No abstract

We have re-examined the utility of native chemical ligation at −Gln/Glu-Cys− [Glx-Cys] and −Asn/Asp-Cys− [Asx-Cys] sites. Using the improved thioaryl catalyst 4-mercaptophenylacetic acid (MPAA), native chemical ligation could be performed at −Gln-Cys− and Asn-Cys− sites without side reactions. After optimization, ligation at a −Glu-Cys− could also be used as a ligation site, with minimal levels of byproduct formation. However, −Asp-Cys− is not appropriate for use as a site for native chemical ligation because of formation of significant amounts of β-linked byproduct. The feasibility of native chemical ligation at −Gln-Cys− enabled a convergent total chemical synthesis of the enantiomeric forms of the ShK toxin protein molecule. The D-ShK protein molecule was ~50,000-fold less active in blocking the Kv1.3 channel than the L-ShK protein molecule. Racemic protein crystallography was used to obtain high resolution X-ray diffraction data for ShK toxin. The structure was solved by direct methods and showed significant differences from the previously reported NMR structures in some regions of the ShK protein molecule.

Despite a growing number of ion channel genes implicated in hereditary ataxia, it remains unclear how ion channel mutations lead to loss-of-function or death of cerebellar neurons. Mutations in the geneKCNMA1, encoding the α-subunit of the BK channel have emerged as responsible for a variety of neurological phenotypes. We describe a mutation (BKG354S) inKCNMA1, in a child with congenital and progressive cerebellar ataxia with cognitive impairment. The mutation in the BK channel selectivity filter dramatically reduced single-channel conductance and ion selectivity. The BKG354Schannel trafficked normally to plasma, nuclear, and mitochondrial membranes, but caused reduced neurite outgrowth, cell viability, and mitochondrial content. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) knockdown of endogenous BK channels had similar effects. The BK activator, NS1619, rescued BKG354Scells but not siRNA-treated cells, by selectively blocking the mutant channels. When expressed in cerebellum via adenoassociated virus (AAV) viral transfection in mice, the mutant BKG354Schannel, but not the BKWTchannel, caused progressive impairment of several gait parameters consistent with cerebellar dysfunction from 40- to 80-d-old mice. Finally, treatment of the patient with chlorzoxazone, a BK/SK channel activator, partially improved motor function, but ataxia continued to progress. These studies indicate that a loss-of-function BK channel mutation causes ataxia and acts by reducing mitochondrial and subsequently cellular viability.

No abstract

Alternative splicing of alpha-dystrobrevin is dysregulated in myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) muscle, resulting in changes in alpha-syntrophin binding. These results raise the possibility that effects on alpha-dystrobrevin splicing may influence signaling in DM1 muscle cells.

We propose that KCNJ5 is a second gene causing Andersen-Tawil syndrome. The inhibitory effects of mutant Kir3.4 on inwardly rectifying potassium channels may account for the clinical presentation in both skeletal and heart muscles.

Voltage-gated sodium channels (Navs) play crucial roles in excitable cells. Although vertebrate Nav function has been extensively studied, the detailed structural basis for voltage-dependent gating mechanisms remain obscure. We have assessed the structural changes of the Nav voltage sensor domain using lanthanide-based resonance energy transfer (LRET) between the rat skeletal muscle voltage-gated sodium channel (Nav1.4) and fluorescently labeled Nav1.4-targeting toxins. We generated donor constructs with genetically encoded lanthanide-binding tags (LBTs) inserted at the extracellular end of the S4 segment of each domain (with a single LBT per construct). Three different Bodipy-labeled, Nav1.4-targeting toxins were synthesized as acceptors: β-scorpion toxin (Ts1)-Bodipy, KIIIA-Bodipy, and GIIIA-Bodipy analogs. Functional Nav-LBT channels expressed in Xenopus oocytes were voltage-clamped, and distinct LRET signals were obtained in the resting and slow inactivated states. Intramolecular distances computed from the LRET signals define a geometrical map of Nav1.4 with the bound toxins, and reveal voltage-dependent structural changes related to channel gating.V oltage-gated sodium channels (Navs) play an essential role in the generation and propagation of action potentials in excitable cells (1). Eukaryotic Navs are composed of a poreforming α subunit and auxiliary β subunits. The α subunit is a large single-polypeptide chain organized in four different domains (DI-DIV), each of which has a voltage-sensing domain (VSD; S1-S4 segments) and a pore-forming domain (S5-S6 segments). Each domain has a different amino acid composition, pointing to some level of functional specialization. Site-directed fluorimetry shows that the VSDs in DI, DII, and DIII of the rat skeletal muscle voltage-gated sodium channel (Nav1.4) are activated by depolarization faster than in DIV (2). From this observation, it has been hypothesized that DI-III VSDs control the pore opening of the mammalian Nav, whereas the DIV VSD governs its fast inactivation (2-5).Although mammalian Nav function has been studied comprehensively, the precise structural basis for the gating mechanisms has not been fully elucidated. The crystal structures of several prokaryotic Navs have been solved recently; however, in contrast to the mammalian Navs, they are homotetrameric, and thus structurally more closely related to the organization of voltage-gated potassium channels (Kvs) (6-9). The structure of a human L-type voltage-gated calcium channel type 1.1 (Cav1.1), which is a large single polypeptide composed of four different domains similar to mammalian Navs, has been resolved using cryoelectron microscopy (10, 11). However, functional studies have shown that gating mechanisms of mammalian Cav channels are indeed different from gating mechanisms in mammalian Navs (12). Furthermore, such structural studies only provide static snapshots of the channels in one of many possible conformational states. Therefore, techniques that provide dynamic structural information are nee...

No abstract