ABSTRACT
Voltage-gated potassium channels play crucial roles in regulating membrane potential. They are activated by membrane depolarization, allowing the selective permeation of potassium ions across the plasma membrane, and enter a nonconducting state after lasting depolarization of membrane potential, a process known as inactivation. Inactivation in voltage-activated potassium channels occurs through two distinct mechanisms, N-type inactivation and C-type inactivation. C-type inactivation is caused by conformational changes in the extracellular mouth of the channel, while N-type inactivation is elicited by changes in the cytoplasmic mouth of the protein. The W434F-mutated Shaker channel is known as a nonconducting mutant and is in a C-type inactivation state at a depolarizing membrane potential. To clarify the structural properties of C-type inactivated protein, we performed molecular dynamics simulations of the wild-type and W366F (corresponding to W434F in Shaker) mutant of the Kv1.2-2.1 chimera channel. The W366F mutant was in a nearly nonconducting state with a depolarizing voltage and recovered from inactivation with a reverse voltage. Our simulations and 3D-RISM analysis suggested that structural changes in the selective filter upon membrane depolarization trap potassium ions around the entrance of the selectivity filter and prevent ion permeation. This pore restriction is involved in the molecular mechanism of C-type inactivation.
