Document Type
Article
Publication Date
6-17-2022
Abstract
Small- and intermediate-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ (KCa2.x/KCa3.1 also called SK/IK) channels are gated exclusively by intracellular Ca2+. The Ca2+ binding protein calmodulin confers sub-micromolar Ca2+ sensitivity to the channel-calmodulin complex. The calmodulin C-lobe is constitutively associated with the proximal C-terminus of the channel. Interactions between calmodulin N-lobe and the channel S4-S5 linker are Ca2+-dependent, which subsequently trigger conformational changes in the channel pore and open the gate. KCNN genes encode four subtypes, including KCNN1 for KCa2.1 (SK1), KCNN2 for KCa2.2 (SK2), KCNN3 for KCa2.3 (SK3), and KCNN4 for KCa3.1 (IK). The three KCa2.x channel subtypes are expressed in the central nervous system and the heart. The KCa3.1 subtype is expressed in the erythrocytes and the lymphocytes, among other peripheral tissues. The impact of dysfunctional KCa2.x/KCa3.1 channels on human health has not been well documented. Human loss-of-function KCa2.2 mutations have been linked with neurodevelopmental disorders. Human gain-of-function mutations that increase the apparent Ca2+ sensitivity of KCa2.3 and KCa3.1 channels have been associated with Zimmermann-Laband syndrome and hereditary xerocytosis, respectively. This review article discusses the physiological significance of KCa2.x/KCa3.1 channels, the pathophysiology of the diseases linked with KCa2.x/KCa3.1 mutations, the structure-function relationship of the mutant KCa2.x/KCa3.1 channels, and potential pharmacological therapeutics for the KCa2.x/KCa3.1 channelopathy.
Recommended Citation
Nam Y-W, Downey M, Rahman MA, Cui M, Zhao M. Channelopathy of small- and intermediate-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ channels. Acta Pharmacol Sin 44, 259-267 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41401-022-00935-1
Copyright
The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Pharmacological Society.
Included in
Chemical and Pharmacologic Phenomena Commons, Medical Biochemistry Commons, Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry Commons, Other Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Commons
Comments
This is a pre-copy-editing, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Acta pharmacologica Sinica, volume 44, in 2023 following peer review. This article may not exactly replicate the final published version. The definitive publisher-authenticated version is available online at https://doi.org/10.1038/s41401-022-00935-1.