Iskander I. Ismailov

Regulation of Epithelial Sodium Channels by Short Actin Filaments

Cytoskeletal elements play an important role in the regulation of ion transport in epithelia. We have studied the effects of actin filaments of different length on the α, β, γ-rENaC (rat epithelial Na+ channel) in planar lipid bilayers. We found the following. 1) Short actin filaments caused a 2-fold decrease in unitary conductance and a 2-fold increase in open probability (Po) of α,β,γ-rENaC. 2) α,β,γ-rENaC could be transiently activated by protein kinase A (PKA) plus ATP in the presence, but not in the absence, of actin. 3) ATP in the presence of actin was also able to induce a transitory activation of α,β,γ-rENaC, although with a shortened time course and with a lower magnitude of change in Po. 4) DNase I, an agent known to prohibit elongation of actin filaments, prevented activation of α,β,γ-rENaC by ATP or PKA plus ATP. 5) Cytochalasin D, added after rundown of α,β,γ-rENaC activity following ATP or PKA plus ATP treatment, produced a second transient activation of α,β,γ-rENaC. 6) Gelsolin, a protein that stabilizes polymerization of actin filaments at certain lengths, evoked a sustained activation of α,β,γ-rENaC at actin/gelsolin ratios of <32:1, with a maximal effect at an actin/gelsolin ratio of 2:1. These results suggest that short actin filaments activate α,β,γ-rENaC. PKA-mediated phosphorylation augments activation of this channel by decreasing the rate of elongation of actin filaments. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that cloned α,β,γ-rENaCs form a core conduction unit of epithelial Na+ channels and that interaction of these channels with other associated proteins, such as short actin filaments, confers regulation to channel activity.

The kinetic profile of intracellular calcium predicts long-term potentiation and long-term depression.

Efficiency of synaptic transmission within the neocortex is regulated throughout life by experience and activity. Periods of correlated or uncorrelated presynaptic and postsynaptic activity lead to enduring changes in synaptic efficiency [long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD), respectively]. The initial plasticity triggering event is thought to be a precipitous rise in postsynaptic intracellular calcium, with higher levels inducing LTP and more moderate levels inducing LTD. We used a pairing protocol in visual cortical brain slices from young guinea pigs with whole-cell recording and calcium imaging to compare the kinetic profiles of calcium signals generated in response to individual pairings along with the cumulative calcium wave and plasticity outcome. The identical pairing protocol applied to layer 2/3 pyramidal neurons results in different plasticity outcomes between cells. These differences are not attributable to variations in the conditioning protocol, cellular properties, inter-animal variability, animal age, differences in spike timing between the synaptic response and spikes, washout of plasticity factors, recruitment of inhibition, or activation of different afferents. The different plasticity outcomes are reliably predicted by individual intracellular calcium transients in the dendrites after the first few pairings. In addition to the differences in the individual calcium transients, the cumulative calcium wave that spreads to the soma also has a different profile for cells that undergo LTP versus LTD. We conclude that there are biological differences between like-type cells in the dendritic calcium signals generated by coincident synaptic input and spiking that determine the sign of the plasticity response after brief associations.

TRIPLE-BARREL ORGANIZATION OF ENAC, A CLONED EPITHELIAL NA+ CHANNEL

A cloned rat epithelial Na+ channel (rENaC) was studied in planar lipid bilayers. Two forms of the channel were examined: channels produced by the α subunit alone and those formed by α, β, and γ subunits. The protein was derived from two sources: either from in vitro translation reaction followed by Sephadex column purification or from heterologous expression in Xenopus oocytes and isolation of plasma membranes. We found that either α-rENaC alone or α- in combination with β- and γ-rENaC, produced highly Na+-selective (PNa/PK = 10), amiloride-sensitive (Kiamil = 170 nM), and mechanosensitive cation channels in planar bilayers. α-rENaC displayed a complicated gating mechanism: there was a nearly constitutively open 13-picosiemens (pS) state and a second 40-pS level that was achieved from the 13-pS level by a 26-pS transition. α-, β-, γ-rENaC showed primarily the 13-pS level. α-rENaC and α,β,γ-rENaC channels studied by patch clamp displayed the same gating pattern, albeit with >2-fold lowered conductance levels, i.e. 6 and 18 pS, respectively. Upon treatment of either channel with the sulfhydryl reducing agent dithiothreitol, both channels fluctuated among three independent 13-pS sublevels. Bathing each channel with a high salt solution (1.5 M NaCl) produced stochastic openings of 19 and 38 pS in magnitude between all three conductance levels. Different combinations of α-, β-, and γ-rENaC in the reconstitution mixture did not produce channels of intermediate conductance levels. These findings suggest that functional ENaC is composed of three identical conducting elements and that their gating is concerted.

Identification of an Amiloride Binding Domain within the α-Subunit of the Epithelial Na+ Channel

Limited information is available regarding domains within the epithelial Na+ channel (ENaC) which participate in amiloride binding. We previously utilized the anti-amiloride antibody (BA7.1) as a surrogate amiloride receptor to delineate amino acid residues that contact amiloride, and identified a putative amiloride binding domain WYRFHY (residues 278–283) within the extracellular domain of αrENaC. Mutations were generated to examine the role of this sequence in amiloride binding. Functional analyses of wild type (wt) and mutant αrENaCs were performed by cRNA expression in Xenopus oocytes and by reconstitution into planar lipid bilayers. Wild type αrENaC was inhibited by amiloride with aK i of 169 nm. Deletion of the entire WYRFHY tract (αrENaC Δ278–283) resulted in a loss of sensitivity of the channel to submicromolar concentrations of amiloride (K i = 26.5 μm). Similar results were obtained when either αrENaC or αrENaC Δ278–283 were co-expressed with wt β- and γrENaC (K i values of 155 nm and 22.8 μm, respectively). Moreover, αrENaC H282D was insensitive to submicromolar concentrations of amiloride (K i = 6.52 μm), whereas αrENaC H282R was inhibited by amiloride with a K i of 29 nm. These mutations do not alter ENaC Na+:K+ selectivity nor single-channel conductance. These data suggest that residues within the tract WYRFHY participate in amiloride binding. Our results, in conjunction with recent studies demonstrating that mutations within the membrane-spanning domains of αrENaC and mutations preceding the second membrane-spanning domains of α-, β-, and γrENaC alters amiloride’s K i , suggest that selected regions of the extracellular loop of αrENaC may be in close proximity to residues within the channel pore.

Intracellular H+ regulates the α-subunit of ENaC, the epithelial Na+ channel

Protons regulate electrogenic sodium absorption in a variety of epithelia, including the cortical collecting duct, frog skin, and urinary bladder. Recently, three subunits (α, β, γ) coding for the epithelial sodium channel (ENaC) were cloned. However, it is not known whether pH regulates Na+ channels directly by interacting with one of the three ENaC subunits or indirectly by interacting with a regulatory protein. As a first step to identifying the molecular mechanisms of proton-mediated regulation of apical membrane Na+ permeability in epithelia, we examined the effect of pH on the biophysical properties of ENaC. To this end, we expressed various combinations of α-, β-, and γ-subunits of ENaC in Xenopusoocytes and studied ENaC currents by the two-electrode voltage-clamp and patch-clamp techniques. In addition, the effect of pH on the α-ENaC subunit was examined in planar lipid bilayers. We report that α,β,γ-ENaC currents were regulated by changes in intracellular pH (pHi) but not by changes in extracellular pH (pHo). Acidification reduced and alkalization increased channel activity by a voltage-independent mechanism. Moreover, a reduction of pHi reduced single-channel open probability, reduced single-channel open time, and increased single-channel closed time without altering single-channel conductance. Acidification of the cytoplasmic solution also inhibited α,β-ENaC, α,γ-ENaC, and α-ENaC currents. We conclude that pHi but not pHo regulates ENaC and that the α-ENaC subunit is regulated directly by pHi.

AICAR prevents heat-induced sudden death in RyR1 mutant mice independent of AMPK activation

Mice with a knock-in mutation (Y524S) in the type I ryanodine receptor (Ryr1), a mutation analogous to the Y522S mutation that is associated with malignant hyperthermia in humans, die when exposed to short periods of temperature elevation (≥37 °C). We show here that treatment with 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleoside (AICAR) prevents this heat-induced sudden death in this mouse model. The protection by AICAR is independent of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activation and results from a newly identified action of the compound on mutant Ryr1 to reduce Ca2+ leak from the sarcoplasmic reticulum to the sarcoplasm. AICAR thus prevents Ca2+-dependent increases in the amount of both reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) that act to further increase resting Ca2+ concentrations. If unchecked, the temperature-driven increases in resting Ca2+ concentrations and the amounts of ROS and RNS create an amplifying cycle that ultimately triggers sustained muscle contractions, rhabdomyolysis and death. Although antioxidants are effective in reducing this cycle in vitro, only AICAR prevents heat-induced death in vivo. Our findings suggest that AICAR is probably effective in prophylactic treatment of humans with enhanced susceptibility to exercise- and/or heat-induced sudden death associated with RYR1 mutations.

Carboxylmethylation of the beta subunit of xENaC regulates channel activity.

The action of aldosterone to increase apical membrane permeability in responsive epithelia is thought to be due to activation of sodium channels. Aldosterone stimulates methylation of a 95-kDa protein in apical membrane of A6 cells, and we have previously shown that methylation of a 95-kDa protein in the immunopurified Na+ channel complex increases open probability of these channels in planar lipid bilayers. We report here that aldosterone stimulates carboxylmethylation of the β subunit of xENaC in A6 cells. In vitro translated β subunit, but not α or γ, serves as a substrate for carboxylmethylation. Carboxylmethylation of ENaC reconstituted in planar lipid bilayers leads to an increase in open probability only when β subunit is present. When the channel complex is immunoprecipitated from A6 cells and analyzed by Western blot with antibodies to the three subunits of xENaC, all three subunits are recognized as constituents of the complex. The results suggest that Na+ channel activity in A6 cells is regulated, in part, by carboxylmethylation of the β subunit of xENaC.

Mechanosensitivity of an epithelial Na+ channel in planar lipid bilayers: release from Ca2+ block.

A family of novel epithelial Na+ channels (ENaCs) have recently been cloned from several different tissues. Three homologous subunits (alpha, beta, gamma-ENaCs) from the core conductive unit of Na(+)-selective, amiloride-sensitive channels that are found in epithelia. We here report the results of a study assessing the regulation of alpha,beta,gamma-rENaC by Ca2+ in planar lipid bilayers. Buffering of the bilayer bathing solutions to [Ca2+] < 1 nM increased single-channel open probability by fivefold. Further investigation of this phenomenon revealed that Ca2+ ions produced a voltage-dependent block, affecting open probability but not the unitary conductance of ENaC. Imposing a hydrostatic pressure gradient across bilayers containing alpha,beta,gamma-rENaC markedly reduced the sensitivity of these channels to inhibition by [Ca2+]. Conversely, in the nominal absence of Ca2+, the channels lost their sensitivity to mechanical stimulation. These results suggest that the previously observed mechanical activation of ENaCs reflects a release of the channels from block by Ca2+.

Subunit Stoichiometry of a Core Conduction Element in a Cloned Epithelial Amiloride-Sensitive Na+ Channel

The molecular composition of a core conduction element formed by the alpha-subunit of cloned epithelial Na+ channels (ENaC) was studied in planar lipid bilayers. Two pairs of in vitro translated proteins were employed in combinatorial experiments: 1) wild-type (WT) and an N-terminally truncated alphaDeltaN-rENaC that displays accelerated kinetics (tauo = 32 +/- 13 ms, tauc = 42 +/- 11 ms), as compared with the WT channel (tauc1 = 18 +/- 8 ms, tauc2 = 252 +/- 31 ms, and tauo = 157 +/- 43 ms); and 2) WT and an amiloride binding mutant, alphaDelta278-283-rENaC. The channels that formed in a alphaWT:alphaDeltaN mixture fell into two groups: one with tauo and tauc that corresponded to those exhibited by the alphaDeltaN-rENaC alone, and another with a double-exponentially distributed closed time and a single-exponentially distributed open time that corresponded to the alphaWT-rENaC alone. Five channel subtypes with distinct sensitivities to amiloride were found in a 1alphaWT:1alphaDelta278-283 protein mixture. Statistical analyses of the distributions of channel phenotypes observed for either set of the WT:mutant combinations suggest a tetrameric organization of alpha-subunits as a minimal model for the core conduction element in ENaCs.

Associated Proteins and Renal Epithelial Na+ Channel Function

Abstract. The hypothesis that amiloride-sensitive Na+ channel complexes immunopurified from bovine renal papillary collecting tubules contain, as their core conduction component, an ENaC subunit, was tested by functional and immunological criteria. Disulfide bond reduction with dithiothreitol (DTT) of renal Na+ channels incorporated into planar lipid bilayers caused a reduction of single channel conductance from 40 pS to 13 pS, and uncoupled PKA regulation of this channel. The cation permeability sequence, as assessed from bi-ionic reversal potential measurements, and apparent amiloride equilibrium dissociation constant (Kamili) of the Na+ channels were unaltered by DTT treatment. Like ENaC, the DTT treated renal channel became mechanosensitive, and displayed a substantial decrease in Kamili following stretch (0.44 ± 0.12 μm versus 6.9 ± 1.0 μm). Moreover, stretch activation induced a loss in the channels ability to discriminate between monovalent cations, and even allowed Ca2+ to permeate. Polyclonal antibodies generated against a fusion protein of αbENaC recognized a 70 kDa polypeptide component of the renal Na+ channel complex. These data suggest that ENaC is present in the immunopurified renal Na+ channel protein complex, and that PKA sensitivity is conferred by other associated proteins.