Abstract
Potassium channels are integral membrane proteins that selectively transport K+ ions across cell membranes. They function through a pair of gates, which work in tandem to allow the passage of the ions through the channel pore in a coupled system, to which I refer to here as the “gate linker”. The functional mutation effects, as described in the literature, suggest that the gate linker functions analogously to a triad of coiled springs arranged in series. Accordingly, I constructed a physical model of harmonic oscillators and analyzed it mechanically and mathematically. The operation of this model indeed corresponds to the phenomena observed in the mutations study. The harmonic oscillator model shows that the strength of the gate linker is crucial for gate coupling and may account for the velocity, direction, and efficiency of ion transfer through the channel. Such a physical perspective of the gating process suggests new lines of investigation regarding the coupling mode of potassium channels and may help to explain the importance of the gate linker to channel function.
Highlights
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The current study provides a model for the coupling between the activation and inactivation gates, focusing on voltage-dependent (Kv) and leak (K2P) potassium channels
The activation–inactivation gate coupling is functionally different between the two types of channel: whereas coupling is bidirectional in Kv channels—namely, the activation gate induces the closure of the inactivation gate [2,3] and vice versa [4,5], it is unidirectional in K2P channels, in which the activation gateSyimndmuetrcye2s0t1h7e, 9c, l1o5s0;udroei:o10f.3t3h9e0/isnyamc9t0iv80a1t5i0on gate [6]
Summary
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