Ion channels

Cell Biology
September 30, 2013

Channel proteins
Channel proteins facilitate diffusion by forming
transmembrane channels lined with hydrophilic
amino acids.
Three important categories of channel proteins
are
- porins (various high-molecular-weight solutes)
- aquaporins (water)
- ion channels (used mainly for transport of Na
+
,
K
+
, Cl

, and Ca
2+
), and HCO
3
-

Ion channels
The bulk of the cells channels enable the
transport of inorganic ions, mainly Na
+
, K
+
, Cl

,
and Ca
2+
.

For example, nerve cells transmit electrical
signals as Na
+
and K
+
ions that are transported
across the plasma membrane of neurons by
specific ion channel proteins


Movement of solutes through ion
channels is rapid
Functions of ion channels
An open ion channel do not undergo conformational
changes with each ion it passes. More than a million ions
can pass through an open channel each second.

However, channels cannot couple the ion flow to an energy
source to carry out active transport.

The function of most ion channels is simply to make the
membrane transiently permeable to selected inorganic
ions, mainly sodium, potassium, calcium or chloride
allowing these to diffuse rapidly down their
electrochemical gradients across the membrane when the
channel gates are open.
Ion Channels are
ion-selective and gated
Two important properties of Ion channels

- Ion selectivity
(permits only some inorganic ions to pass)

- Gated
(most ion channels exist in open or a closed
conformation)

Ion selectivity
Most ion channels allow passage of only one kind of
ion
- separate channels are needed for transporting ions

Selectivity results from
- ion-specific binding sites involving specific amino acid
side chains
- charge of the side chains
- polypeptide backbone atoms inside the channel
- constricted center of the channel that serves as a size
filter

Selectivity filter
Narrow channels will not pass large ions, and
channels with a negatively charged lining will
deter negative ions from entering because of the
mutual electrostatic repulsion between like
charges.

Each ion in aqueous solution is surrounded by a
small shell of water molecules, and the ions have
to shed most of their associated water molecules
in order to pass through the selectivity filter in
the narrowest part of the channel.

Selectivity filter
Ions make transient contacts with atoms in the amino
acids that line the walls of the selectivity filter. These
precisely positioned atoms allow the channel to
discriminate between ions that differ only minutely in
size.

This step in the transport process limits the maximum
rate of passage of ions through the channel.

As ion concentrations are increased, the flow of ions
through a channel at first increases proportionally but
then levels off (saturates) at a maximum rate.

Gated channels
Ion transport is controlled through ion
channels

- Ion transport would not be valuable if all of
the many thousands of ion channels in a cell
membrane were open all of the time.

Ion channels open briefly and then close again
Gated channels
A typical ion channel fluctuates between closed
and open conformations.
The channel shown here in cross section forms a hydrophilic pore across the lipid bilayer
only in the open conformation. Polar groups line the wall of the pore, while
hydrophobic amino acid side chains interact with the lipid bilayer (not shown). The pore
narrows to atomic dimensions in the selectivity filter, where the ion selectivity of the
channel is largely determined
Types of gated channels
Different types of stimuli can control the opening
and closing, or gating, of ion channels.

Three major varieties of rapidly gated ion
channels and a fourth slowly gated type, the gap
junction, can be distinguished

- Voltage-gated channels
- Ligand-gated channels
- Mechano-gated channels

Voltage-gated channels
Voltage-gated channels open and close in
response to changes in the membrane potential

Voltage-gated channels are responsible for the
propagation of electrical impulses over long
distances in nerve and muscle, and they open
specifically in response to a change in the electric
field that exists across the plasma membrane of
cells at rest.
Ligand-gated channels
Ligand-gated channels are triggered by the binding of specific
substances to the channel protein

Some ligand-gated channels are opened (or closed) following the
binding of a molecule to the outer surface of the channel.

Some are opened (or closed) following the binding of a ligand to the
inner surface of the channel.

For example, neurotransmitters, such as acetylcholine, act on the
outer surface of certain cation channels, while cyclic nucleotides,
such as cAMP, act on the inner surface of certain calcium ion
channels.


Mechano-gated channels
Mechanosensitive channels respond to
mechanical forces that act on the membrane.

Members of one family of cation channels, for
example, are opened by the movements of
stereocilia on the hair cells of the inner ear in
response to sound or motions of the head.
Gated ion channels respond to different types of stimuli. Depending
on the type of ion channel, the gates open in response to a change
in the voltage difference across the membrane (a), to the binding of
a chemical ligand to the extracellular face (B) or the intracellular
face (C) of a channel, or to mechanical stress (D).