Ion channels: A first view of K+ channels in atomic glory

Ion channels: A first view of K+ channels in atomic glory

Crystal structures have been solved for the transbilayer pore domain of a bacterial K+ channel and the tetramerisation domain of voltage-gated K+ channel. These provide our first real structural insights into possible mechanisms of ion selectivity and permeation for K+ channels.

O 13: Ion Channels in Autoimmune Neurodegeneration

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system characterized by widespread inflammation, focal demyelination and a variable degree of axonal and neuronal loss. Ionic conductances regulate T cell activation as well as neuronal function and thus have been found to play a crucial role in MS pathogenesis. Since present therapeutical approaches are only parti...

Ion conduction and selectivity in K(+) channels.

Potassium (K(+)) channels are tetrameric membrane-spanning proteins that provide a selective pore for the conductance of K(+) across the cell membranes. These channels are most remarkable in their ability to discriminate K(+) from Na(+) by more than a thousandfold and conduct at a throughput rate near diffusion limit. The recent progress in the structural characterization of K(+) channel provid...

Ion Conduction and Selectivity in K+ Channels

o 13: ion channels in autoimmune neurodegeneration

multiple sclerosis (ms) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system characterized by widespread inflammation, focal demyelination and a variable degree of axonal and neuronal loss. ionic conductances regulate t cell activation as well as neuronal function and thus have been found to play a crucial role in ms pathogenesis. since present therapeutical approaches are only parti...