Cardiac and renal inward rectifier potassium channel pharmacology: emerging tools for integrative physiology and therapeutics.

Highlights: [•] Some Kir channels are putative drug targets, but their pharmacology is limited. [•] Newly discovered inhibitors or activators of Kir2.x, 4.1, and 7.1 are discussed. [•] Mechanisms of action involve pore-lining residues that control rectification. [•] This work is a critical first step toward developing more specific modulators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]