preferences, which can be discerned only from various functional assays. In this Review, I explore the relationship between cation transport protein structures, equilibrium binding measurements, and ion transport selectivity. The primary focus is on K(+)-selective channels and nonselective cation channels because they have been extensively studied both functionally and structurally, but the principles discussed are relevant to other transport proteins and molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steve W Lockless
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843
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37
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Voltage-gated calcium channels: Determinants of channel function and modulation by inorganic cations. Prog Neurobiol 2015; 129:1-36. [PMID: 25817891 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2014.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2014] [Revised: 12/15/2014] [Accepted: 12/27/2014] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs) represent a key link between electrical signals and non-electrical processes, such as contraction, secretion and transcription. Evolved to achieve high rates of Ca(2+)-selective flux, they possess an elaborate mechanism for selection of Ca(2+) over foreign ions. It has been convincingly linked to competitive binding in the pore, but the fundamental question of how this is reconcilable with high rates of Ca(2+) transfer remains unanswered. By virtue of their similarity to Ca(2+), polyvalent cations can interfere with the function of VGCCs and have proven instrumental in probing the mechanisms underlying selective permeation. Recent emergence of crystallographic data on a set of Ca(2+)-selective model channels provides a structural framework for permeation in VGCCs, and warrants a reconsideration of their diverse modulation by polyvalent cations, which can be roughly separated into three general mechanisms: (I) long-range interactions with charged regions on the surface, affecting the local potential sensed by the channel or influencing voltage-sensor movement by repulsive forces (electrostatic effects), (II) short-range interactions with sites in the ion-conducting pathway, leading to physical obstruction of the channel (pore block), and in some cases (III) short-range interactions with extracellular binding sites, leading to non-electrostatic modifications of channel gating (allosteric effects). These effects, together with the underlying molecular modifications, provide valuable insights into the function of VGCCs, and have important physiological and pathophysiological implications. Allosteric suppression of some of the pore-forming Cavα1-subunits (Cav2.3, Cav3.2) by Zn(2+) and Cu(2+) may play a major role for the regulation of excitability by endogenous transition metal ions. The fact that these ions can often traverse VGCCs can contribute to the detrimental intracellular accumulation of metal ions following excessive release of endogenous Cu(2+) and Zn(2+) or exposure to non-physiological toxic metal ions.
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Buraei Z, Lee HK, Elmslie KS. Single channel measurements demonstrate the voltage dependence of permeation through N-type and L-type CaV channels. Channels (Austin) 2015; 9:50-5. [PMID: 25664681 DOI: 10.4161/19336950.2014.991606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The delivery of Ca2+ into cells by CaV channels provides the trigger for many cellular actions, such as cardiac muscle contraction and neurotransmitter release. Thus, a full understanding of Ca2+ permeation through these channels is critical. Using whole-cell voltage-clamp recordings, we recently demonstrated that voltage modulates the apparent affinity of N-type (CaV2.2) channels for permeating Ca2+ and Ba2+ ions. While we took many steps to ensure the high fidelity of our recordings, problems can occur when CaV currents become large and fast, or when currents run down. Thus, we use here single channel recordings to further test the hypothesis that permeating ions interact with N-type channels in a voltage-dependent manner. We also examined L-type (CaV1.2) channels to determine if these channels also exhibit voltage-dependent permeation. Like our whole-cell data, we find that voltage modulates N-channel affinity for Ba2+ at voltages>0 mV, but has little or no effect at voltages<0 mV. Furthermore, we demonstrate that permeation through L-channel is also modulated by voltage. Thus, voltage-dependence may be a common feature of divalent cation permeation through CaV1 and CaV2 channels (i.e. high-voltage activated CaV channels). The voltage dependence of CaV1 channel permeation is likely a mechanism mediating sustained Ca2+ influx during the plateau phase of the cardiac action potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zafir Buraei
- a Department of Biology ; Pace University ; New York , NY USA
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Lou Q, Belevych AE, Radwański PB, Liu B, Kalyanasundaram A, Knollmann BC, Fedorov VV, Györke S. Alternating membrane potential/calcium interplay underlies repetitive focal activity in a genetic model of calcium-dependent atrial arrhythmias. J Physiol 2014; 593:1443-58. [PMID: 25384790 DOI: 10.1113/jphysiol.2014.280784] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2014] [Accepted: 10/23/2014] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
KEY POINTS Atrial fibrillation is often initiated and perpetuated by abnormal electrical pulses repetitively originating from regions outside the heart's natural pacemaker. In this study we examined the causal role of abnormal calcium releases from the sarcoplasmic reticulum in producing repetitive electrical discharges in atrial cells and tissues. Calsequestrin2 is a protein that stabilizes the closed state of calcium release channels, i.e. the ryanodine receptors. In the atria from mice predisposed to abnormal calcium releases secondary to the absence of calsequestrin2, we observed abnormal repetitive electrical discharges that may lead to atrial fibrillation. Here, we report a novel pathological rhythm generator. Specifically, abnormal calcium release leads to electrical activation, which in turn results in another abnormal calcium release. This process repeats itself and thus sustains the repetitive electrical discharges. These results suggest that improving the stability of ryanodine receptors might be useful to treat atrial fibrillation. ABSTRACT Aberrant diastolic calcium (Ca) release due to leaky ryanodine receptors (RyR2s) has been recently associated with atrial fibrillation (AF) and catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT). However, it remains unclear how diastolic Ca release contributes to the rising of rapid repetitive focal activity, which is considered as a common AF triggering mechanism. To address this question, we conducted simultaneous voltage/Ca optical mapping in atrial tissue and one-/two-dimensional confocal imaging in atrial tissue and myocytes from wild-type (WT, n = 15) and CPVT mice lacking calsequestrin 2 (Casq2(-/-), n = 45), which promotes diastolic Ca release. During β-adrenergic stimulation (100 nM isoproterenol), only Casq2(-/-) atrial myocytes showed pacing-induced self-sustained repetitive activity (31 ± 21 s vs. none in WT). Importantly, in atrial tissue, this repetitive activity could translate to Ca-dependent focal arrhythmia. Ectopic action potential (AP) firing during repetitive activity occurred only when diastolic Ca release achieved a sufficient level of synchronization. The AP, in turn, synchronized subsequent diastolic Ca release by temporally aligning multiple sources of Ca waves both within individual myocytes and throughout the atrial tissue. This alternating interplay between AP and diastolic Ca release perpetuates the self-sustaining repetitive activity. In fact, pharmacological disruption of synchronized diastolic Ca release (by ryanodine) prevented aberrant APs; and vice versa, the inhibition of AP (by TTX or 0 Na, 0 Ca solution) de-synchronized diastolic Ca release. Taken together, these results suggest that a cyclical interaction between synchronized diastolic Ca release and AP forms a pathological rhythm generator that is involved in Ca-dependent atrial arrhythmias in CPVT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qing Lou
- Department of Physiology & Cell Biology, College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA; Davis Heart & Lung Research Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
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Effertz T, Scharr AL, Ricci AJ. The how and why of identifying the hair cell mechano-electrical transduction channel. Pflugers Arch 2014; 467:73-84. [PMID: 25241775 DOI: 10.1007/s00424-014-1606-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2014] [Revised: 08/28/2014] [Accepted: 09/01/2014] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Identification of the auditory hair cell mechano-electrical transduction (hcMET) channel has been a major focus in the hearing research field since the 1980s when direct mechanical gating of a transduction channel was proposed (Corey and Hudspeth J Neurosci 3:962-976, 1983). To this day, the molecular identity of this channel remains controversial. However, many of the hcMET channel's properties have been characterized, including pore properties, calcium-dependent ion permeability, rectification, and single channel conductance. At this point, elucidating the molecular identity of the hcMET channel will provide new tools for understanding the mechanotransduction process. This review discusses the significance of identifying the hcMET channel, the difficulties associated with that task, as well as the establishment of clear criteria for this identification. Finally, we discuss potential candidate channels in light of these criteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Effertz
- Department of Otolaryngology, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
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Payandeh J, Minor DL. Bacterial voltage-gated sodium channels (BacNa(V)s) from the soil, sea, and salt lakes enlighten molecular mechanisms of electrical signaling and pharmacology in the brain and heart. J Mol Biol 2014; 427:3-30. [PMID: 25158094 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2014.08.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2014] [Revised: 08/11/2014] [Accepted: 08/18/2014] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Voltage-gated sodium channels (Na(V)s) provide the initial electrical signal that drives action potential generation in many excitable cells of the brain, heart, and nervous system. For more than 60years, functional studies of Na(V)s have occupied a central place in physiological and biophysical investigation of the molecular basis of excitability. Recently, structural studies of members of a large family of bacterial voltage-gated sodium channels (BacNa(V)s) prevalent in soil, marine, and salt lake environments that bear many of the core features of eukaryotic Na(V)s have reframed ideas for voltage-gated channel function, ion selectivity, and pharmacology. Here, we analyze the recent advances, unanswered questions, and potential of BacNa(V)s as templates for drug development efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Payandeh
- Department of Structural Biology, Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA.
| | - Daniel L Minor
- Cardiovascular Research Institute, Departments of Biochemistry and Biophysics and Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, California Institute for Quantitative Biomedical Research, University of California, San Francisco, CA 93858-2330, USA; Physical Biosciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
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Buraei Z, Liang H, Elmslie KS. Voltage control of Ca²⁺ permeation through N-type calcium (Ca(V)2.2) channels. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 144:207-20. [PMID: 25114024 PMCID: PMC4144670 DOI: 10.1085/jgp.201411201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Voltage dependence of permeation enhances Ca2+ influx through CaV2.2 channels relative to that of other ions at depolarized voltages. Voltage-gated calcium (CaV) channels deliver Ca2+ to trigger cellular functions ranging from cardiac muscle contraction to neurotransmitter release. The mechanism by which these channels select for Ca2+ over other cations is thought to involve multiple Ca2+-binding sites within the pore. Although the Ca2+ affinity and cation preference of these sites have been extensively investigated, the effect of voltage on these sites has not received the same attention. We used a neuronal preparation enriched for N-type calcium (CaV2.2) channels to investigate the effect of voltage on Ca2+ flux. We found that the EC50 for Ca2+ permeation increases from 13 mM at 0 mV to 240 mM at 60 mV, indicating that, during permeation, Ca2+ ions sense the electric field. These data were nicely reproduced using a three-binding-site step model. Using roscovitine to slow CaV2.2 channel deactivation, we extended these measurements to voltages <0 mV. Permeation was minimally affected at these hyperpolarized voltages, as was predicted by the model. As an independent test of voltage effects on permeation, we examined the Ca2+-Ba2+ anomalous mole fraction (MF) effect, which was both concentration and voltage dependent. However, the Ca2+-Ba2+ anomalous MF data could not be reproduced unless we added a fourth site to our model. Thus, Ca2+ permeation through CaV2.2 channels may require at least four Ca2+-binding sites. Finally, our results suggest that the high affinity of Ca2+ for the channel helps to enhance Ca2+ influx at depolarized voltages relative to other ions (e.g., Ba2+ or Na+), whereas the absence of voltage effects at negative potentials prevents Ca2+ from becoming a channel blocker. Both effects are needed to maximize Ca2+ influx over the voltages spanned by action potentials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zafir Buraei
- Department of Biology and Health Sciences, Pace University, New York, NY 10038 Department of Physiology, Tulane University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA 70112
| | - Haoya Liang
- Department of Physiology, Tulane University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA 70112
| | - Keith S Elmslie
- Department of Physiology, Tulane University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA 70112 The Baker Laboratory of Pharmacology, Department of Pharmacology, Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine, A.T. Still University of Health Sciences, Kirksville, MO 63501
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Sauer DB, Zeng W, Canty J, Lam Y, Jiang Y. Sodium and potassium competition in potassium-selective and non-selective channels. Nat Commun 2014; 4:2721. [PMID: 24217363 PMCID: PMC3831281 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms3721] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2013] [Accepted: 10/07/2013] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Potassium channels selectively conduct K+, primarily to the exclusion of Na+, despite the fact that both ions can bind within the selectivity filter. Here we perform crystallographic titration and single-channel electrophysiology to examine the competition of Na+ and K+ binding within the filter of two NaK channel mutants; one is the potassium-selective NaK2K mutant and the other is the non-selective NaK2CNG, a CNG channel pore mimic. With high-resolution structures of these engineered NaK channel constructs, we explicitly describe the changes in K+ occupancy within the filter upon Na+ competition by anomalous diffraction. Our results demonstrate that the non-selective NaK2CNG still retains a K+-selective site at equilibrium, whereas the NaK2K channel filter maintains two high-affinity K+ sites. A double-barrier mechanism is proposed to explain K+ channel selectivity at low K+ concentrations. K+ channels are selective for K+ despite the fact that Na+ can bind and conduct through the selectivity filter. Sauer et al. show that a K+-selective NaK2K channel has two high-affinity K+-binding sites, whereas a non-selective NaK2CNG channel has one, and propose a double-barrier mechanism for ion selectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- David B Sauer
- 1] Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Boulevard, Dallas, Texas 75390-9040, USA [2]
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44
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Equilibrium selectivity alone does not create K+-selective ion conduction in K+ channels. Nat Commun 2014; 4:2746. [PMID: 24217508 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms3746] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2013] [Accepted: 10/10/2013] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Potassium (K(+)) channels are selective for K(+) over Na(+) ions during their transport across membranes. We and others have previously shown that tetrameric K(+) channels are primarily occupied by K(+) ions in their selectivity filters under physiological conditions, demonstrating the channel's intrinsic equilibrium preference for K(+) ions. Based on this observation, we hypothesize that the preference for K(+) ions over Na(+) ions in the filter determines its selectivity during ion conduction. Here, we ask whether non-selective cation channels, which share an overall structure and similar individual ion-binding sites with K(+) channels, have an ion preference at equilibrium. The variants of the non-selective Bacillus cereus NaK cation channel we examine are all selective for K(+) over Na(+) ions at equilibrium. Thus, the detailed architecture of the K(+) channel selectivity filter, and not only its equilibrium ion preference, is fundamental to the generation of selectivity during ion conduction.
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45
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A repulsion mechanism explains magnesium permeation and selectivity in CorA. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2014; 111:3002-7. [PMID: 24516146 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1319054111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Magnesium (Mg(2+)) plays a central role in biology, regulating the activity of many enzymes and stabilizing the structure of key macromolecules. In bacteria, CorA is the primary source of Mg(2+) uptake and is self-regulated by intracellular Mg(2+). Using a gating mutant at the divalent ion binding site, we were able to characterize CorA selectivity and permeation properties to both monovalent and divalent cations under perfused two-electrode voltage clamp. The present data demonstrate that under physiological conditions, CorA is a multioccupancy Mg(2+)-selective channel, fully excluding monovalent cations, and Ca(2+), whereas in absence of Mg(2+), CorA is essentially nonselective, displaying only mild preference against other divalents (Ca(2+) > Mn(2+) > Co(2+) > Mg(2+) > Ni(2)(+)). Selectivity against monovalent cations takes place via Mg(2+) binding at a high-affinity site, formed by the Gly-Met-Asn signature sequence (Gly312 and Asn314) at the extracellular side of the pore. This mechanism is reminiscent of repulsion models proposed for Ca(2+) channel selectivity despite differences in sequence and overall structure.
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46
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Models of calcium permeation through T-type channels. Pflugers Arch 2014; 466:635-44. [DOI: 10.1007/s00424-013-1437-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2013] [Revised: 12/27/2013] [Accepted: 12/28/2013] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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47
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Finol-Urdaneta RK, Wang Y, Al-Sabi A, Zhao C, Noskov SY, French RJ. Sodium channel selectivity and conduction: prokaryotes have devised their own molecular strategy. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 143:157-71. [PMID: 24420772 PMCID: PMC4001777 DOI: 10.1085/jgp.201311037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The molecular strategy for alkali cation selectivity by a bacterial sodium channel resembles those of eukaryotic calcium and potassium channels, rather than those of eukaryotic sodium channels. Striking structural differences between voltage-gated sodium (Nav) channels from prokaryotes (homotetramers) and eukaryotes (asymmetric, four-domain proteins) suggest the likelihood of different molecular mechanisms for common functions. For these two channel families, our data show similar selectivity sequences among alkali cations (relative permeability, Pion/PNa) and asymmetric, bi-ionic reversal potentials when the Na/K gradient is reversed. We performed coordinated experimental and computational studies, respectively, on the prokaryotic Nav channels NaChBac and NavAb. NaChBac shows an “anomalous,” nonmonotonic mole-fraction dependence in the presence of certain sodium–potassium mixtures; to our knowledge, no comparable observation has been reported for eukaryotic Nav channels. NaChBac’s preferential selectivity for sodium is reduced either by partial titration of its highly charged selectivity filter, when extracellular pH is lowered from 7.4 to 5.8, or by perturbation—likely steric—associated with a nominally electro-neutral substitution in the selectivity filter (E191D). Although no single molecular feature or energetic parameter appears to dominate, our atomistic simulations, based on the published NavAb crystal structure, revealed factors that may contribute to the normally observed selectivity for Na over K. These include: (a) a thermodynamic penalty to exchange one K+ for one Na+ in the wild-type (WT) channel, increasing the relative likelihood of Na+ occupying the binding site; (b) a small tendency toward weaker ion binding to the selectivity filter in Na–K mixtures, consistent with the higher conductance observed with both sodium and potassium present; and (c) integrated 1-D potentials of mean force for sodium or potassium movement that show less separation for the less selective E/D mutant than for WT. Overall, tight binding of a single favored ion to the selectivity filter, together with crucial inter-ion interactions within the pore, suggests that prokaryotic Nav channels use a selective strategy more akin to those of eukaryotic calcium and potassium channels than that of eukaryotic Nav channels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rocio K Finol-Urdaneta
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, 2 Hotchkiss Brain Institute, and 3 Department of Biological Sciences, Institute for Biocomplexity and Informatics, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta T2N 4N1, Canada
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48
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Scheuer T. Bacterial sodium channels: models for eukaryotic sodium and calcium channels. Handb Exp Pharmacol 2014; 221:269-91. [PMID: 24737241 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-41588-3_13] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Eukaryotic sodium and calcium channels are made up of four linked homologous but different transmembrane domains. Bacteria express sodium channels comprised of four identical subunits, each being analogous to a single homologous domain of their eukaryotic counterparts. Key elements of primary structure are conserved between bacterial and eukaryotic sodium and calcium channels. The simple protein structure of the bacterial channels has allowed extensive structure-function probes of key regions as well as allowing determination of several X-ray crystallographic structures of these channels. The structures have revealed novel features of sodium and calcium channel pores and elucidated the structural importance of many of the conserved features of primary sequence. The structural information has also formed the basis for computational studies probing the basis for sodium and calcium selectivity and gating.
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Affiliation(s)
- Todd Scheuer
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA,
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49
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González C, Baez-Nieto D, Valencia I, Oyarzún I, Rojas P, Naranjo D, Latorre R. K(+) channels: function-structural overview. Compr Physiol 2013; 2:2087-149. [PMID: 23723034 DOI: 10.1002/cphy.c110047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 143] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Potassium channels are particularly important in determining the shape and duration of the action potential, controlling the membrane potential, modulating hormone secretion, epithelial function and, in the case of those K(+) channels activated by Ca(2+), damping excitatory signals. The multiplicity of roles played by K(+) channels is only possible to their mammoth diversity that includes at present 70 K(+) channels encoding genes in mammals. Today, thanks to the use of cloning, mutagenesis, and the more recent structural studies using x-ray crystallography, we are in a unique position to understand the origins of the enormous diversity of this superfamily of ion channels, the roles they play in different cell types, and the relations that exist between structure and function. With the exception of two-pore K(+) channels that are dimers, voltage-dependent K(+) channels are tetrameric assemblies and share an extremely well conserved pore region, in which the ion-selectivity filter resides. In the present overview, we discuss in the function, localization, and the relations between function and structure of the five different subfamilies of K(+) channels: (a) inward rectifiers, Kir; (b) four transmembrane segments-2 pores, K2P; (c) voltage-gated, Kv; (d) the Slo family; and (e) Ca(2+)-activated SK family, SKCa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos González
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
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50
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Tang L, Gamal El-Din TM, Payandeh J, Martinez GQ, Heard TM, Scheuer T, Zheng N, Catterall WA. Structural basis for Ca2+ selectivity of a voltage-gated calcium channel. Nature 2013; 505:56-61. [PMID: 24270805 PMCID: PMC3877713 DOI: 10.1038/nature12775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 230] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2013] [Accepted: 10/09/2013] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Voltage-gated calcium (CaV) channels catalyze rapid, highly selective influx of Ca2+ into cells despite 70-fold higher extracellular concentration of Na+. How CaV channels solve this fundamental biophysical problem remains unclear. Here we report physiological and crystallographic analyses of a calcium selectivity filter constructed in the homotetrameric bacterial NaV channel NaVAb. Our results reveal interactions of hydrated Ca2+ with two high-affinity Ca2+-binding sites followed by a third lower-affinity site that would coordinate Ca2+ as it moves inward. At the selectivity filter entry, Site 1 is formed by four carboxyl side-chains, which play a critical role in determining Ca2+ selectivity. Four carboxyls plus four backbone carbonyls form Site 2, which is targeted by the blocking cations, Cd2+ and Mn2+, with single occupancy. The lower-affinity Site 3 is formed by four backbone carbonyls alone, which mediate exit into the central cavity. This pore architecture suggests a conduction pathway involving transitions between two main states with one or two hydrated Ca2+ ions bound in the selectivity filter and supports a “knock-off” mechanism of ion permeation through a stepwise-binding process. The multi-ion selectivity filter of our CaVAb model establishes a structural framework for understanding mechanisms of ion selectivity and conductance by vertebrate CaV channels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lin Tang
- 1] Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA [2] Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA [3]
| | - Tamer M Gamal El-Din
- 1] Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA [2]
| | - Jian Payandeh
- 1] Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA [2] Department of Structural Biology, Genentech Inc., South San Francisco, California 94080, USA
| | - Gilbert Q Martinez
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Teresa M Heard
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Todd Scheuer
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Ning Zheng
- 1] Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA [2] Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - William A Catterall
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
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