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When neurons engage in intense periods of activity, the consequent increase in energy demand can be counteracted by the coordinated activation of glycolysis, the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation. However, the trigger for glycolytic activation is unknown and the role for Ca2+in the mitochondrial responses has been debated. Using genetically-encoded fluorescent biosensors and NAD(P)H autofluorescence imaging in acute hippocampal slices, here we find that Ca2+uptake into the mitochondria is responsible for the buildup of mitochondrial NADH, probably through Ca2+activation of dehydrogenases in the TCA cycle. In the cytosol, we do not observe a role for the Ca2+/calmodulin signaling pathway, or AMPK, in mediating the rise in glycolytic NADH in response to acute stimulation. Calcium, nevertheless, is a major contributor to glycolysis, although not strictly necessary. Aerobic glycolysis in neurons is triggered mainly by the energy demand resulting from either Na+or Ca2+extrusion.Impact StatementWhen neurons are stimulated, calcium influx instructs mitochondria to increase energy metabolism, but it is increased energy demand in cytosol rather than Ca2+signaling that leads to increased neuronal glycolysis.

Glucose is an essential source of energy for the brain. Recently, the development of genetically encoded fluorescent biosensors has allowed real time visualization of glucose dynamics from individual neurons and astrocytes. A major difficulty for this approach, even for ratiometric sensors, is the lack of a practical method to convert such measurements into actual concentrations in ex vivo brain tissue or in vivo. Fluorescence lifetime imaging provides a strategy to overcome this. In a previous study, we reported the lifetime glucose sensor iGlucoSnFR-TS (then called SweetieTS) for monitoring changes in neuronal glucose levels in response to stimulation. This genetically encoded sensor was generated by combining the Thermus thermophilus glucose-binding protein with a circularly permuted variant of the monomeric fluorescent protein T-Sapphire. Here, we provide more details on iGlucoSnFR-TS design and characterization, as well as pH and temperature sensitivities. For accurate estimation of glucose concentrations, the sensor must be calibrated at the same temperature as the experiments. We find that when the extracellular glucose concentration is in the range 2-10mM, the intracellular glucose concentration in hippocampal neurons from acute brain slices is ~20% of the nominal external glucose concentration (~0.4-2mM). We also measured the cytosolic neuronal glucose concentration in vivo, finding a range of ~0.7-2.5mM in cortical neurons from awake mice.

The cellular NADH/NAD+ ratio is fundamental to biochemistry, but the extent to which it reflects versus drives metabolic physiology in vivo is poorly understood. Here we report the in vivo application of Lactobacillus brevis (Lb)NOX1, a bacterial water-forming NADH oxidase, to assess the metabolic consequences of directly lowering the hepatic cytosolic NADH/NAD+ ratio in mice. By combining this genetic tool with metabolomics, we identify circulating α-hydroxybutyrate levels as a robust marker of an elevated hepatic cytosolic NADH/NAD+ ratio, also known as reductive stress. In humans, elevations in circulating α-hydroxybutyrate levels have previously been associated with impaired glucose tolerance2, insulin resistance3 and mitochondrial disease4, and are associated with a common genetic variant in GCKR5, which has previously been associated with many seemingly disparate metabolic traits. Using LbNOX, we demonstrate that NADH reductive stress mediates the effects of GCKR variation on many metabolic traits, including circulating triglyceride levels, glucose tolerance and FGF21 levels. Our work identifies an elevated hepatic NADH/NAD+ ratio as a latent metabolic parameter that is shaped by human genetic variation and contributes causally to key metabolic traits and diseases. Moreover, it underscores the utility of genetic tools such as LbNOX to empower studies of ‘causal metabolism’. The authors identify an increased hepatic NADH/NAD+ ratio as an underlying metabolic parameter that is shaped by human genetic variation and contributes causally to key metabolic traits and diseases.

Brain metabolism increases during stimulation, but this increase does not affect all energy metabolism equally. Briefly after stimulation, there is a local increase in cerebral blood flow and in glucose uptake, but a smaller increase in oxygen uptake. This indicates that temporarily the rate of glycolysis is faster than the rate of oxidative metabolism, with a corresponding temporary increase in lactate production. This minireview discusses the long-standing controversy about which cell type, neurons or astrocytes, are involved in this increased aerobic glycolysis. Recent biosensor studies measuring metabolic changes in neurons, in acute brain slices or in vivo, are placed in the context of other data bearing on this question. The most direct measurements indicate that, although both neurons and astrocytes may increase glycolysis after stimulation, neurons do not rely on import of astrocytic-produced lactate, and instead they increase their own glycolytic rate and become net exporters of lactate. This temporary increase in neuronal glycolysis may provide rapid energy to meet the acute energy demands of neurons.

Neutrophils are phagocytic cells that play a critical role in innate immunity by destroying bacterial pathogens. Channels belonging to the inward rectifier potassium channel subfamily 2 (Kir2 channels) have been described in other phagocytes (monocytes/macrophages and eosinophils) and in hematopoietic precursors of phagocytes. Their physiological function in these cells remains unclear, but some evidence suggests a role in growth factor-dependent proliferation and development. Expression of functional Kir2 channels has not been definitively demonstrated in mammalian neutrophils. Here, we show by RT-PCR that neutrophils from mouse bone marrow and liver express mRNA for the Kir2 subunit Kir2.1 but not for other subunits (Kir2.2, Kir2.3, and Kir2.4). In electrophysiological experiments, resting (unstimulated) neutrophils from mouse bone marrow and liver exhibit a constitutively active, external K+-dependent, strong inwardly rectifying current that constitutes the dominant current. The reversal potential is dependent on the external K+concentration in a Nernstian fashion, as expected for a K+-selective current. The current is not altered by changes in external or internal pH, and it is blocked by Ba2+, Cs+, and the Kir2-selective inhibitor ML133. The single-channel conductance is in agreement with previously reported values for Kir2.1 channels. These properties are characteristic of homomeric Kir2.1 channels. Current density in short-term cultures of bone marrow neutrophils is decreased in the absence of growth factors that are important for neutrophil proliferation [granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) and stem cell factor (SCF)]. These results demonstrate that mouse neutrophils express functional Kir2.1 channels and suggest that these channels may be important for neutrophil function, possibly in a growth factor-dependent manner.

Fatty liver disease (FLD), the most common chronic liver disease in the United States, may be caused by alcohol or the metabolic syndrome. Alcohol is oxidized in the cytosol of hepatocytes by alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), which generates NADH and increases cytosolic NADH/NAD+ ratio. The increased ratio may be important for development of FLD, but our ability to examine this question is hindered by methodological limitations. To address this, we used the genetically encoded fluorescent sensor Peredox to obtain dynamic, real-time measurements of cytosolic NADH/NAD+ ratio in living hepatocytes. Peredox was expressed in dissociated rat hepatocytes and HepG2 cells by transfection, and in mouse liver slices by tail-vein injection of adeno-associated virus (AAV)-encoded sensor. Under control conditions, hepatocytes and liver slices exhibit a relatively low (oxidized) cytosolic NADH/NAD+ ratio as reported by Peredox. The ratio responds rapidly and reversibly to substrates of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and sorbitol dehydrogenase (SDH). Ethanol causes a robust dose-dependent increase in cytosolic NADH/NAD+ ratio, and this increase is mitigated by the presence of NAD+-generating substrates of LDH or SDH. In contrast to hepatocytes and slices, HepG2 cells exhibit a relatively high (reduced) ratio and show minimal responses to substrates of ADH and SDH. In slices, we show that comparable results are obtained with epifluorescence imaging and two-photon fluorescence lifetime imaging (2p-FLIM). Live cell imaging with Peredox is a promising new approach to investigate cytosolic NADH/NAD+ ratio in hepatocytes. Imaging in liver slices is particularly attractive because it allows preservation of liver microanatomy and metabolic zonation of hepatocytes.

Brain metabolism can profoundly influence neuronal excitability. Mice with genetic deletion or alteration of Bad (BCL-2 agonist of cell death) exhibit altered brain-cell fuel metabolism, accompanied by resistance to acutely induced epileptic seizures; this seizure protection is mediated by ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels. Here we investigated the effect of BAD manipulation on KATP channel activity and excitability in acute brain slices. We found that BAD’s influence on neuronal KATP channels was cell-autonomous and directly affected dentate granule neuron (DGN) excitability. To investigate the role of neuronal KATP channels in the anticonvulsant effects of BAD, we imaged calcium during picrotoxin-induced epileptiform activity in entorhinal-hippocampal slices. BAD knockout reduced epileptiform activity, and this effect was lost upon knockout or pharmacological inhibition of KATP channels. Targeted BAD knockout in DGNs alone was sufficient for the antiseizure effect in slices, consistent with a ‘dentate gate’ function that is reinforced by increased KATP channel activity.

Proper brain function requires a substantial energy supply, up to 20% of whole-body energy in humans, and brain activation produces large dynamic variations in energy demand. While local increases in cerebral blood flow are well known, the cellular responses to energy demand are controversial. During brain excitation, glycolysis of glucose to lactate temporarily exceeds the rate of mitochondrial fuel oxidation; although the increased energy demand occurs mainly within neurons, some have suggested this glycolysis occurs mainly in astrocytes, which then shuttle lactate to neurons as their primary fuel. Using metabolic biosensors in acute hippocampal slices and brains of awake mice, we find that neuronal metabolic responses to stimulation do not depend on astrocytic stimulation by glutamate release, nor do they require neuronal uptake of lactate; instead they reflect increased direct glucose consumption by neurons. Neuronal glycolysis temporarily outstrips oxidative metabolism, and provides a rapid response to increased energy demand.

Neurons use glucose to fuel glycolysis and provide substrates for mitochondrial respiration, but neurons can also use alternative fuels that bypass glycolysis and feed directly into mitochondria. To determine whether neuronal pacemaking depends on active glucose metabolism, we switched the metabolic fuel from glucose to alternative fuels, lactate or β-hydroxybutyrate, while monitoring the spontaneous firing of GABAergic neurons in mouse substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr) brain slices. We found that alternative fuels, in the absence of glucose, sustained SNr spontaneous firing at basal rates, but glycolysis may still be supported by glycogen in the absence of glucose. To prevent any glycogen-fueled glycolysis, we directly inhibited glycolysis using either 2-deoxyglucose or iodoacetic acid. Inhibiting glycolysis in the presence of alternative fuels lowered SNr firing to a slower sustained firing rate. Surprisingly, we found that the decrease in SNr firing was not mediated by ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channel activity, but if we lowered the perfusion flow rate or omitted the alternative fuel, KATP channels were activated and could silence SNr firing. The KATP-independent slowing of SNr firing that occurred with glycolytic inhibition in the presence of alternative fuels was consistent with a decrease in a nonselective cationic conductance. Although mitochondrial metabolism alone can prevent severe energy deprivation and KATP channel activation in SNr neurons, active glucose metabolism appears important for keeping open a class of ion channels that is crucial for the high spontaneous firing rate of SNr neurons. Fil: Lutas , Andrew. Harvard Medical School; Estados Unidos Fil: Birnbaumer, Lutz. National Institutes of Health; Estados Unidos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Yellen, Gary. Harvard Medical School; Estados Unidos

Certain neuron types fire spontaneously at high rates, an ability that is crucial for their function in brain circuits. The spontaneously active GABAergic neurons of the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr), a major output of the basal ganglia, provide tonic inhibition of downstream brain areas. A depolarizing 'leak' current supports this firing pattern, but its molecular basis remains poorly understood. To understand how SNr neurons maintain tonic activity, we used single-cell RNA sequencing to determine the transcriptome of individual mouse SNr neurons. We discovered that SNr neurons express the sodium leak channel, NALCN, and that SNr neurons lacking NALCN have impaired spontaneous firing. In addition, NALCN is involved in the modulation of excitability by changes in glycolysis and by activation of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors. Our findings suggest that disruption of NALCN could impair the basal ganglia circuit, which may underlie the severe motor deficits in humans carrying mutations in NALCN. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.15271.001, eLife digest Some neurons in the brain produce electrical signals (or “fire”) spontaneously, without receiving any other signals from the senses or from other neurons. This spontaneous activity has a number of important roles. For example, in a part of the brain known as the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr), spontaneously active neurons frequently produce electrical signals that reduce electrical activity in other brain areas. A current of positively charged ions constantly flows into the spontaneously active SNr neurons and enables them to fire constantly. Ions enter neurons through proteins called ion channels that are embedded in the surface of the neuron. Like all proteins, ion channels are made by “transcribing” genes to form molecules of RNA that are then “translated” to produce the basic sequence of the protein. Lutas et al. have now used single-cell RNA sequencing to study SNr neurons from mice and investigate which ion channel the positive ion current flows through. The RNA sequences revealed that the neurons have the gene for an ion channel known as NALCN. Recordings of the firing rate of neurons in slices of mouse brain showed that SNr neurons without this channel did not fire as often as SNr neurons with the channel. In addition, neurotransmitters (chemicals that alter the ability of neurons to fire) and changes in cell metabolism had less of an effect on the firing rate of SNr neurons that lacked the NALCN channel than they do on normal neurons. These findings may help explain why people with mutations in the NALCN gene have movement disorders, as the substantia nigra pars reticulata plays an important role in orchestrating complex movements. Future work is now needed to understand how a change in NALCN activity affects the other brain areas that SNr neurons connect to. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.15271.002

HCN (hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide gated) pacemaker channels have an architecture similar to that of voltage-gated K+ channels, but they open with the opposite voltage dependence. HCN channels use essentially the same positively charged voltage sensors and intracellular activation gates as K+ channels, but apparently these two components are coupled differently. In this study, we examine the energetics of coupling between the voltage sensor and the pore by using cysteine mutant channels for which low concentrations of Cd2+ ions freeze the open–closed gating machinery but still allow the sensors to move. We were able to lock mutant channels either into open or into closed states by the application of Cd2+ and measure the effect on voltage sensor movement. Cd2+ did not immobilize the gating charge, as expected for strict coupling, but rather it produced shifts in the voltage dependence of voltage sensor charge movement, consistent with its effect of confining transitions to either closed or open states. From the magnitude of the Cd2+-induced shifts, we estimate that each voltage sensor produces a roughly three- to sevenfold effect on the open–closed equilibrium, corresponding to a coupling energy of ∼1.3–2 kT per sensor. Such coupling is not only opposite in sign to the coupling in K+ channels, but also much weaker.

Hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide–sensitive nonselective cation (HCN) channels are activated by membrane hyperpolarization, in contrast to the vast majority of other voltage-gated channels that are activated by depolarization. The structural basis for this unique characteristic of HCN channels is unknown. Interactions between the S4–S5 linker and post-S6/C-linker region have been implicated previously in the gating mechanism of HCN channels. We therefore introduced pairs of cysteines into these regions within the sea urchin HCN channel and performed a Cd2+-bridging scan to resolve their spatial relationship. We show that high affinity metal bridges between the S4–S5 linker and post-S6/C-linker region can induce either a lock-open or lock-closed phenotype, depending on the position of the bridged cysteine pair. This suggests that interactions between these regions can occur in both the open and closed states, and that these regions move relative to each other during gating. Concatenated constructs reveal that interactions of the S4–S5 linker and post-S6/C-linker can occur between neighboring subunits. A structural model based on these interactions suggests a mechanism for HCN channel gating. We propose that during voltage-dependent activation the voltage sensors, together with the S4–S5 linkers, drive movement of the lower ends of the S5 helices around the central axis of the channel. This facilitates a movement of the pore-lining S6 helices, which results in opening of the channel. This mechanism may underlie the unique voltage dependence of HCN channel gating.

SummaryNeuronal excitation can be substantially modulated by alterations in metabolism, as evident from the anticonvulsant effect of diets that reduce glucose utilization and promote ketone body metabolism. We provide genetic evidence that BAD, a protein with dual functions in apoptosis and glucose metabolism, imparts reciprocal effects on metabolism of glucose and ketone bodies in brain cells. These effects involve phosphoregulation of BAD and are independent of its apoptotic function. BAD modifications that reduce glucose metabolism produce a marked increase in the activity of metabolically sensitive KATP channels in neurons, as well as resistance to behavioral and electrographic seizures in vivo. Seizure resistance is reversed by genetic ablation of the KATP channel, implicating the BAD-KATP axis in metabolic control of neuronal excitation and seizure responses.

NADH is a key metabolic cofactor whose sensitive and specific detection in the cytosol of live cells has been difficult. We constructed a fluorescent biosensor of the cytosolic NADH-NAD(+) redox state by combining a circularly permuted GFP T-Sapphire with a bacterial NADH-binding protein, Rex. Although the initial construct reported [NADH] × [H(+)] / [NAD(+)], its pH sensitivity was eliminated by mutagenesis. The engineered biosensor Peredox reports cytosolic NADH:NAD(+) ratios and can be calibrated with exogenous lactate and pyruvate. We demonstrated its utility in several cultured and primary cell types. We found that glycolysis opposed the lactate dehydrogenase equilibrium to produce a reduced cytosolic NADH-NAD(+) redox state. We also observed different redox states in primary mouse astrocytes and neurons, consistent with hypothesized metabolic differences. Furthermore, using high-content image analysis, we monitored NADH responses to PI3K pathway inhibition in hundreds of live cells. As an NADH reporter, Peredox should enable better understanding of bioenergetics.

Intracellular pH affects protein structure and function, and proton gradients underlie the function of organelles such as lysosomes and mitochondria. We engineered a genetically-encoded pH sensor by mutagenesis of the red fluorescent protein mKeima, providing a new tool to image intracellular pH in live cells. This sensor, named pHRed, is the first ratiometric, single-protein red fluorescent sensor of pH. Fluorescence emission of pHRed peaks at 610 nm while exhibiting dual excitation peaks at 440 nm and 585 nm that can be used for ratiometric imaging. The intensity ratio responds with an apparent pKa of 6.6 and a greater than 10-fold dynamic range. Furthermore, pHRed has a pH-responsive fluorescence lifetime that changes by ~0.4 ns over physiological pH values and can be monitored with single wavelength two-photon excitation. After characterizing the sensor, we tested pHRed’s ability to monitor intracellular pH by imaging energy-dependent changes in cytosolic and mitochondrial pH.

Aim: Cytosolic NADH-NAD+ redox state is central to cellular metabolism and a valuable indicator of glucose and lactate metabolism in living cells. Here we sought to quantitatively determine NADH-NAD+ redox in live cells and brain tissue using a fluorescence lifetime imaging of the genetically-encoded single-fluorophore biosensor Peredox. Results: We show that Peredox exhibits a substantial change in its fluorescence lifetime over its sensing range of NADH-NAD+ ratio. This allows changes in cytosolic NADH redox to be visualized in living cells using a two-photon scanning microscope with fluorescence lifetime imaging capabilities (2p-FLIM), using time-correlated single photon counting. Innovation: Because the lifetime readout is absolutely calibrated (in nanoseconds) and is independent of sensor concentration, we demonstrate that quantitative assessment of NADH redox is possible using a single fluorophore biosensor. Conclusion: Imaging of the sensor in mouse hippocampal brain slices reveals that astrocytes are typically much more reduced (with higher NADH:NAD+ ratio) than neurons under basal conditions, consistent with the hypothesis that astrocytes are more glycolytic than neurons. Antioxid. Redox Signal. 25, 553–563.

Voltage-dependent K+ channels like Shaker use an intracellular gate to control ion flow through the pore. When the membrane voltage becomes more positive, these channels traverse a series of closed conformations before the final opening transition. Does the intracellular gate undergo conformational changes before channel opening? To answer this question we introduced cysteines into the intracellular end of the pore and studied their chemical modification in conditions favoring each of three distinct states, the open state, the resting closed state, and the activated-not-open state (the closed state adjacent to the open state). We used two independent ways to isolate the channels in the activated-not-open state. First, we used mutations in S4 (ILT; Smith-Maxwell, C.J., J.L. Ledwell, and R.W. Aldrich. 1998. J. Gen. Physiol. 111:421–439; Ledwell, J.L., and R.W. Aldrich. 1999. J. Gen. Physiol. 113:389–414) that separate the final opening step from earlier charge-movement steps. Second, we used the open channel blocker 4-aminopyridine (4-AP), which has been proposed to promote closure of the intracellular gate and thus specifically to stabilize the activated-not-open state of the channels. Supporting this proposed mechanism, we found that 4-AP enters channels only after opening, remaining trapped in closed channels, and that in the open state it competes with tetraethylammonium for binding. Using these tools, we found that in the activated-not-open state, a cysteine located at a position considered to form part of the gate (Shaker 478) showed higher reactivity than in either the open or the resting closed states. Additionally, we have found that in this activated state the intracellular gate continued to prevent access to the pore by molecules as small as Cd2+ ions. Our results suggest that the intracellular opening to the pore undergoes some rearrangements in the transition from the resting closed state to the activated-not-open state, but throughout this process the intracellular gate remains an effective barrier to the movement of potassium ions through the pore.

Fluorescent biosensors are now routinely imaged using two-photon microscopy in intact tissue, for instance, in brain slices and brains in living animals. But most studies measure temporal variation-for example, calcium transients in response to neuronal activity-rather than calibrated levels of biosensor occupancy (and thus levels of the sensed analyte). True quantitative measurements are challenging, since it is difficult or impossible to calibrate a sensor's dose-response in situ, and difficult to compare the optical signals from tissue to those during in vitro calibration. Ratiometric measurements (at two wavelengths) are complicated by variations in laser power and by wavelength-dependent attenuation in tissue. For some biosensors, fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) provides a valuable alternative that gives well-calibrated measurements of analyte levels.

HERG encodes an inwardly-rectifying potassium channel that plays an important role in repolarization of the cardiac action potential. Inward rectification of HERG channels results from rapid and voltage-dependent inactivation gating, combined with very slow activation gating. We asked whether the voltage sensor is implicated in the unusual properties of HERG gating: does the voltage sensor move slowly to account for slow activation and deactivation, or could the voltage sensor move rapidly to account for the rapid kinetics and intrinsic voltage dependence of inactivation? To probe voltage sensor movement, we used a fluorescence technique to examine conformational changes near the positively charged S4 region. Fluorescent probes attached to three different residues on the NH2-terminal end of the S4 region (E518C, E519C, and L520C) reported both fast and slow voltage-dependent changes in fluorescence. The slow changes in fluorescence correlated strongly with activation gating, suggesting that the slow activation gating of HERG results from slow voltage sensor movement. The fast changes in fluorescence showed voltage dependence and kinetics similar to inactivation gating, though these fluorescence signals were not affected by external tetraethylammonium blockade or mutations that alter inactivation. A working model with two types of voltage sensor movement is proposed as a framework for understanding HERG channel gating and the fluorescence signals.

Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is a central metabolite that plays fundamental roles as an energy transfer molecule, a phosphate donor, and a signaling molecule inside the cells. The phosphoryl group transfer potential of ATP provides a thermodynamic driving force for many metabolic reactions, and phosphorylation of both small metabolites and large proteins can serve as a regulatory modification. In the process of phosphoryl transfer from ATP, the diphosphate ADP is produced, and as a result, the ATP-to-ADP ratio is an important physiological control parameter. The ATP-to-ADP ratio is directly proportional to cellular energy charge and phosphorylation potential. Furthermore, several ATP-dependent enzymes and signaling proteins are regulated by ADP, and their activation profiles are a function of the ATP-to-ADP ratio. Finally, regeneration of ATP from ADP can serve as an important readout of energy metabolism and mitochondrial function. We, therefore, developed a genetically encoded fluorescent biosensor tuned to sense ATP-to-ADP ratios in the physiological range of healthy mammalian cells. Here, we present a protocol for using this biosensor to visualize energy status using live-cell fluorescence microscopy.

Voltage-activated K+ channels are integral membrane proteins that open or close a K+-selective pore in response to changes in transmembrane voltage. Although the S4 region of these channels has been implicated as the voltage sensor, little is known about how opening and closing of the pore is accomplished. We explored the gating process by introducing cysteines at various positions thought to lie in or near the pore of the Shaker K+ channel, and by testing their ability to be chemically modified. We found a series of positions in the S6 transmembrane region that react rapidly with water-soluble thiol reagents in the open state but not the closed state. An open-channel blocker can protect several of these cysteines, showing that they lie in the ion-conducting pore. At two of these sites, Cd2+ ions bind to the cysteines without affecting the energetics of gating; at a third site, Cd2+ binding holds the channel open. The results suggest that these channels open and close by the movement of an intracellular gate, distinct from the selectivity filter, that regulates access to the pore.

At a cellular level, cardiac pacemaking, which sets the rate and rhythm of the heartbeat, is produced by the slow membrane depolarization that occurs between action potentials. Several ionic currents could account for this pacemaker potential, but their relative prominence is controversial, and it is not known which ones actually play a pacemaking role in vivo . To correlate currents in individual heart cells with the rhythmic properties of the intact heart, we have examined slow mo (smo) , a recessive mutation we discovered in the zebrafish Danio rerio . This mutation causes a reduced heart rate in the embryo, a property we can quantitate because the embryo is transparent. We developed methods for culture of cardiocytes from zebrafish embryos and found that, even in culture, cells from smo continue to beat relatively slowly. By patch-clamp analysis, we discovered that a large repertoire of cardiac currents noted in other species are present in these cultured cells, including sodium, T-type, and L-type calcium and several potassium currents, all of which appear normal in the mutant. The only abnormality appears to be in a hyperpolarization-activated inward current with the properties of I h , a current described previously in the nervous system, pacemaker, and other cardiac tissue. smo cardiomyocytes have a reduction in I h that appears to result from severe diminution of one kinetic component of the I h current. This provides strong evidence that I h is an important contributor to the pacemaking behavior of the intact heart.

The ATP:ADP ratio is a critical parameter of cellular energy status that regulates many metabolic activities. Here we report an optimized genetically-encoded fluorescent biosensor, PercevalHR, that senses the ATP:ADP ratio. PercevalHR is tuned to the range of intracellular ATP:ADP expected in mammalian cells, and it can be used with one- or two-photon microscopy in live samples. We use PercevalHR to visualize activity-dependent changes in ATP:ADP when neurons are exposed to multiple stimuli, demonstrating that it is a sensitive reporter of physiological changes in energy consumption and production. We also use PercevalHR to visualize intracellular ATP:ADP while simultaneously recording currents from ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels in single cells, showing that PercevalHR enables the study of coordinated variation in ATP:ADP and KATP channel open probability in intact cells. With its ability to monitor changes in cellular energetics within seconds, PercevalHR should be a versatile tool for metabolic research.

NADH is an essential redox cofactor in numerous metabolic reactions, and the cytosolic NADH-NAD(+) redox state is a key parameter in glycolysis. Conventional NADH measurements rely on chemical determination or autofluorescence imaging, which cannot assess NADH specifically in the cytosol of individual live cells. By combining a bacterial NADH-binding protein and a fluorescent protein variant, we have created a genetically encoded fluorescent biosensor of the cytosolic NADH-NAD(+) redox state, named Peredox (Hung et al., Cell Metab 14:545-554, 2011). Here, we elaborate on imaging methods and technical considerations of using Peredox to measure cytosolic NADH:NAD(+) ratios in individual live cells.

The intracellular segment of the Shaker K+ channel between transmembrane domains S4 and S5 has been proposed to form at least part of the receptor for the tethered N-type inactivation "ball." We used the approach of cysteine substitution mutagenesis and chemical modification to test the importance of this region in N-type inactivation. We studied N-type inactivation or the block by a soluble inactivation peptide ("ball peptide") before and after chemical modification by methanethiosulfonate reagents. Particularly at position 391, chemical modification altered specifically the kinetics of ball peptide binding without altering other biophysical properties of the channel. Results with reagents that attach different charged groups at 391 C suggested that there are both electrostatic and steric interactions between this site and the ball peptide. These findings identify this site to be in or near the receptor site for the inactivation ball. At many of the other positions studied, modification noticeably inhibited channel current. The accessible cysteines varied in the state-dependence of their modification, with five- to tenfold changes in reactions rate depending on the gating state of the channel.

A dietary therapy for pediatric epilepsy known as the ketogenic diet has seen a revival in its clinical use during the past decade. Although the underlying mechanism of the diet remains unknown, modern scientific approaches, such as the genetic disruption of glucose metabolism, are allowing for more detailed questions to be addressed. Recent work indicates that several mechanisms may exist for the ketogenic diet, including disruption of glutamatergic synaptic transmission, inhibition of glycolysis, and activation of ATP-sensitive potassium channels. Here, we describe on-going work in these areas that is providing a better understanding of metabolic influences on brain excitability and epilepsy.

Fluorescent protein technology has evolved to include genetically-encoded biosensors that can monitor levels of ions, metabolites, and enzyme activities as well as protein conformation and even membrane voltage. They are well suited to live-cell microscopy and quantitative analysis, and they can be used in multiple imaging modes, including one or two-photon fluorescence intensity or lifetime microscopy. Although not nearly complete, there now exists a substantial set of genetically-encoded reporters that can be used to monitor many aspects of neuronal and glial biology, and these biosensors can be used to visualize synaptic transmission and activity-dependent signaling in vitro and in vivo. In this review we present an overview of design strategies for engineering biosensors, including sensor designs using circularly-permuted fluorescent proteins and using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between fluorescent proteins. We also provide examples of indicators that sense small ions (e.g., pH, chloride, zinc), metabolites (e.g., glutamate, glucose, ATP, cAMP, lipid metabolites), signaling pathways (e.g., G protein coupled receptors, Rho GTPases), enzyme activities (e.g., protein kinase A, caspases), and reactive species. We focus on examples where these genetically-encoded indicators have been applied to brain-related studies and used with live-cell fluorescence microscopy.

Substitution of a cysteine in the extracellular mouth of the pore of the Shaker-delta K+ channel permits allosteric inhibition of the channel by Zn2+ or Cd2+ ions at micromolar concentrations. Cd2+ binds weakly to the open state but drives the channel into the slow (C-type) inactivated state, which has a Kd for Cd2+ of approximately 0.2 microM. There is a 45,000-fold increase in affinity when the channel changes from open to inactivated. These results indicate that C-type inactivation involves a structural change in the external mouth of the pore. This structural change is reflected in the T449C mutant as state-dependent metal affinity, which may result either from a change in proximity of the introduced cysteine residues of the four subunits or from a change of the exposure of this residue on the surface of the protein.

ATP-sensitive potassium channels (K(ATP) channels) are important sensors of cellular metabolic state that link metabolism and excitability in neuroendocrine cells, but their role in nonglucosensing central neurons is less well understood. To examine a possible role for K(ATP) channels in modulating excitability in hippocampal circuits, we recorded the activity of single K(ATP) channels in cell-attached patches of granule cells in the mouse dentate gyrus during bursts of action potentials generated by antidromic stimulation of the mossy fibers. Ensemble averages of the open probability (p(open)) of single K(ATP) channels over repeated trials of stimulated spike activity showed a transient increase in p(open) in response to action potential firing. Channel currents were identified as K(ATP) channels through blockade with glibenclamide and by comparison with recordings from Kir6.2 knock-out mice. The transient elevation in K(ATP) p(open) may arise from submembrane ATP depletion by the Na(+)-K(+) ATPase, as the pump blocker strophanthidin reduced the magnitude of the elevation. Both the steady-state and stimulus-elevated p(open) of the recorded channels were higher in the presence of the ketone body R-β-hydroxybutyrate, consistent with earlier findings that ketone bodies can affect K(ATP) activity. Using perforated-patch recording, we also found that K(ATP) channels contribute to the slow afterhyperpolarization following an evoked burst of action potentials. We propose that activity-dependent opening of K(ATP) channels may help granule cells act as a seizure gate in the hippocampus and that ketone-body-mediated augmentation of the activity-dependent opening could in part explain the effect of the ketogenic diet in reducing epileptic seizures.

We studied the effects of permeant ions on the gating of the large conductance Ca(2+)-activated K+ channel from rat skeletal muscle. Rb+ blockade of inward K+ current caused an increase in the open probability as though Rb+ occupancy of the pore interferes with channel closing. In support of this hypothesis, we directly measured the occupancy of the pore by the impermeant ion Cs+ and found that it strongly correlates with its effect on gating. This is consistent with the "foot-in-the-door" model of gating, which states that channels cannot close with an ion in the pore. However, because Rb+ and Cs+ not only slow the closing rate (as predicted by the model), but also speed the opening rate, our results are more consistent with a modified version of the model in which the channel can indeed close while occupied, but the occupancy destabilizes the closed state. Increasing the occupancy of the pore by the addition of other permeant (K+ and Tl+) and impermeant (tetraethylammonium) ions did not affect the open probability. To account for this disparity, we used a two-site permeation model in which only one of the sites influenced gating. Occupancy of this "gating site" interferes with channel closing and hastens opening. Ions that directly or indirectly increase the occupancy of this site will increase the open probability.

The ketogenic diet (KD) has shown remarkable efficacy in the treatment of drug-resistant childhood epilepsy. Our understanding of how the KD produces its anticonvulsant and antiepileptogenic effects remains incomplete, which is perhaps not surprising for a biological manipulation as sweeping as dietary change. Several hypotheses focus on ketone bodies, fuel molecules that circulate at millimolar concentrations in the blood of patients on a KD, as causative agents. Here I consider some recent evidence for one such hypothesis, involving a possible role for altered glycolysis and consequent activation of a class of potassium channels called K(ATP)channels.

Voltage-dependent ion channels are responsible for electrical signaling in neurons and other cells. The main classes of voltage-dependent channels (sodium-, calcium-, and potassium-selective channels) have closely related molecular structures. For one member of this superfamily, the transiently voltage-activated Shaker H4 potassium channel, specific amino acid residues have now been identified that affect channel blockade by the small ion tetraethylammonium, as well as the conduction of ions through the pore. Furthermore, variation at one of these amino acid positions among naturally occurring potassium channels may account for most of their differences in sensitivity to tetraethylammonium.

We have produced the four subunits of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor of Torpedo californica, an integral membrane protein, in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Two of the subunits (alpha and delta) were readily produced from their cDNAs after simply subcloning them into a yeast shuttle vector adjacent to a yeast promoter. The other two protein subunits (beta and gamma) were not produced by this strategy, although the amounts of mRNA produced from these expression constructs are similar to those for alpha and delta. Replacing the DNA coding for the normal N-terminal signal sequences for the beta and gamma subunits with DNA coding for the signal sequence of yeast invertase results in successful protein synthesis. The yeast signal sequence allows these subunits to be translocated across the membrane of the endoplasmic reticulum and to be glycosylated. The appropriate final size of the subunit proteins suggests that the yeast signal sequence has been properly cleaved after translocation.

Voltage-gated ion channels possess charged domains that move in response to changes in transmembrane voltage. How this movement is transduced into gating of the channel pore is largely unknown. Here we show directly that two functionally important regions of the spHCN1 pacemaker channel, the S4–S5 linker and the C-linker, come into close proximity during gating. Cross-linking these regions with high-affinity metal bridges or disulfide bridges dramatically alters channel gating in the absence of cAMP; after modification the polarity of voltage dependence is reversed. Instead of being closed at positive voltage and activating with hyperpolarization, modified channels are closed at negative voltage and activate with depolarization. Mechanistically, this reversal of voltage dependence occurs as a result of selectively eliminating channel deactivation, while retaining an existing inactivation process. Bridging also alters channel activation by cAMP, showing that interaction of these two regions can also affect the efficacy of physiological ligands.

Ion channels don't like having their permeant ions taken away. Particularly when they are in the mood to let ions through, this sort of deprivation makes them feel downright unstable. Like jilted lovers, they shut the door and become listless, inactive(-ated), and sometimes even immobilized. Channel physiologists have long tried to ignore this dejected behavior on the part of the channels, even though for many years it has been clear that channels often refuse to gate normally in unfriendly ionic conditions. The best known such effect is the slowed closing of channels in the presence of high concentrations of certain permeant ions, often called the “foot in the door” effect (Yeh and Armstrong, 1978). This type of effect was first noticed for synaptic channels (Ascher et al., 1978; Marchais and Marty, 1979) and has been studied in detail for a variety of K+ channels (Stanfield et al., 1981; Swenson and Armstrong, 1981; Matteson and Swenson, 1986; Shapiro and DeCoursey, 1991; Neyton and Pelleschi, 1992; Demo and Yellen, 1992). Three recent papers in this journal highlight the different possible manifestations of such ion effects on gating and emphasize their importance for a good biophysical understanding of the channel mechanisms. Cloned voltage-activated Na+ channels show two distinct changes in gating when extracellular Na+ ions are replaced by impermeant ions (Townsend et al., 1997; Townsend and Horn, 1997). The first change is that their open probability is reduced, particularly for very large depolarizations. This decrease is not seen with normal concentrations of extracellular Na+ and is likely to result from a voltage-dependent depletion of ions from the pore. Only the highly permeant ions Na+ and Li+ can prevent this effect, which does not depend on the normal fast inactivation mechanism. In fact, it is more prominent in a mutant with reduced fast inactivation. Townsend et al. (1997) show that the ion-sensitive steps are very rapid, and they argue that the most likely explanation of the effect is that, in the absence of extracellular permeant ions, there is a rapid inactivation that competes with the opening process. The second effect of reduced Na+ concentration is to enhance Na+ channel slow inactivation (Townsend and Horn, 1997). In low [Na+], the onset of inactivation is faster and recovery is slower. In contrast with the rapid ion effects on open probability, all of the alkali cations tested can oppose slow inactivation, even the weakly permeant K+ and Cs+ ions. Both of these effects on Na+ channels have analogs in the history of ion effects on K+ channels. For a number of K+ channels, reducing external [K+] can markedly reduce the open probability (Pardo et al., 1992; Lopez-Barneo et al., 1993). It is not clear that these effects have the same rapid time course as the Na+ channel effects, but they too are proposed to result from closed-channel inactivation. External [K+] can also modulate both onset and recovery from slow (C-type) inactivation (Lopez-Barneo et al., 1993; Levy and Deutsch, 1996); the effects on the onset of inactivation are particularly marked under conditions where K+ efflux through the channel is reduced by N-type inactivation or blockade (Baukrowitz and Yellen, 1995, 1996). Townsend et al. (1997) predict that the ion effects on open probability may have significant effects on the gating currents, since inactivated states often produce a dramatic slowing or “immobilization” of gating charge movement. Their prediction appears to have been borne out in the third recent paper on Shaker-family K+ channels (Chen et al., 1997). The problem with studying ion effects on gating charge movement is that to measure gating currents it usually is necessary to eliminate ionic currents. This is generally done either by removing permeant ions, adding blockers (which often act at the same sites as permeant ions), or using “nonconducting” mutants (which by definition disrupt some of the normal interactions of permeant ions with the channel). Chen et al. (1997) overcome this problem, partially, by measuring gating currents at or near the reversal potential for ionic currents in the presence of low concentrations of K+ or the weakly permeant ion Cs+. To understand their results, it is necessary first to know what the previous gating current measurements have shown, in the absence of permeant ion interactions. Depolarizing voltage steps produce outward gating current (“on” currents) and the return voltage step produces a restoring “off” gating current; the net charge (integral of current × dt) for on and off charge movement is generally equal and opposite. For small or brief depolarizations (too small to produce much channel opening), the rate of off charge movement is quite rapid. However, for larger and longer depolarizations that would open the channels, the off charge movement becomes much slower. This has previously been interpreted to mean that the rate-determining opening step involves a concerted motion of the channel subunits to a particularly stable open state, which slows down the return of the off charge (Bezanilla et al., 1994; Zagotta et al., 1994). Chen et al. (1997) find that in the presence of permeant ions this slowing of the off gating current is not seen, even though it is clear that the channels indeed are opening. This could be explained by supposing that permeant ions just speed up the closing of the open state, but it seems more natural to explain it by revising the original interpretation of the slow off currents. Chen et al. (1997) propose that the original observation of slowing actually is due to a rapid inactivation process, which predominates when permeant ions are absent (much like the rapid inactivation inferred by Townsend et al., 1997) in the absence of extracellular Na+. K+ ions cannot prevent the development of slow off currents in the nonconducting W472F mutant of Kv1.5 channels, which may be explained simply by the inability of ions to interact with the nonconducting channel. If these interpretations are correct, they argue for considerable caution in combining information obtained under widely varying experimental conditions (e.g., gating current measurements and ionic current measurements) to construct coherent models of channel gating. Is there any physiological importance to these permeant ion effects on the gating of voltage-dependent channels? With rare exceptions, such as the taste buds, the concentrations of permeant ions around voltage-dependent channels in animal cells are carefully regulated by homeostatic mechanisms. This precludes most of the ion effects that are provoked by the dramatic manipulations of channel biophysicists; e.g., when they measure gating currents. However, this regulation can fail to some extent, particularly in the case of extracellular [K+]: local accumulation during neuronal activity can produce increases of [K+] up to 6–10 mM (Sykova, 1983), and the changes might be even more pronounced in ischemic conditions. These [K+] changes may be enough to produce changes in open probability of certain K+ channels (Pardo et al., 1992), particularly in the rate and extent of C-type inactivation (Lopez-Barneo et al., 1993; Baukrowitz and Yellen, 1995, 1996). What can we learn from these effects about ion channel structure and mechanisms? The theme that pervades all three of the effects described here and almost all the ion effects in the literature is that permeant ions stabilize the open channel structure. Why is it so common for open pore stability to depend on permeant ions? Perhaps the most obvious explanation is that these channels evolved to work under particular ionic conditions; because charged permeant ions have substantial energetic interactions with the open channel structure, these were included in the structural and energetic “design” of the channel proteins in the open state. But why aren't the open channel structures “overstabilized”? Why don't they have a design safety factor that allows pore stability to be maintained even under stress? One can propose two teleological answers to this question. First, the inherent instability or metastability of the open state produces a variety of inactivation mechanisms, which apparently prove to be useful at times. Second, if some of the interaction energy between the permeant ion and the channel is used to stabilize the open channel structure (a la Jencks, 1975), the net binding energy of the ion will be weaker. Perhaps, like multi-ion occupancy, this allows the channel protein to have strong and selective interactions with its favorite ion without binding the ion so strongly as to prevent rapid permeation.

The voltage-gated potassium channels are the prototypical members of a family of membrane signalling proteins. These protein-based machines have pores that pass millions of ions per second across the membrane with astonishing selectivity, and their gates snap open and shut in milliseconds as they sense changes in voltage or ligand concentration. The architectural modules and functional components of these sophisticated signalling molecules are becoming clear, but some important links remain to be elucidated.

Ion channels, like many other proteins, have moving parts that perform useful functions. The channel proteins contain an aqueous, ion-selective pore that crosses the plasma membrane, and they use a number of distinct ‘gating’ mechanisms to open and close this pore in response to biological stimuli such as the binding of a ligand or a change in the transmembrane voltage.This review is written at a watershed in our understanding of ion channels.1. INTRODUCTION 2401.1 Basic structure of voltage-activated channels 2411.2 What are the physical motions of the channel protein during gating? 2431.3 Gating involves several distinct mechanisms of activation and inactivation 2462. ACTIVATION GATING 2462.1 Early evidence for an activation gate at the intracellular mouth 2472.1.1 Open channel blockade 2472.1.2 The ‘ foot-in-the-door’ effect 2492.1.3 Trapping of blockers behind closed activation gates 2492.2 Site-directed mutagenesis and the difficulty of inferring structural roles from functional effects 2502.3 State-dependent cysteine modification as a reporter of position and motion 2512.4 Localization of activation gating 2542.4.1 The trapping cavity 2542.4.2 The activation gate 2552.4.3 Is there more than one site of activation gating? 2583. INACTIVATION GATING 2593.1 Ball-and-chain (N-type) inactivation 2613.1.1 Nature of the ‘ball’ – a tethered blocking particle 2623.1.2 The ball receptor 2633.1.3 The chain 2643.1.4 Variations on the N-type inactivation theme: multiple balls, foreign balls, anti-balls 2653.2 C-type inactivation 2663.2.1 C-type inactivation and the outer mouth of the K+channel 2663.2.2 The selectivity filter participates in C-type inactivation 2673.2.3 A consistent structural picture of C-type inactivation 2693.3 By what mechanism do other voltage-gated channels inactivate? 2724. THE VOLTAGE SENSOR 2734.1 Quantitative principles of voltage-dependent gating 2764.2 S4 (and its neighbours) as the principal voltage sensor 2774.2.1 Mutational effects on voltage-dependence and charge movement 2774.2.2 Evidence for the translocation of S4 2794.2.3 Real-time monitoring of S4motion by fluorescence 2824.3 Coupling between the voltage sensor and gating 2835. CONCLUSION 2846. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 2877. REFERENCES 287

A HUMAN genetic defect associated with 'long Q–T syndrome', an abnormality of cardiac rhythm involving the repolarization of the action potential, was recently found to lie in the HERG gene, which codes for a potassium channel1. The HERG K+ channel is unusual in that it seems to have the architectural plan of the depolarization-activated K+ channel family (six putative trans-membrane segments), yet it exhibits rectification like that of the inward-rectifying K+ channels, a family with different molecular structure (two transmembrane segments)2–4. We have studied HERG channels expressed in mammalian cells and find that this inward rectification arises from a rapid and voltage-dependent inactivation process that reduces conductance at positive voltages. The inactivation gating mechanism resembles that of C-type inactivation, often considered to be the Slow inactivation' mechanism of other K+ channels. The characteristics of this gating suggest a specific role for this channel in the normal suppression of arrhythmias.

A powerful tool in the study of cloned ion channels is the combined use of site-directed mutagenesis and chemical modification. Site-directed mutagenesis is used to introduce new cysteine residues at specific positions in a channel protein, and chemical modification by thiol-specific reagents is then used to assess the exposure of the introduced cysteines. This method has been used to assess secondary structure, membrane topology and conformational changes. We report that one commonly used, charged reagent (MTSEA; aminoethyl methanethiosulfonate) can cross the membrane quite readily. We also find that other reagents that are quite membrane-impermeant can cross the membrane when patches are electrically leaky. Both of these undesired effects can be controlled by the use of a thiol scavenger. These findings argue for caution in the use of modifying reagents to determine the membrane topology of channels and other membrane proteins. Copyright © 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd

Quaternary ammonium (QA) compounds inhibit K+ conductance by entering and occluding the open pore of voltage-activated K+ channels. We characterized the effects of a series of alkyl-triethylammonium blockers on the Shaker K+ channel and tested them on a series of site-directed mutants of the channel protein in order to define the structural features of the binding sites. We found that mutations in two regions of the channel protein, the pore (P) region and the last transmembrane sequence (S6), appear to alter QA binding, not through their effects on gating but perhaps through direct effects on the binding site. Several mutations in the P region affect tetraethylammonium binding but have minimal effects on longer blockers, suggesting that the hydrophobic tail contributes to binding in a nonadditive fashion. Binding of the longer blockers can be affected by varying the hydrophobicity of 1 residue within S6 by site-specific substitution, in a manner consistent with a direct hydrophobic interaction between the side chain at this site and the alkyl chains of the blocker.

Following voltage-dependent activation, Drosophila Shaker K + channels enter a nonconducting, inactivated state. This process has been proposed to occur by a "ball-and-chain" mechanism, in which the N-terminus of the protein behaves like a blocker tethered to the cytoplasmic side of the channel and directly occludes the pore to cause inactivation. To complement the ample evidence for the involvement of the N-terminus, we sought evidence that it blocks the pore directly. We found that inactivation exhibits several distinctive properties of pore blockade. First, recovery was speeded by increased external K + concentrations, just as blockade can be relieved by trans-permeant ions. Second, single-channel experiments show that the channel reopens from the inactivated state upon repolarization. These openings were usually required for recovery, as though the blocking particle must exit the pore before the channel can close.

The active site of voltage-activated potassium channels is a transmembrane aqueous pore that permits ions to permeate the cell membrane in a rapid yet highly selective manner. A useful probe for the pore of potassium-selective channels is the organic ion tetraethylammonium (TEA), which binds with millimolar affinity to the intracellular opening of the pore and blocks potassium current. In the potassium channel encoded by the Drosophila Shaker gene, an amino acid residue that specifically affects the affinity for intracellular TEA has now been identified by site-directed mutagenesis. This residue is in the middle of a conserved stretch of 18 amino acids that separates two locations that are both near the external opening of the pore. These findings suggest that this conserved region is intimately involved in the formation of the ion conduction pore of voltage-activated potassium channels. Further, a stretch of only eight amino acid residues must traverse 80 percent of the transmembrane electric potential difference.

We report the expression of voltage-dependent Na+ channels in Xenopus oocytes injected with total RNA isolated from explanted human hearts. The expressed channels demonstrate characteristic voltage-dependent gating, inhibition by tetrodotoxin, and selectivity for Na+. Oocytes injected with sterile water or intentionally degraded RNA had no similar channel activity. The antiarrhythmic agent lidocaine (20 microM) inhibits current flow through the channel in a voltage-dependent fashion. Na+ channels expressed by injection of human cardiac RNA into Xenopus oocytes qualitatively resemble channels in the native tissue.

We describe the expression and characterization of sodium channels from human brain RNA in the Xenopus oocyte. The expressed channel, studied by whole-cell voltage clamp, reveals characteristic selectivity for sodium as the permeant ion, voltage-dependent gating, and block by nanomolar concentrations of tetrodotoxin. Such channels are not seen in control oocytes injected with solvent only. The anticonvulsant diphenylhydantoin (DPH) inhibits the expressed channel in a voltage- and use-dependent manner, much like the effect seen in primary mammalian neuronal preparations. The inhibition of the expressed human sodium channel by DPH can be described by models previously developed to explain block of Na channels by local anesthetics. The preferential block of Na channels during depolarization helps explain the selectivity of DPH for neurons involved in seizure activity.

The permeability of cell membranes to Ca2+ ions is of great importance for a variety of cellular functions such as secretion of neurotransmitters and hormones, or contractile activation of heart cells. In several cell types including cardiac muscle, Ca2+ channels are gated by membrane potential and regulated by neurotransmitters1–3. We have used the patch clamp technique4 in order to obtain information about the properties of single Ca channels in cultured heart cells. With Ba2+ carrying the inward current the single channel slope conductance is about 25 pS, and the probability of channel opening increases markedly with voltage. The channels become inactivated over a membrane potential range of about 60 mV. The mean channel open time is about 1 ms at 25 °C. However, a second much slower clustering behaviour primarily determines the slow activation time course of averaged currents. Isoprenaline does not affect single channel conductance, but seems to lengthen the mean open time and to decrease intervals between bursts.

The flickery block of single Ca2+-activated K+ channels that is produced by internally applied Na+ can be relieved by millimolar concentrations of external K+. This effect of K+ on the kinetics of Na+ block was studied by the method of amplitude distribution analysis described in the companion paper (Yellen, G., 1984b, J. Gen. Physiol., 84:157-186). It appears that K+ relieves block by increasing the exit rate of the blocking ion from the channel, not by competitively slowing its entrance rate. This suggests that a K ion that enters the channel from the outside can expel the blocking Na ion, which entered the channel from the inside. Cs+, which cannot carry current through the channel, and Rb+, which carries a reduced current through the channel, are just as effective as K+ in relieving the block by internal Na+. The kinetics of block by internal nonyltriethylammonium (C9) are unaffected by the presence of these ions in the external bathing solution.

K+-selective ion channels from mammalian sarcoplasmic reticulum were inserted into planar phospholipid bilayers, and single-channel currents measured in solutions containing Cs+. Current through this channel can be observed in symmetrical solutions containing only Cs+ salts. At zero voltage, the Cs+ conductance is approximately 15-fold lower than the corresponding K+ conductance. The open channel rectifies strongly in symmetrical Cs+ solutions, and the Cs+ currents are independent of Cs+ concentration in the range 18-600 mM. Biionic (Cs+/K+) reversal potentials are only 10 mV, showing that Cs+ is nearly as permeant as K+, though much less conductive. Addition of Cs+ to symmetrical K+ solutions reduces current through the channel in a voltage-dependent way. The results can be explained by a free energy profile in which the channel's selectivity filter acts in two ways: to provide binding sites for the conducting ions and to serve as a major rate-determining structure. According to this picture, the main difference between high-conductance K+ and low-conductance Cs+ is that Cs+ binds to an asymmetrically positioned site approximately 20-fold more tightly than does K+.

Recent work suggests an important role for intracellular agents in controlling ion channels in the membranes of nerve cells and other excitable tissues. Calcium ions1,2, cyclic nucleotides3 and protein kinases4,5 can all act on the inner surface of the membrane to influence ion channel activity. Earlier studies of these effects on intact cells could not, however, effectively control or measure conditions on the inner membrane surface. The technique of recording from detached membrane patches6,7permits free access to the intracellular face of ion channels and makes it possible to study them in isolation from the many components of the cytoplasm. With this technique, I have studied the response of membrane patches from neuroblastoma cells to intracellular Ca2+ ions, and have found a class of nonselective cation channels activated by micromolar concentrations of Ca2+ on the intracellular face of the membrane. These channels are almost equally permeable to Na+, K+, Li+ and Cs+ ions, but are practically impermeable to Ca2+ ions. Similar channels were first found recently in cultured heart cells8, where they probably account for the previously reported ‘transient inward’ current9. Their discovery in neuronal cells as well as heart cells suggests that this hitherto scarcely recognized channel species may be more widely distributed than previously supposed.

The SR K+ channel is a single-ion channel with a tunnel that is not very selective, while the DR and CaK channels are both more selective, multi-ion channels. The permeation mechanisms of the three channels are probably most systematically distinguished by the length of their tunnels; the SR has the shortest and the DR the longest. Although different in their mechanisms of activation, the DR and CaK channels have very similar permeation characteristics, down to the details of selectivity and blockade. The longer tunnel and reduced conductance (perhaps a result of the extra tunnel length) of the DR K+ channel are the main differences. The selectivity of the rate-limiting barriers and the binding sites within the channels, however, are strikingly similar. A successful potassium channel must satisfy two criteria: It must let potassium ions through and not much else, and it must let many potassium ions through. To be selective the channel must have a narrow selectivity filter, so that an ion must shed some of its waters of hydration to pass through. Sodium ions are excluded because they are more reluctant to lose their water, and they are not adequately compensated for this loss by interaction with the selectivity filter. To carry a large current the narrow region must be short, with wide antechambers to reduce the diffusional access resistance (48). Energetically, the channel must strike a balance. There must be enough binding energy to compensate the ions for their lost hydration energy, so that the energy barrier to permeation is small. If the channel binds the ion too tightly, however, the ion will not be able to exit, and the current will be small. Some of the shared properties of different potassium channels are probably consequences of these requirements; others may be incidental to function, suggesting a common origin. Barium ions have almost exactly the same radius as potassium ions but twice the charge, so it is perhaps not surprising that barium can block any potassium channel by binding where potassium does, but too tightly. It seems more surprising that blockade by TEA+ and other quaternary ammonium ions is also well conserved. All three of the potassium channels considered here have a mouth that binds QA ions and that has a nearby hydrophobic pocket; the frog DR and the CaK channels also have a TEA+-specific site on the opposite side. The QA site might not be an obligatory feature of potassium channels, but rather a conserved evolutionary vestige.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)