Effective pore size and radius of capture for K+ ions in K-channels

Indexación: Web of Science; Scopus.Reconciling protein functional data with crystal structure is arduous because rare conformations or crystallization artifacts occur. Here we present a tool to validate the dimensions of open pore structures of potassium-selective ion channels. We used freely available algorithms to calculate the molecular contour of the pore to determine the effective internal pore radius (r(E)) in several K-channel crystal structurss. r(E) was operationally defined as the radius of the biggest sphere able to enter the pore from the cytosolic side. We obtained consistent r(E) estimates for MthK and Kv1.2/2.1 structures, with r(E) = 5.3-5.9 angstrom and r(E) = 4.5-5.2 angstrom, respectively. We compared these structural estimates with functional assessments of the internal mouth radii of capture (r(C)) for two electrophysiological counterparts, the large conductance calcium activated K-channel (r(C) = 2.2 angstrom) and the Shaker K-v-channel (r(C) = 0.8 angstrom), for MthK and Kv1.2/2.1 structures, respectively. Calculating the difference between r(E) and r(C), produced consistent size radii of 3.1-3.7 angstrom and 3.6-4.4 angstrom for hydrated K+ ions. These hydrated K+ estimates harmonize with others obtained with diverse experimental and theoretical methods. Thus, these findings validate MthK and the Kv1.2/2.1 structures as templates for open BK and Kv-channels, respectively.http://recursosbiblioteca.unab.cl:2226/articles/srep1989

Binding of κ-Conotoxin-PVIIA to Open and Closed Shaker K-Channels Are Differentially Affected by the Ionic Strength

Indexación: Scopus.κ-Conotoxin-PVIIA (κ-PVIIA) is a potassium-channel blocking peptide from the venom of the fish-hunting snail, Conus purpurascens, which is essential for quick prey's excitotoxic immobilization. Binding of one κ-PVIIA to Shaker K-channels occludes the K+-conduction pore without additional conformational effects. Because this 27-residue toxin is +4-charged at neutral pH, we asked if electrostatic interactions play a role in binding. With Voltage-Clamp electrophysiology, we tested how ionic strength (IS) affects κ-PVIIA blockade to Shaker. When IS varied from ~0.06 to ~0.16 M, the dissociation constant for open and closed channels increased by ~5- and ~16-fold, respectively. While the association rates decreased equally, by ~4-fold, in open and closed channels, the dissociation rates increased 4-5-fold in closed channels but was IS-insensitive in open channels. To explain this differential IS-dependency, we propose that the bound κ-PVIIA wobbles, so that in open channels the intracellular environment, via ion-conduction pore, buffers the imposed IS-changes in the toxin-channel interface. A Brønsted-Bjerrum analysis on the rates predicts that if, instead of fish, the snail preyed on organisms with seawater-like lymph ionic composition, a severely harmless toxin, with >100-fold diminished affinity, would result. Thus, considerations of the native ionic environment are essential for conotoxins evaluation as pharmacological leads.https://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/18/11/53

Allosterism and structure in thermally activated transient receptor potential channels

The molecular sensors that mediate temperature changes in living organisms are a large family of proteins known as thermosensitive transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channels. These membrane proteins are polymodal receptors that can be activated by cold or hot temperatures, depending on the channel subtype, voltage, and ligands. The stimuli sensors are allosterically coupled to a pore domain, increasing the probability of finding the channel in its ion conductive conformation. In this review we first discuss the allosteric coupling between the temperature and voltage sensor modules and the pore domain, and then discuss the thermodynamic foundations of thermo-TRP channel activation. We provide a structural overview of the molecular determinants of temperature sensing. We also posit an anisotropic thermal diffusion model that may explain the large temperature sensitivity of TRP channels

Understand spiciness: mechanism of TRPV1 channel activation by capsaicin

Abstract Capsaicin in chili peppers bestows the sensation of spiciness. Since the discovery of its receptor, transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) ion channel, how capsaicin activates this channel has been under extensive investigation using a variety of experimental techniques including mutagenesis, patch-clamp recording, crystallography, cryo-electron microscopy, computational docking and molecular dynamic simulation. A framework of how capsaicin binds and activates TRPV1 has started to merge: capsaicin binds to a pocket formed by the channel’s transmembrane segments, where it takes a “tail-up, head-down” configuration. Binding is mediated by both hydrogen bonds and van der Waals interactions. Upon binding, capsaicin stabilizes the open state of TRPV1 by “pull-and-contact” with the S4-S5 linker. Understanding the ligand-host interaction will greatly facilitate pharmaceutical efforts to develop novel analgesics targeting TRPV1