Crystal structure of a voltage-gated sodium channel in two potentially inactivated states.

From ionic currents to molecular mechanisms: the structure and function of voltage-gated sodium channels.

Whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiological investigation of endothelial cells cultured from human saphenous vein (HSVECs) has identified a voltage-gated Na+ current with a mean peak magnitude of -595 +/- 49 pA (n = 75). This current was inhibited by tetrodotoxin (TTX) in a concentration-dependent manner, with an IC50 value of 4.7 microM, suggesting that it was of the TTX-resistant subtype. An antibody directed against the highly conserved intracellular linker region between domains III and IV of known Na+ channel alpha-subunits was able to retard current inactivation when applied intracellularly. This antibody identified a 245-kDa protein from membrane lysates on Western blotting and positively immunolabeled both cultured HSVECs and intact venous endothelium. HSVECs were also shown by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction to contain transcripts of the hH1 sodium channel gene. The expression of Na+ channels by HSVECs was shown using electrophysiology and cell-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to be dependent on the concentration and source of human serum. Together, these results suggest that TTX-resistant Na+ channels of the hH1 isoform are expressed in human saphenous vein endothelium and that the presence of these channels is controlled by a serum factor.

SummaryVoltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels, initially characterized in excitable cells, have been shown to be aberrantly expressed in non-excitable cancer tissues and cells from epithelial origins such as in breast, lung, prostate, colon, and cervix, whereas they are not expressed in cognate non-cancer tissues. Their activity was demonstrated to promote aggressive and invasive potencies of cancer cells, both in vitro and in vivo, whereas their deregulated expression in cancer tissues has been associated with metastatic progression and cancer-related death. This review proposes NaV channels as pharmacological targets for anticancer treatments providing opportunities for repurposing existing NaV-inhibitors or developing new pharmacological and nutritional interventions.

Voltage-dependent transitions between resting and activated states of the four Cav1.1 voltage sensors observed in MD simulation.

Structural Determinants of the Hyperpolarization-Dependent Gating of HCN Channels

Voltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels control excitable cell functions. While structural investigations have revealed conformation details of different functional states, the mechanisms of both activation and slow inactivation remain unclear. Here, we identify residue T140 in the S4-S5 linker of the bacterial voltage-gated sodium channel NaChBac as critical for channel activation and drug effects on inactivation. Mutations at T140 either attenuate activation or render the channel nonfunctional. Propofol, a clinical anesthetic known to inhibit NaChBac by promoting slow inactivation, binds to a pocket between the S4-S5 linker and S6 helix in a conformation-dependent manner. Using 19F-NMR to quantify site-specific binding by saturation transfer differences (STDs), we found strong STDs in inactivated, but not activated, NaChBac. Molecular dynamics simulations show a highly dynamic pocket in the activated conformation, limiting STD buildup. In contrast, drug binding to this pocket promotes and stabilizes the inactivated states. Our results provide direct experimental evidence showing distinctly different associations between the S4-S5 linker and S6 helix in activated and inactivated states. Specifically, an exchange occurs between interaction partners T140 and N234 of the same subunit in activation, and T140 and N225 of the domain-swapped subunit in slow inactivation. The drug action on slow inactivation of prokaryotic NaV channels seems to have a mechanism similar to the recently proposed "door-wedge" action of the isoleucine-phenylalanine-methionine (IFM) motif on the fast inactivation of eukaryotic NaV channels. Elucidating this gating mechanism points to a possible direction for conformation-dependent drug development.

An Open State Model of the Navab Channel Explored by Rosetta and Molecular Dynamics Simulation

Domain- and state-specific shape of the electric field tunes voltage sensing in voltage-gated sodium channels

Molecular Determinants for the Genesis of the Action Potential

Dynamic selectivity filters in ion channels.

In-frame deletion mutation (Del-L955) in NaV1.7 sodium channel from a kindred with erythromelalgia hyperpolarizes activation. Del-L955 twists the S6 helix, displacing the Phe960 activation gate. Replacement of Phe960 at the correct helical position depolarizes activation. Radial tuning of the activation gate is critical to the activation of NaV1.7 channel. Structural modeling guided electrophysiology reveals the functional importance of radial tuning of the S6 segment. Voltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels are membrane proteins that consist of 24 transmembrane segments organized into four homologous domains and are essential for action potential generation and propagation. Although the S6 helices of NaV channels line the ion-conducting pore and participate in channel activation, their functional architecture is incompletely understood. Our recent studies show that a naturally occurring in-frame deletion mutation (Del-L955) of NaV1.7 channel, identified in individuals with a severe inherited pain syndrome (inherited erythromelalgia) causes a substantial hyperpolarizing shift of channel activation. Here we took advantage of this deletion mutation to understand the role of the S6 helix in the channel activation. Based on the recently published structure of a bacterial NaV channel (NaVAb), we modeled the WT and Del-L955 channel. Our structural model showed that Del-L955 twists the DII/S6 helix, shifting location and radial orientation of the activation gate residue (Phe(960)). Hypothesizing that these structural changes produce the shift of channel activation of Del-L955 channels, we restored a phenylalanine in wild-type orientation by mutating Ser(961) (Del-L955/S961F), correcting activation by ∼10 mV. Correction of the displaced Phe(960) (F960S) together with introduction of the rescuing activation gate residue (S961F) produced an additional ∼6-mV restoration of activation of the mutant channel. A simple point mutation in the absence of a twist (L955A) did not produce a radial shift and did not hyperpolarize activation. Our results demonstrate the functional importance of radial tuning of the sodium channel S6 helix for the channel activation.

Elucidating the differential mutational effects of gating charges in voltage-gated sodium channels.

Important Role of Asparagines in Coupling the Pore and Votage-Sensor Domain in Voltage-Gated Sodium Channels

Voltage-gated sodium channels initiate electrical signaling in excitable cells and are the molecular targets for drugs and disease mutations, but the structural basis for their voltage-dependent activation, ion selectivity, and drug block is unknown. Here, we report the crystal structure of a voltage-gated Na+-channel from Arcobacter butzleri (NavAb) captured in a closed-pore conformation with four activated voltage-sensors at 2.7 Å resolution. The arginine gating charges make multiple hydrophilic interactions within the voltage-sensor, including unanticipated hydrogen bonds to the protein backbone. Comparisons to previous open-pore potassium channel structures suggest that the voltage-sensor domains and the S4-S5 linkers dilate the central pore by pivoting together around a hinge at the base of the pore module. The NavAb selectivity filter is short, ~6.5 Å wide, and water-filled, with four acidic side-chains surrounding the narrowest part of the ion conduction pathway. This unique structure presents a high field-strength anionic coordination site, which confers Na+-selectivity through partial dehydration via direct interaction with glutamate side-chains. Fenestrations in the sides of the pore module are unexpectedly penetrated by fatty acyl chains that extend into the central cavity, and these portals are large enough for the entry of small, hydrophobic pore-blocking drugs.

Sodium channels are voltage-gated sodium-selective ion channels present in the membrane of most excitable cells. Sodium channels comprise one pore-forming α subunit, which may be associated with either one or two β subunits [191]. α-Subunits consist of four homologous domains (I-IV), each containing six transmembrane segments (S1-S6) and a pore-forming loop. The positively charged fourth transmembrane segment (S4) acts as a voltage sensor and is involved in channel gating. The crystal structure of the bacterial NavAb channel has revealed a number of novel structural features compared to earlier potassium channel structures including a short selectivity filter with ion selectivity determined by interactions with glutamate side chains [298]. Interestingly, the pore region is penetrated by fatty acyl chains that extend into the central cavity which may allow the entry of small, hydrophobic pore-blocking drugs [298]. Auxiliary β1, β2, β3 and β4 subunits consist of a large extracellular N-terminal domain, a single transmembrane segment and a shorter cytoplasmic domain. Pharmacological targeting of voltage-gated sodium channels has long been a cornerstone of clinical treatment for a range of conditions. Classical sodium channel blockers, many of which act by occluding the central pore, are widely used as local anesthetics, antiarrhythmic agents, and anticonvulsants [135]. More recently, suzetrigine, a highly selective Nav1.8 inhibitor, received FDA approval for the treatment of acute post-operative pain [202, 419]. The nomenclature for sodium channels was proposed by Goldin et al., (2000) [155] and approved by the NC-IUPHAR Subcommittee on sodium channels (Catterall et al., 2005, [54]).