A Pore Idea: the ion conduction pathway of TMEM16/ANO proteins is composed partly of lipid.

ABSTRACT: Since their first descriptions, ion channels have been conceived as proteinaceous conduits that facilitate the passage of ionic cargo between segregated environments. This concept is reinforced by crystallographic structures of cation channels depicting ion conductance pathways completely lined by protein. Although lipids are sometimes present in fenestrations near the pore or may be involved in channel gating, there is little or no evidence that lipids inhabit the ion conduction pathway. Indeed, the presence of lipid acyl chains in the conductance pathway would curse the design of the channel's aqueous pore. Here, we make a speculative proposal that anion channels in the TMEM16/ANO superfamily have ion conductance pathways composed partly of lipids. Our reasoning is based on the idea that

SUBMITTER: Whitlock JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4751199 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature