scholarly journals Proton currents constrain structural models of voltage sensor activation

eLife ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron L Randolph ◽  
Younes Mokrab ◽  
Ashley L Bennett ◽  
Mark SP Sansom ◽  
Ian Scott Ramsey
Keyword(s):  
Structural Models ◽  
Voltage Sensor ◽  
Proton Channel ◽  
Structural Basis ◽  
Gating Charge ◽  
Activated State ◽  
Sensor Activation ◽  
Model Structures ◽  
Proton Currents ◽  
Transfer Mechanisms

The Hv1 proton channel is evidently unique among voltage sensor domain proteins in mediating an intrinsic ‘aqueous’ H+ conductance (GAQ). Mutation of a highly conserved ‘gating charge’ residue in the S4 helix (R1H) confers a resting-state H+ ‘shuttle’ conductance (GSH) in VGCs and Ci VSP, and we now report that R1H is sufficient to reconstitute GSH in Hv1 without abrogating GAQ. Second-site mutations in S3 (D185A/H) and S4 (N4R) experimentally separate GSH and GAQ gating, which report thermodynamically distinct initial and final steps, respectively, in the Hv1 activation pathway. The effects of Hv1 mutations on GSH and GAQ are used to constrain the positions of key side chains in resting- and activated-state VS model structures, providing new insights into the structural basis of VS activation and H+ transfer mechanisms in Hv1.

scholarly journals The voltage sensor is responsible for ΔpH dependence in Hv1 channels

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (19) ◽  
pp. e2025556118
Author(s):  
Emerson M. Carmona ◽  
Miguel Fernandez ◽  
Juan J. Alvear-Arias ◽  
Alan Neely ◽  
H. Peter Larsson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Free Energy ◽  
Ph Dependence ◽  
Electrical Potential ◽  
Voltage Sensor ◽  
Proton Channel ◽  
Gating Currents ◽  
Open Probability ◽  
Charge Voltage ◽  
Gating Charge ◽  
Sensor Activation

The dissipation of acute acid loads by the voltage-gated proton channel (Hv1) relies on regulating the channel’s open probability by the voltage and the ΔpH across the membrane (ΔpH = pHex − pHin). Using monomeric Ciona-Hv1, we asked whether ΔpH-dependent gating is produced during the voltage sensor activation or permeation pathway opening. A leftward shift of the conductance-voltage (G-V) curve was produced at higher ΔpH values in the monomeric channel. Next, we measured the voltage sensor pH dependence in the absence of a functional permeation pathway by recording gating currents in the monomeric nonconducting D160N mutant. Increasing the ΔpH leftward shifted the gating charge-voltage (Q-V) curve, demonstrating that the ΔpH-dependent gating in Hv1 arises by modulating its voltage sensor. We fitted our data to a model that explicitly supposes the Hv1 voltage sensor free energy is a function of both the proton chemical and the electrical potential. The parameters obtained showed that around 60% of the free energy stored in the ΔpH is coupled to the Hv1 voltage sensor activation. Our results suggest that the molecular mechanism underlying the Hv1 ΔpH dependence is produced by protons, which alter the free-energy landscape around the voltage sensor domain. We propose that this alteration is produced by accessibility changes of the protons in the Hv1 voltage sensor during activation.

scholarly journals Author response: Proton currents constrain structural models of voltage sensor activation

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron L Randolph ◽  
Younes Mokrab ◽  
Ashley L Bennett ◽  
Mark SP Sansom ◽  
Ian Scott Ramsey
Keyword(s):  
Structural Models ◽  
Voltage Sensor ◽  
Author Response ◽  
Sensor Activation ◽  
Proton Currents

scholarly journals Role of Charged Residues in the S1–S4 Voltage Sensor of BK Channels

2006 ◽  
Vol 127 (3) ◽  
pp. 309-328 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhongming Ma ◽  
Xing Jian Lou ◽  
Frank T. Horrigan
Keyword(s):  
Voltage Dependence ◽  
Bk Channels ◽  
Bk Channel ◽  
Voltage Sensor ◽  
Voltage Gating ◽  
Voltage Sensing ◽  
Kv Channels ◽  
Gating Charge ◽  
Charged Residues ◽  
Sensor Activation

The activation of large conductance Ca2+-activated (BK) potassium channels is weakly voltage dependent compared to Shaker and other voltage-gated K+ (KV) channels. Yet BK and KV channels share many conserved charged residues in transmembrane segments S1–S4. We mutated these residues individually in mSlo1 BK channels to determine their role in voltage gating, and characterized the voltage dependence of steady-state activation (Po) and IK kinetics (τ(IK)) over an extended voltage range in 0–50 μM [Ca2+]i. mSlo1 contains several positively charged arginines in S4, but only one (R213) together with residues in S2 (D153, R167) and S3 (D186) are potentially voltage sensing based on the ability of charge-altering mutations to reduce the maximal voltage dependence of PO. The voltage dependence of PO and τ(IK) at extreme negative potentials was also reduced, implying that the closed–open conformational change and voltage sensor activation share a common source of gating charge. Although the position of charged residues in the BK and KV channel sequence appears conserved, the distribution of voltage-sensing residues is not. Thus the weak voltage dependence of BK channel activation does not merely reflect a lack of charge but likely differences with respect to KV channels in the position and movement of charged residues within the electric field. Although mutation of most sites in S1–S4 did not reduce gating charge, they often altered the equilibrium constant for voltage sensor activation. In particular, neutralization of R207 or R210 in S4 stabilizes the activated state by 3–7 kcal mol−1, indicating a strong contribution of non–voltage-sensing residues to channel function, consistent with their participation in state-dependent salt bridge interactions. Mutations in S4 and S3 (R210E, D186A, and E180A) also unexpectedly weakened the allosteric coupling of voltage sensor activation to channel opening. The implications of our findings for BK channel voltage gating and general mechanisms of voltage sensor activation are discussed.

scholarly journals Structural basis for voltage-sensor trapping of the cardiac sodium channel by a deathstalker scorpion toxin

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daohua Jiang ◽  
Lige Tonggu ◽  
Tamer M. Gamal El-Din ◽  
Richard Banh ◽  
Régis Pomès ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ion Pairs ◽  
Voltage Sensor ◽  
Structural Basis ◽  
Fast Inactivation ◽  
Toxin Binding ◽  
Cardiac Sodium Channel ◽  
Activated State ◽  
Nav Channels ◽  
Gating Modifier ◽  
Voltage Sensing Domain

AbstractVoltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels initiate action potentials in excitable cells, and their function is altered by potent gating-modifier toxins. The α-toxin LqhIII from the deathstalker scorpion inhibits fast inactivation of cardiac NaV1.5 channels with IC50=11.4 nM. Here we reveal the structure of LqhIII bound to NaV1.5 at 3.3 Å resolution by cryo-EM. LqhIII anchors on top of voltage-sensing domain IV, wedged between the S1-S2 and S3-S4 linkers, which traps the gating charges of the S4 segment in a unique intermediate-activated state stabilized by four ion-pairs. This conformational change is propagated inward to weaken binding of the fast inactivation gate and favor opening the activation gate. However, these changes do not permit Na+ permeation, revealing why LqhIII slows inactivation of NaV channels but does not open them. Our results provide important insights into the structural basis for gating-modifier toxin binding, voltage-sensor trapping, and fast inactivation of NaV channels.

scholarly journals Gating and Ionic Currents Reveal How the BKCa Channel's Ca2+ Sensitivity Is Enhanced by its β1 Subunit

2005 ◽  
Vol 126 (4) ◽  
pp. 393-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lin Bao ◽  
Daniel H. Cox
Keyword(s):  
Smooth Muscle ◽  
Muscle Tone ◽  
Ionic Current ◽  
Ionic Currents ◽  
Voltage Sensor ◽  
Bkca Channel ◽  
Bkca Channels ◽  
Specific Expression ◽  
Gating Charge ◽  
Sensor Activation

Large-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ channels (BKCa channels) are regulated by the tissue-specific expression of auxiliary β subunits. β1 is predominately expressed in smooth muscle, where it greatly enhances the BKCa channel's Ca2+ sensitivity, an effect that is required for proper regulation of smooth muscle tone. Here, using gating current recordings, macroscopic ionic current recordings, and unitary ionic current recordings at very low open probabilities, we have investigated the mechanism that underlies this effect. Our results may be summarized as follows. The β1 subunit has little or no effect on the equilibrium constant of the conformational change by which the BKCa channel opens, and it does not affect the gating charge on the channel's voltage sensors, but it does stabilize voltage sensor activation, both when the channel is open and when it is closed, such that voltage sensor activation occurs at more negative voltages with β1 present. Furthermore, β1 stabilizes the active voltage sensor more when the channel is closed than when it is open, and this reduces the factor D by which voltage sensor activation promotes opening by ∼24% (16.8→12.8). The effects of β1 on voltage sensing enhance the BKCa channel's Ca2+ sensitivity by decreasing at most voltages the work that Ca2+ binding must do to open the channel. In addition, however, in order to fully account for the increase in efficacy and apparent Ca2+ affinity brought about by β1 at negative voltages, our studies suggest that β1 also decreases the true Ca2+ affinity of the closed channel, increasing its Ca2+ dissociation constant from ∼3.7 μM to between 4.7 and 7.1 μM, depending on how many binding sites are affected.

scholarly journals Exotic properties of a voltage-gated proton channel from the snail Helisoma trivolvis

2018 ◽  
Vol 150 (6) ◽  
pp. 835-850 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Thomas ◽  
Vladimir V. Cherny ◽  
Deri Morgan ◽  
Liana R. Artinian ◽  
Vincent Rehder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Proton Channel ◽  
Structural Basis ◽  
Helisoma Trivolvis ◽  
Voltage Gated ◽  
First Order Kinetics ◽  
Gating Charge ◽  
Inward Currents ◽  
H Channels ◽  
Favorable Conditions

Voltage-gated proton channels, HV1, were first reported in Helix aspersa snail neurons. These H+ channels open very rapidly, two to three orders of magnitude faster than mammalian HV1. Here we identify an HV1 gene in the snail Helisoma trivolvis and verify protein level expression by Western blotting of H. trivolvis brain lysate. Expressed in mammalian cells, HtHV1 currents in most respects resemble those described in other snails, including rapid activation, 476 times faster than hHV1 (human) at pHo 7, between 50 and 90 mV. In contrast to most HV1, activation of HtHV1 is exponential, suggesting first-order kinetics. However, the large gating charge of ∼5.5 e0 suggests that HtHV1 functions as a dimer, evidently with highly cooperative gating. HtHV1 opening is exquisitely sensitive to pHo, whereas closing is nearly independent of pHo. Zn2+ and Cd2+ inhibit HtHV1 currents in the micromolar range, slowing activation, shifting the proton conductance–voltage (gH-V) relationship to more positive potentials, and lowering the maximum conductance. This is consistent with HtHV1 possessing three of the four amino acids that coordinate Zn2+ in mammalian HV1. All known HV1 exhibit ΔpH-dependent gating that results in a 40-mV shift of the gH-V relationship for a unit change in either pHo or pHi. This property is crucial for all the functions of HV1 in many species and numerous human cells. The HtHV1 channel exhibits normal or supernormal pHo dependence, but weak pHi dependence. Under favorable conditions, this might result in the HtHV1 channel conducting inward currents and perhaps mediating a proton action potential. The anomalous ΔpH-dependent gating of HtHV1 channels suggests a structural basis for this important property, which is further explored in this issue (Cherny et al. 2018. J. Gen. Physiol. https://doi.org/10.1085/jgp.201711968).

scholarly journals Structural basis for voltage-sensor trapping of the cardiac sodium channel by a deathstalker scorpion toxin

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daohua Jiang ◽  
Lige Tonggu ◽  
Tamer M. Gamal El-Din ◽  
Richard Banh ◽  
Régis Pomès ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ion Pairs ◽  
Voltage Sensor ◽  
Structural Basis ◽  
Fast Inactivation ◽  
Excitable Cells ◽  
Toxin Binding ◽  
Cardiac Sodium Channel ◽  
Activated State ◽  
Gating Modifier ◽  
Voltage Sensing Domain

AbstractVoltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels initiate action potentials in excitable cells, and their function is altered by potent gating-modifier toxins. The α-toxin LqhIII from the deathstalker scorpion inhibits fast inactivation of cardiac NaV1.5 channels with IC50 = 11.4 nM. Here we reveal the structure of LqhIII bound to NaV1.5 at 3.3 Å resolution by cryo-EM. LqhIII anchors on top of voltage-sensing domain IV, wedged between the S1-S2 and S3-S4 linkers, which traps the gating charges of the S4 segment in a unique intermediate-activated state stabilized by four ion-pairs. This conformational change is propagated inward to weaken binding of the fast inactivation gate and favor opening the activation gate. However, these changes do not permit Na+ permeation, revealing why LqhIII slows inactivation of NaV channels but does not open them. Our results provide important insights into the structural basis for gating-modifier toxin binding, voltage-sensor trapping, and fast inactivation of NaV channels.

scholarly journals Structural basis for gating charge movement in the voltage sensor of a sodium channel

2011 ◽  
Vol 109 (2) ◽  
pp. E93-E102 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Yarov-Yarovoy ◽  
P. G. DeCaen ◽  
R. E. Westenbroek ◽  
C.-Y. Pan ◽  
T. Scheuer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sodium Channel ◽  
Voltage Sensor ◽  
Structural Basis ◽  
Charge Movement ◽  
Gating Charge
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