Voltage sensor ring in a native structure of a membrane-embedded potassium channel.

ABSTRACT: Voltage-gated ion channels support electrochemical activity in cells and are largely responsible for information flow throughout the nervous systems. The voltage sensor domains in these channels sense changes in transmembrane potential and control ion flux across membranes. The X-ray structures of a few voltage-gated ion channels in detergents have been determined and have revealed clear structural variations among their respective voltage sensor domains. More recent studies demonstrated that lipids around a voltage-gated channel could directly alter its conformational state in membrane. Because of these disparities, the structural basis for voltage sensing in native membranes remains elusive. Here, through electron-crystallographic analysis of membrane-embedded proteins, we present the de

SUBMITTER: Shi L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3587264 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature