Formation Mechanism of Ion Channel in Channelrhodopsin-2: Molecular Dynamics Simulation and Steering Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

ABSTRACT: Channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) is a light-activated and non-selective cationic channel protein that can be easily expressed in specific neurons to control neuronal activity by light. Although ChR2 has been extensively used as an optogenetic tool in neuroscience research, the molecular mechanism of cation channel formation following retinal photoisomerization in ChR2 is not well understood. In this paper, studies of the closed and opened state ChR2 structures are presented. The formation of the cationic channel is elucidated in atomic detail using molecular dynamics simulations on the all-trans-retinal (ChR2-trans) configuration of ChR2 and its isomerization products, 13-cis-retinal (ChR2-cis) configuration, respectively. Photoisomerization of the retinal-chromophore causes the destruction of in

SUBMITTER: Yang T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6695816 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature