Conformational changes in extracellular loop 2 associated with signal transduction in the glycine receptor

Structural models of ligand-gated ion channels: sites of action for anesthetics and ethanol

The molecular mechanism(s) of action of anesthetic, and especially, intoxicating doses of alcohol (ethanol [EtOH]) have been of interest even before the advent of the Research Society on Alcoholism. Recent physiological, genetic, and biochemical studies have pin-pointed molecular targets for anesthetics and EtOH in the brain as ligand-gated ion channel (LGIC) membrane proteins, especially the pentameric (5 subunit) Cys-loop superfamily of neurotransmitter receptors including nicotinic acetylcholine (nAChRs), GABAA (GABAA Rs), and glycine receptors (GlyRs). The ability to demonstrate molecular and structural elements of these proteins critical for the behavioral effects of these drugs on animals and humans provides convincing evidence for their role in the drugs' actions. Amino acid residues necessary for pharmacologically relevant allosteric modulation of LGIC function by anesthetics and EtOH have been identified in these channel proteins. Site-directed mutagenesis revealed potential allosteric modulatory sites in both the trans-membrane domain (TMD) and extracellular domain (ECD). Potential sites of action and binding have been deduced from homology modeling of other LGICs with structures known from crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy studies. Direct information about ligand binding in the TMD has been obtained by photoaffinity labeling, especially in GABAA Rs. Recent structural information from crystallized procaryotic (ELIC and GLIC) and eukaryotic (GluCl) LGICs allows refinement of the structural models including evaluation of possible sites of EtOH action.

TCR Nanoclusters as the Framework for Transmission of Conformational Changes and Cooperativity

Increasing evidence favors the notion that, before triggering, the T cell antigen receptor (TCR) forms nanometer-scale oligomers that are called nanoclusters. The organization of the TCR in pre-existing oligomers cannot be ignored when analyzing the properties of ligand (pMHC) recognition and signal transduction. As with other membrane receptors, the existence of TCR oligomers points out to cooperativity phenomena. We review the data in support of conformational changes in the TCR as the basic principle to transduce the activation signal to the cytoplasm and the incipient data suggesting cooperativity within nanoclusters.

Charge and geometry of residues in the loop 2 β hairpin differentially affect agonist and ethanol sensitivity in glycine receptors

Recent studies highlighted the importance of loop 2 of α1 glycine receptors (GlyRs) in the propagation of ligand-binding energy to the channel gate. Mutations that changed polarity at position 52 in the β hairpin of loop 2 significantly affected sensitivity to ethanol. The present study extends the investigation to charged residues. We found that substituting alanine with the negative glutamate at position 52 (A52E) significantly left-shifted the glycine concentration response curve and increased sensitivity to ethanol, whereas the negative aspartate substitution (A52D) significantly right-shifted the glycine EC₅₀ but did not affect ethanol sensitivity. It is noteworthy that the uncharged glutamine at position 52 (A52Q) caused only a small right shift of the glycine EC₅₀ while increasing ethanol sensitivity as much as A52E. In contrast, the shorter uncharged asparagine (A52N) caused the greatest right shift of glycine EC₅₀ and reduced ethanol sensitivity to half of wild type. Collectively, these findings suggest that charge interactions determined by the specific geometry of the amino acid at position 52 (e.g., the 1-Å chain length difference between aspartate and glutamate) play differential roles in receptor sensitivity to agonist and ethanol. We interpret these results in terms of a new homology model of GlyR based on a prokaryotic ion channel and propose that these mutations form salt bridges to residues across the β hairpin (A52E-R59 and A52N-D57). We hypothesize that these electrostatic interactions distort loop 2, thereby changing agonist activation and ethanol modulation. This knowledge will help to define the key physical-chemical parameters that cause the actions of ethanol in GlyRs.

Contributions of conserved residues at the gating interface of glycine receptors

Glycine receptors (GlyRs) are chloride channels that mediate fast inhibitory neurotransmission and are members of the pentameric ligand-gated ion channel (pLGIC) family. The interface between the ligand binding domain and the transmembrane domain of pLGICs has been proposed to be crucial for channel gating and is lined by a number of charged and aromatic side chains that are highly conserved among different pLGICs. However, little is known about specific interactions between these residues that are likely to be important for gating in α1 GlyRs. Here we use the introduction of cysteine pairs and the in vivo nonsense suppression method to incorporate unnatural amino acids to probe the electrostatic and hydrophobic contributions of five highly conserved side chains near the interface, Glu-53, Phe-145, Asp-148, Phe-187, and Arg-218. Our results suggest a salt bridge between Asp-148 in loop 7 and Arg-218 in the pre-M1 domain that is crucial for channel gating. We further propose that Phe-145 and Phe-187 play important roles in stabilizing this interaction by providing a hydrophobic environment. In contrast to the equivalent residues in loop 2 of other pLGICs, the negative charge at Glu-53 α1 GlyRs is not crucial for normal channel function. These findings help decipher the GlyR gating pathway and show that distinct residue interaction patterns exist in different pLGICs. Furthermore, a salt bridge between Asp-148 and Arg-218 would provide a possible mechanistic explanation for the pathophysiologically relevant hyperekplexia, or startle disease, mutant Arg-218 → Gln.