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Gaitán-Peñas H, Pérez-Rius C, Muhaisen A, Castellanos A, Errasti-Murugarren E, Barrallo-Gimeno A, Alcaraz-Pérez F, Estévez R. Characterization of ClC-1 chloride channels in zebrafish: a new model to study myotonia. J Physiol 2024. [PMID: 39031529 DOI: 10.1113/jp286530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2024] [Accepted: 07/01/2024] [Indexed: 07/22/2024] Open
Abstract
The function of the chloride channel ClC-1 is crucial for the control of muscle excitability. Thus, reduction of ClC-1 functions by CLCN1 mutations leads to myotonia congenita. Many different animal models have contributed to understanding the myotonia pathophysiology. However, these models do not allow in vivo screening of potentially therapeutic drugs, as the zebrafish model does. In this work, we identified and characterized the two zebrafish orthologues (clc-1a and clc-1b) of the ClC-1 channel. Both channels are mostly expressed in the skeletal muscle as revealed by RT-PCR, western blot, and electrophysiological recordings of myotubes, and clc-1a is predominantly expressed in adult stages. Characterization in Xenopus oocytes shows that the zebrafish channels display similar anion selectivity and voltage dependence to their human counterparts. However, they show reduced sensitivity to the inhibitor 9-anthracenecarboxylic acid (9-AC), and acidic pH inverts the voltage dependence of activation. Reduction of clc-1a/b expression hampers spontaneous and mechanically stimulated movement, which could be reverted by expression of human ClC-1 but not by some ClC-1 containing myotonia mutations. Treatment of clc-1-depleted zebrafish with mexiletine, a typical drug used in human myotonia, improves the motor behaviour. Our work extends the repertoire of ClC channels to evolutionary structure-function studies and proposes the zebrafish clcn1 crispant model as a simple tool to find novel therapies for myotonia. KEY POINTS: We have identified two orthologues of ClC-1 in zebrafish (clc-1a and clc-1b) which are mostly expressed in skeletal muscle at different developmental stages. Functional characterization of the activity of these channels reveals many similitudes with their mammalian counterparts, although they are less sensitive to 9-AC and acidic pH inverts their voltage dependence of gating. Reduction of clc-1a/b expression hampers spontaneous and mechanically stimulated movement which could be reverted by expression of human ClC-1. Myotonia-like symptoms caused by clc-1a/b depletion can be reverted by mexiletine, suggesting that this model could be used to find novel therapies for myotonia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Héctor Gaitán-Peñas
- Physiology Unit, Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
| | - Carla Pérez-Rius
- Physiology Unit, Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Ashraf Muhaisen
- Physiology Unit, Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Aida Castellanos
- Physiology Unit, Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
| | - Ekaitz Errasti-Murugarren
- Physiology Unit, Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alejandro Barrallo-Gimeno
- Physiology Unit, Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
| | - Francisca Alcaraz-Pérez
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
- Department of Surgery, Telomerase, Cancer and Aging Group (TCAG), Hospital Clínico Universitario Virgen de la Arrixaca, Murcia, Spain
- Instituto Murciano de Investigación Biosanitaria-Arrixaca (IMIB-Arrixaca), Murcia, Spain
| | - Raúl Estévez
- Physiology Unit, Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
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Park SJ, Silic MR, Staab PL, Chen J, Zackschewski EL, Zhang G. Evolution of two-pore domain potassium channels and their gene expression in zebrafish embryos. Dev Dyn 2024:10.1002/dvdy.690. [PMID: 38270285 PMCID: PMC11269526 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.690] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Revised: 12/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/03/2024] [Indexed: 01/26/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The two-pore domain potassium (K2P) channels are a major type of potassium channels that maintain the cell membrane potential by conducting passive potassium leak currents independent of voltage change. They play prominent roles in multiple physiological processes, including neuromodulation, perception of pain, breathing and mood control, and response to volatile anesthetics. Mutations in K2P channels have been linked to many human diseases, such as neuronal and cardiovascular disorders and cancers. Significant progress has been made to understand their protein structures, physiological functions, and pharmacological modifiers. However, their expression and function during embryonic development remain largely unknown. RESULTS We employed the zebrafish model and identified 23 k2p genes using BLAST search and gene cloning. We first analyzed vertebrate K2P channel evolution by phylogenetic and syntenic analyses. Our data revealed that the six subtypes of the K2P genes have already evolved in invertebrates long before the emergence of vertebrates. Moreover, the vertebrate K2P gene number increased, most likely due to two whole-genome duplications. Furthermore, we examined zebrafish k2p gene expression during early embryogenesis by in situ hybridization. Each subgroup's genes showed similar but distinct gene expression domains with some exceptions. Most of them were expressed in neural tissues consistent with their known function of neural excitability regulation. However, a few k2p genes were expressed temporarily in specific tissues or organs, suggesting that these K2P channels may be needed for embryonic development. CONCLUSIONS Our phylogenetic and developmental analyses of K2P channels shed light on their evolutionary history and potential roles during embryogenesis related to their physiological functions and human channelopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sung Jun Park
- Department of Comparative Pathobiology, Purdue University, 625 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, Indiana. 47906. USA
| | - Martin R. Silic
- Department of Comparative Pathobiology, Purdue University, 625 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, Indiana. 47906. USA
| | - Peyton L. Staab
- Department of Comparative Pathobiology, Purdue University, 625 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, Indiana. 47906. USA
| | - Jiapei Chen
- Department of Comparative Pathobiology, Purdue University, 625 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, Indiana. 47906. USA
| | - Ethan L. Zackschewski
- Department of Comparative Pathobiology, Purdue University, 625 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, Indiana. 47906. USA
| | - GuangJun Zhang
- Department of Comparative Pathobiology, Purdue University, 625 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, Indiana. 47906. USA
- Purdue University Center for Cancer Research, Purdue University, 625 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, Indiana. 47906. USA
- Purdue Institute for Inflammation, Immunology and Infectious Diseases (PI4D), Purdue University, 625 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, Indiana. 47906. USA
- Purdue Institute for Integrative Neuroscience, Purdue University, 625 Harrison Street, West Lafayette, Indiana. 47906. USA
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