Calcium‐binding proteins dubbed KChIPs favour surface expression and modulate inactivation gating of neuronal and cardiac A‐type Kv4 channels. To investigate their mechanism of action, Kv4.1 or Kv4.3 were expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes, either alone or together with KChIP1, and the K+ currents were recorded using the whole‐oocyte voltage‐clamp and patch‐clamp methods. KChIP1 similarly remodels gating of both channels. At positive voltages, KChIP1 slows the early phase of the development of macroscopic inactivation. By contrast, the late phase is accelerated, which allows complete inactivation in < 500 ms. Thus, superimposed traces from control and KChIP1‐remodelled currents crossover. KChIP1 also accelerates closed‐state inactivation and recovery from inactivation (3‐ to 5‐fold change). The latter effect is dominating and, consequently, the prepulse inactivation curves exhibit depolarizing shifts (ΔV= 4–12 mV). More favourable closed‐state inactivation may also contribute to the overall faster inactivation at positive voltages because Kv4 channels significantly inactivate from the preopen closed state. KChIP1 favours this pathway further by accelerating channel closing. The peak G‐V curves are modestly leftward shifted in the presence of KChIP1, but the apparent ‘threshold’ voltage of current activation remains unaltered. Single Kv4.1 channels exhibited multiple conductance levels that ranged between 1.8 and 5.6 pS in the absence of KChIP1 and between 1.9 and 5.3 pS in its presence. Thus, changes in unitary conductance do not contribute to current upregulation by KChIP1. An allosteric kinetic model explains the kinetic changes by assuming that KChIP1 mainly impairs open‐state inactivation, favours channel closing and lowers the energy barrier of closed‐state inactivation.

The mechanisms of inactivation gating of the neuronal somatodendritic A-type K(+) current and the cardiac I(to) were investigated in Xenopus oocyte macropatches expressing Kv4.1 and Kv4.3 channels. Upon membrane patch excision (inside-out), Kv4.1 channels undergo time-dependent acceleration of macroscopic inactivation accompanied by a parallel partial current rundown. These changes are readily reversible by patch cramming, suggesting the influence of modulatory cytoplasmic factors. The consequences of these perturbations were investigated in detail to gain insights into the biophysical basis and mechanisms of inactivation gating. Accelerated inactivation at positive voltages (0 to +110 mV) is mainly the result of reducing the time constant of slow inactivation and the relative weight of the slow component of inactivation. Concomitantly, the time constants of closed-state inactivation at negative membrane potentials (-90 to -50 mV) are substantially decreased in inside-out patches. Deactivation is moderately accelerated, and recovery from inactivation and the peak G--V curve exhibit little or no change. In agreement with more favorable closed-state inactivation in inside-out patches, the steady-state inactivation curve exhibits a hyperpolarizing shift of approximately 10 mV. Closed-state inactivation was similarly enhanced in Kv4.3. An allosteric model that assumes significant closed-state inactivation at all relevant voltages can explain Kv4 inactivation gating and the modulatory changes.

Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), the protein dysfunctional in cystic fibrosis, is unique among ATP-binding cassette transporters in that it functions as an ion channel. In CFTR, ATP binding opens the channel, and its subsequent hydrolysis causes channel closure. We studied the conformational changes in the pore-lining sixth transmembrane segment upon ATP binding by measuring state-dependent changes in accessibility of substituted cysteines to methanethiosulfonate reagents. Modification rates of three residues (resides 331, 333, and 335) near the extracellular side were 10 -1000-fold slower in the open state than in the closed state. Introduction of a charged residue by chemical modification at two of these positions (resides 331 and 333) affected CFTR single-channel gating. In contrast, modifications of pore-lining residues 334 and 338 were not state-dependent. Our results suggest that ATP binding induces a modest conformational change in the sixth transmembrane segment, and this conformational change is coupled to the gating mechanism that regulates ion conduction. These results may establish a structural basis of gating involving the dynamic rearrangement of transmembrane domains necessary for vectorial transport of substrates in ATPbinding cassette transporters. ATP-binding cassette (ABC)2 transporters are a large family of integral membrane proteins that actively transport a broad range of substrates across cell membranes. Despite their diverse functions, they share a common basic architecture comprised of two transmembrane domains (TMDs) that function as a pathway for the permeation of substrates and two cytoplasmic nucleotide-binding domains (NBDs). The highly conserved NBDs are the molecular motors that transform the chemical potential energy of ATP into conformational changes that drive substrate molecules through the TMDs (1). Recent biochemical, structural, and genetic studies have led to a common mechanism in which ATP binding and hydrolysis induce the formation and dissociation of an NBD dimer, respectively. This regulated switch induces conformational changes in the TMDs to mediate vectorial transport of substrates across cell membranes (2-4). However, the structural bases for the propagation of conformational changes in the NBDs to the TMDs, and the conformational changes in TMDs are not well understood.Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR; ATP-binding cassette transporter subfamily C member 7), the product of the cystic fibrosis gene, is unique among ABC transporters in that its TMDs provide a conductive channel for anions. Phosphorylation of serines in the regulatory domain by cAMP-dependent protein kinase activates CFTR (see Fig. 1A). Once phosphorylated, ATP-induced dimerization of NBDs opens the channel, and their subsequent dissociation upon ATP hydrolysis closes the channel (5). Despite extensive biochemical, structural, and functional studies, the nature of conformational changes in TMDs associated with CFTR channel gating remains elusive.The ...

Protein kinase C inhibits inactivation gating of Kv3.4 K+ channels, and at least two NH2-terminal serines (S15 and S21) appeared involved in this interaction (Covarrubias et al. 1994. Neuron. 13:1403–1412). Here we have investigated the molecular mechanism of this regulatory process. Site-directed mutagenesis (serine → alanine) revealed two additional sites at S8 and S9. The mutation S9A inhibited the action of PKC by ∼85%, whereas S8A, S15A, and S21A exhibited smaller reductions (41, 35, and 50%, respectively). In spite of the relatively large effects of individual S → A mutations, simultaneous mutation of the four sites was necessary to completely abolish inhibition of inactivation by PKC. Accordingly, a peptide corresponding to the inactivation domain of Kv3.4 was phosphorylated by specific PKC isoforms, but the mutant peptide (S[8,9,15,21]A) was not. Substitutions of negatively charged aspartate (D) for serine at positions 8, 9, 15, and 21 closely mimicked the effect of phosphorylation on channel inactivation. S → D mutations slowed the rate of inactivation and accelerated the rate of recovery from inactivation. Thus, the negative charge of the phosphoserines is an important incentive to inhibit inactivation. Consistent with this interpretation, the effects of S8D and S8E (E = Glu) were very similar, yet S8N (N = Asn) had little effect on the onset of inactivation but accelerated the recovery from inactivation. Interestingly, the effects of single S → D mutations were unequal and the effects of combined mutations were greater than expected assuming a simple additive effect of the free energies that the single mutations contribute to impair inactivation. These observations demonstrate that the inactivation particle of Kv3.4 does not behave as a point charge and suggest that the NH2-terminal phosphoserines interact in a cooperative manner to disrupt inactivation. Inspection of the tertiary structure of the inactivation domain of Kv3.4 revealed the topography of the phosphorylation sites and possible interactions that can explain the action of PKC on inactivation gating.