Anamika Dayal

Proper Restoration of Excitation-Contraction Coupling in the Dihydropyridine Receptor β1-null Zebrafish Relaxed Is an Exclusive Function of the β1a Subunit

The paralyzed zebrafish strain relaxed carries a null mutation for the skeletal muscle dihydropyridine receptor (DHPR) β1a subunit. Lack of β1a results in (i) reduced membrane expression of the pore forming DHPR α1S subunit, (ii) elimination of α1S charge movement, and (iii) impediment of arrangement of the DHPRs in groups of four (tetrads) opposing the ryanodine receptor (RyR1), a structural prerequisite for skeletal muscle-type excitation-contraction (EC) coupling. In this study we used relaxed larvae and isolated myotubes as expression systems to discriminate specific functions of β1a from rather general functions of β isoforms. Zebrafish and mammalian β1a subunits quantitatively restored α1S triad targeting and charge movement as well as intracellular Ca2+ release, allowed arrangement of DHPRs in tetrads, and most strikingly recovered a fully motile phenotype in relaxed larvae. Interestingly, the cardiac/neuronal β2a as the phylogenetically closest, and the ancestral housefly βM as the most distant isoform to β1a also completely recovered α1S triad expression and charge movement. However, both revealed drastically impaired intracellular Ca2+ transients and very limited tetrad formation compared with β1a. Consequently, larval motility was either only partially restored (β2a-injected larvae) or not restored at all (βM). Thus, our results indicate that triad expression and facilitation of 1,4-dihydropyridine receptor (DHPR) charge movement are common features of all tested β subunits, whereas the efficient arrangement of DHPRs in tetrads and thus intact DHPR-RyR1 coupling is only promoted by the β1a isoform. Consequently, we postulate a model that presents β1a as an allosteric modifier of α1S conformation enabling skeletal muscle-type EC coupling.

Non–Ca2+-conducting Ca2+ channels in fish skeletal muscle excitation-contraction coupling

During skeletal muscle excitation-contraction (EC) coupling, membrane depolarizations activate the sarcolemmal voltage-gated L-type Ca2+ channel (CaV1.1). CaV1.1 in turn triggers opening of the sarcoplasmic Ca2+ release channel (RyR1) via interchannel protein–protein interaction to release Ca2+ for myofibril contraction. Simultaneously to this EC coupling process, a small and slowly activating Ca2+ inward current through CaV1.1 is found in mammalian skeletal myotubes. The role of this Ca2+ influx, which is not immediately required for EC coupling, is still enigmatic. Interestingly, whole-cell patch clamp experiments on freshly dissociated skeletal muscle myotubes from zebrafish larvae revealed the lack of such Ca2+ currents. We identified two distinct isoforms of the pore-forming CaV1.1α1S subunit in zebrafish that are differentially expressed in superficial slow and deep fast musculature. Both do not conduct Ca2+ but merely act as voltage sensors to trigger opening of two likewise tissue-specific isoforms of RyR1. We further show that non-Ca2+ conductivity of both CaV1.1α1S isoforms is a common trait of all higher teleosts. This non-Ca2+ conductivity of CaV1.1 positions teleosts at the most-derived position of an evolutionary trajectory. Though EC coupling in early chordate muscles is activated by the influx of extracellular Ca2+, it evolved toward CaV1.1-RyR1 protein–protein interaction with a relatively small and slow influx of external Ca2+ in tetrapods. Finally, the CaV1.1 Ca2+ influx was completely eliminated in higher teleost fishes.

Domain cooperativity in the β1a subunit is essential for dihydropyridine receptor voltage sensing in skeletal muscle

The dihydropyridine receptor (DHPR) β1a subunit is crucial for enhancement of DHPR triad expression, assembly of DHPRs in tetrads, and elicitation of DHPRα1S charge movement—the three prerequisites of skeletal muscle excitation–contraction coupling. Despite the ability to fully target α1S into triadic junctions and tetradic arrays, the neuronal isoform β3 was unable to restore considerable charge movement (measure of α1S voltage sensing) upon expression in β1-null zebrafish relaxed myotubes, unlike the other three vertebrate β-isoforms (β1a, β2a, and β4). Thus, we used β3 for chimerization with β1a to investigate whether any of the five distinct molecular regions of β1a is dominantly involved in inducing the voltage-sensing function of α1S. Surprisingly, systematic domain swapping between β1a and β3 revealed a pivotal role of the src homology 3 (SH3) domain and C terminus of β1a in charge movement restoration. More interestingly, β1a SH3 domain and C terminus, when simultaneously engineered into β3 sequence background, were able to fully restore charge movement together with proper intracellular Ca2+ release, suggesting cooperativity of these two domains in induction of the α1S voltage-sensing function in skeletal muscle excitation–contraction coupling. Furthermore, substitution of a proline by alanine in the putative SH3-binding polyproline motif in the proximal C terminus of β1a (also of β2a and β4) fully obstructed α1S charge movement. Consequently, we postulate a model according to which β subunits, probably via the SH3–C-terminal polyproline interaction, adapt a discrete conformation required to modify the α1S conformation apt for voltage sensing in skeletal muscle.

Skeletal muscle excitation–contraction coupling is independent of a conserved heptad repeat motif in the C-terminus of the DHPRβ1a subunit

In skeletal muscle excitation–contraction (EC) coupling the sarcolemmal L-type Ca2+ channel or 1,4-dihydropyridine receptor (DHPR) transduces the membrane depolarization signal to the sarcoplasmic Ca2+ release channel RyR1 via protein–protein interaction. While it is evident that the pore-forming and voltage-sensing DHPRα1S subunit is essential for this process, the intracellular DHPRβ1a subunit was also shown to be indispensable. We previously found that the β1a subunit is essential to target the DHPR into groups of four (tetrads) opposite the RyR1 homotetramers, a prerequisite for skeletal muscle EC coupling. Earlier, a unique hydrophobic heptad repeat motif (L⋯V⋯V) in the C-terminus of β1a was postulated by others to be essential for skeletal muscle EC coupling, as substitution of these residues with alanines resulted in 80% reduction of RyR1 Ca2+ release. Therefore, we wanted to address the question if the proposed β1a heptad repeat motif could be an active element of the DHPR–RyR1 signal transduction mechanism or already contributes at the ultrastructural level i.e. DHPR tetrad arrangement. Surprisingly, our experiments revealed full tetrad formation and an almost complete restoration of EC coupling in β1-null zebrafish relaxed larvae and isolated myotubes upon expression of a β1a-specific heptad repeat mutant (LVV to AAA) and thus contradict the earlier results.

The Ca 2+ influx through the mammalian skeletal muscle dihydropyridine receptor is irrelevant for muscle performance

Skeletal muscle excitation–contraction (EC) coupling is initiated by sarcolemmal depolarization, which is translated into a conformational change of the dihydropyridine receptor (DHPR), which in turn activates sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ release to trigger muscle contraction. During EC coupling, the mammalian DHPR embraces functional duality, as voltage sensor and l-type Ca2+ channel. Although its unique role as voltage sensor for conformational EC coupling is firmly established, the conventional function as Ca2+ channel is still enigmatic. Here we show that Ca2+ influx via DHPR is not necessary for muscle performance by generating a knock-in mouse where DHPR-mediated Ca2+ influx is eliminated. Homozygous knock-in mice display SR Ca2+ release, locomotor activity, motor coordination, muscle strength and susceptibility to fatigue comparable to wild-type controls, without any compensatory regulation of multiple key proteins of the EC coupling machinery and Ca2+ homeostasis. These findings support the hypothesis that the DHPR-mediated Ca2+ influx in mammalian skeletal muscle is an evolutionary remnant.In mammalian skeletal muscle, the DHPR functions as a voltage sensor to trigger muscle contraction and as a Ca2+ channel. Here the authors show that mice where Ca2+ influx through the DHPR is eliminated display no difference in skeletal muscle function, suggesting that the Ca2+ influx through this channel is vestigial.

The mammalian skeletal muscle DHPR has larger Ca2+ conductance and is phylogenetically ancient to the early ray-finned fish sterlet (Acipenser ruthenus)

The L-type Ca2+ channel or dihydropyridine receptor (DHPR) in vertebrate skeletal muscle is responsible for sensing sarcolemmal depolarizations and transducing this signal to the sarcoplasmic Ca2+ release channel RyR1 via conformational coupling to initiate muscle contraction. During this excitation-contraction (EC) coupling process there is a slow Ca2+ current through the mammalian DHPR which is fully missing in euteleost fishes. In contrast to ancestral evolutionary stages where skeletal muscle EC coupling is still depended on Ca2+-induced Ca2+-release (CICR), it is possible that the DHPR Ca2+ conductivity during mammalian (conformational) EC coupling was retained as an evolutionary remnant (vestigiality). Here, we wanted to test the hypothesis that due to the lack of evolutionary pressure in post-CICR species skeletal muscle DHPR Ca2+ conductivity gradually reduced as evolution progressed. Interestingly, we identified that the DHPR of the early ray-finned fish sterlet (Acipenser ruthenus) is phylogenetically positioned above the mammalian rabbit DHPR which retained robust Ca2+ conductivity, but below the euteleost zebrafish DHPR which completely lost Ca2+ conductivity. Remarkably, our results revealed that sterlet DHPR still retained the Ca2+ conductivity but currents are significantly reduced compared to rabbit. This decrease is due to lower DHPR membrane expression similar to zebrafish, as well as due to reduced channel open probability (Po). In both these fish species the lower DHPR expression density is partially compensated by higher efficacy of DHPR-RyR1 coupling. The complete loss of Po in zebrafish and other euteleost species was presumably based on the teleost specific 3rd round of genome duplication (Ts3R). Ts3R headed into the appearance of two skeletal muscle DHPR isoforms which finally, together with the radiation of the euteleost clade, fully lost the Po.

Crosstalk via the Sarcoplasmic Gap: The DHPR–RyR Interaction

Publisher Summary The process of excitation–contraction (EC) coupling depends on the close interplay of two distinct Ca 2+ channels located in close opposition to each other in junctional membrane domains. The two molecular partners are the voltage-gated L-type Ca 2+ channel or 1,4- dihydropyridine receptor (DHPR) in the sarcolemma and the Ca 2+ release channel or ryanodine receptor (RyR) in the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR). In cardiac muscle, a fast Ca 2+ influx through the c DHPR triggers the release of Ca 2+ from the SR by opening the Ca 2+ -sensitive RyR2, whereas in skeletal muscle, the sk DHPR and RyR1 are in physical contact and depolarization-induced conformational changes in the sk DHPR are communicated to the RyR1, thereby inducing Ca 2+ release from SR stores. This chapter reviews the results of physiological expression studies and biochemical peptide work and provides an overview about these structural–functional correlations of the DHPR–RyR interaction—that is, how cardiac- and skeletal-muscle-specific organization of the two channels in the membranes defines their functioning and which structural domains of the DHPR and of the RyR are involved in the channel crosstalk.