Direct visualization of electric-field-stimulated ion conduction in a potassium channel.

ABSTRACT: Understanding protein function would be facilitated by direct, real-time observation of chemical kinetics in the atomic structure. The selectivity filter (SF) of the K⁺ channel provides an ideal model, catalyzing the dehydration and transport of K⁺ ions across the cell membrane through a narrow pore. We used a "pump-probe" method called electric-field-stimulated time-resolved X-ray crystallography (EFX) to initiate and observe K⁺ conduction in the NaK2K channel in both directions on the timescale of the transport process. We observe both known and potentially new features in the high-energy conformations visited along the conduction pathway, including the associated dynamics of protein residues that control selectivity and conduction rate. A single time ser

SUBMITTER: Lee B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11924917 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature