Conformational dynamics of the human serotonin transporter during substrate and drug binding

The serotonin transporter (SERT) is responsible for re-uptake of serotonin into the presynaptic neuron and plays a key role in synaptic transmission. Here, the authors use hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry to probe the conformational dynamics of human SERT in the absence and presence of known substrates and targeted drugs

Transition metal ion FRET uncovers K(+) regulation of a neurotransmitter/sodium symporter

Neurotransmitter/sodium symporters (NSSs) are responsible for Na(+)-dependent reuptake of neurotransmitters and represent key targets for antidepressants and psychostimulants. LeuT, a prokaryotic NSS protein, constitutes a primary structural model for these transporters. Here we show that K(+) inhibits Na(+)-dependent binding of substrate to LeuT, promotes an outward-closed/inward-facing conformation of the transporter and increases uptake. To assess K(+)-induced conformational dynamics we measured fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between fluorescein site-specifically attached to inserted cysteines and Ni(2+) bound to engineered di-histidine motifs (transition metal ion FRET). The measurements supported K(+)-induced closure of the transporter to the outside, which was counteracted by Na(+) and substrate. Promoting an outward-open conformation of LeuT by mutation abolished the K(+)-effect. The K(+)-effect depended on an intact Na1 site and mutating the Na2 site potentiated K(+) binding by facilitating transition to the inward-facing state. The data reveal an unrecognized ability of K(+) to regulate the LeuT transport cycle

The Environment Shapes the Inner Vestibule of LeuT

Human neurotransmitter transporters are found in the nervous system terminating synaptic signals by rapid removal of neurotransmitter molecules from the synaptic cleft. The homologous transporter LeuT, found in Aquifex aeolicus, was crystallized in different conformations. Here, we investigated the inward-open state of LeuT. We compared LeuT in membranes and micelles using molecular dynamics simulations and lanthanide-based resonance energy transfer (LRET). Simulations of micelle-solubilized LeuT revealed a stable and widely open inward-facing conformation. However, this conformation was unstable in a membrane environment. The helix dipole and the charged amino acid of the first transmembrane helix (TM1A) partitioned out of the hydrophobic membrane core. Free energy calculations showed that movement of TM1A by 0.30 nm was driven by a free energy difference of similar to 15 kJ/mol. Distance measurements by LRET showed TM1A movements, consistent with the simulations, confirming a substantially different inward-open conformation in lipid bilayer from that inferred from the crystal structure