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T Kuner

Publications and source records attributed to T Kuner.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Genetic manipulation of key determinants of ion flow in glutamate receptor channels in the mouse.

Glutamate receptor channels are built around an ancient pore loop structure which defines the inner channel environment and which is connected to structures for channel gating. This pore loop, which corresponds to the M2 region of the receptor subunits, enters the lipid bilayer from the intracellular side in an alpha-helical configuration, then kinks to form a random coil and exits the lipid bilayer at the intracellular side. The narrow constriction of the channel is formed by amino acid residues that occupy a position shortly after the end of the alpha-helical part of M2. These residues determine ion selectivity and conductance properties of the glutamate-gated channel. The critical residues are asparagines for NMDA receptor subunits and glutamine or arginine for AMPA and kainate receptor subunits. Presence of arginine in the critical channel position of AMPA and kainate receptors is controlled by site-selective RNA editing. To study the importance of these critical channel residues in the mouse, we introduced codon changes in the endogenous genes for NMDA and AMPA receptor subunits. Our results show that changes in the critical channel position are not tolerated, but lead to early death. Therefore, the impact on adult synaptic function and plasticity by glutamate receptor channels with changed ion selectivity and conductance needs to be addressed by conditional expression of the mutant receptors.

Adenosine↗
PubMed2001

Channel-lining residues of the AMPA receptor M2 segment: structural environment of the Q/R site and identification of the selectivity filter.

In AMPA receptor channels, a single amino acid residue (Q/R site) of the M2 segment controls permeation of calcium ions, single-channel conductance, blockade by intracellular polyamines, and permeation of anions. The structural environment of the Q/R site and its positioning with regard to a narrow constriction were probed with the accessibility of substituted cysteines to positively and negatively charged methanethiosulfonate reagents, applied from the extracellular and cytoplasmic sides of the channel. The accessibility patterns confirm that the M2 segment forms a pore loop with the Q/R site positioned at the tip of the loop (position 0) facing the extracellular vestibule. Cytoplasmically accessible residues on the N- and C-terminal sides of position 0 form the ascending alpha-helical (-8 to -1) and descending random coil (+1 to +6) components of the loop, respectively. Substitution of a glycine residue at position +2 with alanine strongly decreased the permeability of organic cations, indicating that position +2 contributes to the narrow constriction. The anionic 2-sulfonatoethyl-methanethiosufonate reacted with a cysteine at position 0 only from the external side and with cysteines at positions +1 to +4 only from the cytoplasmic side. These results suggest that charge selectivity occurs external to the constriction (+2) and possibly involves interactions of ions with the negative electrostatic potential created by the dipole of the alpha-helix formed by the ascending limb of the loop.

Amino Acid Substitution↗
PubMed2001

Glutamate receptor channel signatures.

Genes encoding glutamate receptor channel subunits were identified in genomes from Drosophila melanogaster and Caenorhabditis elegans by homology search with amino acid sequences that participate in the conserved channel pore. The predicted sequences of the putative glutamate receptor subunits revealed a distinct channel pore signature for each receptor subtype and for most of them, related members were found in C. elegans and Drosophila.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2000

The Lurcher mutation identifies delta 2 as an AMPA/kainate receptor-like channel that is potentiated by Ca(2+).

Neurodegeneration in Lurcher (Lc) mice results from constitutive activation of delta 2, a subunit of ionotropic glutamate receptors (GluRs) with unknown natural ligands and channel properties. Homo-oligomeric channels of GluR-delta2 with the Lurcher mutation (GluR-delta 2(Lc)) expressed in human embryonic kidney 293 cells showed a doubly rectifying current-voltage relation reminiscent of the block by intracellular polyamines in AMPA/kainate channels. Similarly, the fraction of the total current carried by Ca(2+) was approximately 2-3%, comparable with that found in Ca(2+)-permeable AMPA/kainate channels. Currents through GluR-delta 2(Lc) channels were also potentiated by extracellular Ca(2+) in a biphasic manner, with maximal potentiation occurring at physiological concentrations of Ca(2+). We examined the functional role of the Q/R site in GluR-delta 2(Lc) by replacing glutamine with arginine. Analogous to AMPA/kainate receptors, GluR-delta 2(Lc)(R) channels showed no voltage-dependent block by intracellular polyamines and were nominally impermeable to Ca(2+). The potentiation by Ca(2+), however, remained intact. Hence, GluR-delta 2(Lc) channels are functionally similar to the AMPA/kainate receptor channels, consistent with the high-sequence identity shared by these subunits within the channel-lining M2 and M3 segments. Furthermore, potentiation by Ca(2+) and a permeability to Ca(2+) comparable with that of AMPA/kainate receptors provide a possible cause for cell death in Lurcher mice and may contribute to cerebellar long-term depression under physiological conditions.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

A genetically encoded ratiometric indicator for chloride: capturing chloride transients in cultured hippocampal neurons.

We constructed a novel optical indicator for chloride ions by fusing the chloride-sensitive yellow fluorescent protein with the chloride-insensitive cyan fluorescent protein. The ratio of FRET-dependent emission of these fluorophores varied in proportion to the concentration of Cl and was used to measure intracellular chloride concentration ([Cl-]i) in cultured hippocampal neurons. [Cl-]i decreased during neuronal development, consistent with the shift from excitation to inhibition during maturation of GABAergic synapses. Focal activation of GABAA receptors caused large changes in [Cl-]i that could underlie use-dependent depression of GABA-dependent synaptic transmission. GABA-induced changes in somatic [Cl-]i spread into dendrites, suggesting that [Cl-]i can signal the location of synaptic activity. This genetically encoded indicator will permit new approaches ranging from high-throughput drug screening to direct recordings of synaptic Cl- signals in vivo.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Novel GLRA1 missense mutation (P250T) in dominant hyperekplexia defines an intracellular determinant of glycine receptor channel gating.

Missense mutations as well as a null allele of the human glycine receptor alpha1 subunit gene GLRA1 result in the neurological disorder hyperekplexia [startle disease, stiff baby syndrome, Mendelian Inheritance in Man (MIM) #149400]. In a pedigree showing dominant transmission of hyperekplexia, we identified a novel point mutation C1128A of GLRA1. This mutation encodes an amino acid substitution (P250T) in the cytoplasmic loop linking transmembrane regions M1 and M2 of the mature alpha1 polypeptide. After recombinant expression, homomeric alpha1(P250T) subunit channels showed a strong reduction of maximum whole-cell chloride currents and an altered desensitization, consistent with a prolonged recovery from desensitization. Apparent glycine binding was less affected, yielding an approximately fivefold increase in Ki values. Topological analysis predicts that the substitution of proline 250 leads to the loss of an angular polypeptide structure, thereby destabilizing open channel conformations. Thus, the novel GLRA1 mutant allele P250T defines an intracellular determinant of glycine receptor channel gating.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1999

NMDAR channel segments forming the extracellular vestibule inferred from the accessibility of substituted cysteines.

In NMDA receptor channels, the M2 loop forms the narrow constriction and the cytoplasmic vestibule. The identity of an extracellular vestibule leading toward the constriction remained unresolved. Using the substituted cysteine accessibility method (SCAM), we identified channel-lining residues of the NR1 subunit in the region preceding M1 (preM1), the C-terminal part of M3 (M3C), and the N-terminal part of M4 (M4N). These residues are located on the extracellular side of the constriction and, with one exception, are exposed to the pore independently of channel activation, suggesting that the gate is at the constriction or further cytoplasmic to it. Permeation of Ca2+ ions was decreased by mutations in M3C and M4N, but not by mutations in preM1, suggesting a functionally distinct contribution of the segments to the extracellular vestibule of the NMDA receptor channel.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1998

Intracellular Mg2+ interacts with structural determinants of the narrow constriction contributed by the NR1-subunit in the NMDA receptor channel.

1. N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor channels are blocked by intracellular Mg2+ in a voltage-dependent manner. Amino acid residues positioned at or near the narrow constriction that interact with intracellular Mg2+ were identified in recombinant NR1-NR2A channels expressed in Xenopus oocytes or human embryonic kidney (HEK) 293 cells. 2. In the absence of extracellular Ca2+, the block of wild-type channel by intracellular Mg2+ measured using macroscopic currents showed a voltage dependence (delta) of around 0.38 and a voltage-independent affinity for the channel of 4 mM. These parameters were independent of the Mg2+ concentration (0.05-10mM), and were indistinguishable from those found for the reduction of single channel amplitudes under the same ionic conditions. Under bionic conditions with high intracellular Mg2+ and K+ extracellularly, Mg2+ was weakly permeant. Mg2+ efflux, however, attenuated the block only at positive potentials (> +80 mV). 3. Substitutions of the N-site asparagine in the NR1-subunit altered intracellular Mg2+ block over physiological membrane potentials (+10 to +50 mV). Substitution of glycine, glutamine or serine attenuated the extent of block whereas the negatively charged aspartate enhanced it, consistent with the side chain of the native asparagine at this position contributing to a blocking site for intracellular Mg2+. 4. Substitutions of the N-site or N + 1 site asparagine in the NR2A-subunit, which form a blocking site for extracellular Mg2+, also altered the block by intracellular Mg2+. However, for the NR2A-subunit N-site asparagine, the block was reduced but only at non-physiological high potentials (> +70 mV). 5. The NR2A-subunit N + 1 site asparagine, which together with NR1-subunit N-site asparagine forms the narrow constriction of the channel, also contributed to a blocking site for intracellular Mg2+. However, it did so to lesser extent than the NR1-subunit N-site and in a manner different from its contribution to a blocking site for extracellular Mg2+. 6. It is concluded that intracellular Mg2+ interacts with residues that form the narrow constriction in the NMDA receptor channel with the N-site asparagine of the NR1-subunit representing the dominant blocking site. Thus, intracellular Mg2+ interacts with different asparagine residues at the narrow constriction than extracellular Mg2+, although the two blocking sites are positioned very close to each other.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Adjacent asparagines in the NR2-subunit of the NMDA receptor channel control the voltage-dependent block by extracellular Mg2+.

1. The voltage-dependent block of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor channels by extracellular Mg2+ is a critical determinant of its contribution to CNS synaptic physiology. The function of the narrow constriction of the channel in determining the block was investigated by analysing the effects of a set different amino acid substitutions at exposed residues positioned at or near this region. NMDA receptor channels, composed of wild-type and mutant NR1- and NR2A-subunits, were expressed in Xenopus oocytes or human embryonic kidney (HEK) 293 cells. 2. In wild-type channels, the voltage dependence (delta) of the block Mg2+ was concentration dependent with values of delta of integral of 0.82 in 0.07 mM and higher concentrations. Under bionic conditions with high extracellular Mg2+ and K+ as the reference ion, Mg2+ weakly permeated the channel. Over intermediate potentials (approximately -60 to -10 mV), this weak permeability had no apparent effect on the block but at potentials negative to approximately -60mV, it attenuated the extent and voltage dependence of the block. 3. Substitutions of glycine, serine, glutamine or aspartate for the N-site asparagine in the NR1-subunit enhanced the extent of block over intermediate potentials but left the voltage dependence of the block unchanged indicating that structural determinants of the block remained. These same substitutions either attenuated or left unchanged the apparent Mg2+ permeability. 4. In channels containing substitutions of glycine, serine or glutamine for the N-site asparagine in the NR2A-subunit, the block Mg2+ was reduced at negative potentials. Over intermediate potentials, the block was not strongly attenuated except for the glutamine substitution which reduced the voltage dependence of the block to integral of 0.57 in 0.7 mM Mg2+. 5. Equivalent substitutions for the N + 1 site asparagine in the NR2A-subunit strongly attenuated the block over the entire voltage range. In 0.7 mM Mg2+, the voltage dependence of the block was reduced to 0.50 (glycine), 0.53 (serine) and 0.46 (glutamine). 6. Channels containing substitutions of the N-site or N + 1 site asparagines in the NR2A-subunit showed an increased Mg2+ permeability suggesting that these adjacent asparagines form a barrier for inward Mg2+ flux. Changes in this barrier contribute, at least in part, to the mechanism underlying disruption of the block following substitution of these residues. 7. The adjacent NR2A-subunit asparagines are positioned at or near the narrow constriction of the channel. Pore size, however, did not determine how effectively Mg2+ blocks mutant channels. 8. It is concluded that, at the narrow constriction in the NMDA receptor channel, the adjacent NR2A-subunit asparagines, the N-site and N + 1 site, but not the N-site asparagine of the NR1-subunit, form a critical blocking site for extracellular Mg2+. The contribution to the blocking site, in contrast to the prevailing view, is stronger for the N + 1 site than for the N-site asparagine. The block may involve binding of Mg2+ to these residues.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Multiple structural elements determine subunit specificity of Mg2+ block in NMDA receptor channels.

In NMDA receptor channels, subtype-specific differences of Mg2+ block are determined by the NR2 subunits. Channels assembled from the NR1-NR2A or NR1-NR2B subunits are blocked more strongly than channels formed by the NR1-NR2C or NR1-NR2D subunits, predominantly reflecting a difference in voltage dependence. A determinant of Mg2+ block common to the NR2 subunits is located in the M2 domain (N-site or Q/R/N-site). However, subunit-specific differences of block suggested that additional structural elements exist. Chimeric NR2 subunits were constructed by replacing segments of the least sensitive NR2C subunit with homologous segments of the most sensitive NR2B subunit. Mutant NR2 subunits were coexpressed with wild-type NR1 in Xenopus oocytes, and Mg2+ block was quantified. Replacement of the entire M1-M4 region resulted in a chimera with a sensitivity of Mg2+ block similar to that of the NR2B wild type. Replacing smaller segments or introducing point mutations did not generate channels with Mg2+ block characteristic of NR2B wild type. However, combining in a single chimera three small segments (M1, M2-M3 linker, M4), each independently mediating an increase in Mg2+ block, produced channels close to NR2B wild type. Thus, differences in Mg2+ block as controlled by the NR2 subunits cannot be explained by a single structural determinant in addition to the N-site. Moreover, three elements of the NR2 subunit are the major determinants of subtype-specific differences of Mg2+ block in heteromeric NMDA receptor channels.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Differential contribution of the NR1- and NR2A-subunits to the selectivity filter of recombinant NMDA receptor channels.

1. The molecular determinants for the narrow constriction of recombinant N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor channels composed of wild-type and mutant NR1- and NR2A-subunits were studied in Xenopus oocytes. 2. The relative permeability of differently sized organic cations was used as an indicator of the size of the narrow constriction. From measured reversal potentials under bi-ionic conditions with K+ as the reference solution, permeability ratios were calculated with the Lewis equation. 3. For wild-type NMDA receptor channels, five organic cations showed clear reversal potentials, with permeability ratios (PX/PK): ammonium, 1.28; methylammonium, 0.48; dimethylammonium (DMA), 0.20; diethylammonium, 0.07; and dimethylethanol-ammonium, 0.02. 4. Mutation of the N-site asparagine (N) to glutamine (Q) at homologous positions in either NR1 (position 598) or NR2A (position 595) increased the permeability of DMA relative to wild-type channels about equally. However, for larger sized organic cations, the NR1(N598Q) mutation had stronger effects on increasing their permeability whereas the NR2A(N595Q) mutation was without effect. These changes in organic cation permeability suggest that the NR1(N598Q) mutation increases the pore size while the NR2A(N595Q) mutation does not. 5. Channels in which the NR1 N-site asparagine was replaced by the smaller glycine (G), NR1(N598G)-NR2A, showed the largest increase in pore size of all sites examined in either subunit. In contrast, in the NR2A-subunit the same N-site substitution to glycine produced only small effects on pore size. 6. For the NR2A-subunit, an asparagine residue (position 596) on the C-terminal side of the N-site, when mutated to larger or smaller sized amino acids, produced large, volume-specific effects on pore size. The mutant channel NR1-NR2A(N596G) had the largest increase in pore size of all sites examined in the NR2A-subunit. In contrast, mutation of the homologous position in the NR1-subunit had no effect on pore size. 7. The cross-sectional diameter of the narrow constriction in wild-type NMDA receptor channels was estimated to be 0.55 nm. The pore sizes of the NR1(N598G)-NR2A and NR1-NR2A(N596G) mutant channels increased to approximately 0.75 and 0.67 nm, respectively. The double mutation, NR1(N598G)-NR2A(596G), increased the pore size to approximately 0.87 nm, essentially the sum of the increase produced by the individual mutations. 8. It is concluded that both the NR1- and NR2A-subunits contribute to the narrow constriction of NMDA receptor channels with asparagines located at non-homologous positions. The major determinants of the narrow constriction in NMDA receptor channels are the NR1 N-site asparagine and an asparagine adjacent to the NR2A N-site.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Structure of the NMDA receptor channel M2 segment inferred from the accessibility of substituted cysteines.

The structure of the NMDA receptor channel M2 segment was investigated by probing the extracellular and cytoplasmic faces of cysteine-substituted NR1-NR2C channels with charged sulfhydryl-specific reagents. The pattern of accessible positions suggests that the M2 segment forms a channel-lining loop originating and ending on the cytoplasmic side of the channel, with the ascending limb in an alpha-helical structure and the descending limb in an extended structure. A functionally critical asparagine (N-site) is positioned at the tip of the loop, and a cluster of hydrophilic residues of the descending limb, adjacent to the tip, forms the narrow constriction of the channel. An apparent asymmetric positioning of the NR1- and NR2-subunit N-site asparagines may account for their unequal role in Ca2+ permeability and Mg2+ block.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1995

Selective antagonist for the cerebellar granule cell-specific gamma-aminobutyric acid type A receptor.

Numerous ligands affect inhibitory gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)A receptors, none of them showing strict receptor subtype specificity. We report here that a cerebellar GABAA receptor subtype can be uniquely modulated by furosemide but not by bumetanide, another Cl-/cation transport blocker. Furosemide specifically reversed the inhibition by GABA of t-[35S]butylbicyclophosphorothionate ([35S]TBPS) binding in the cerebellar granule cell layer, as detected by autoradiography of rat brain sections. With recombinant receptors expressed in Xenopus oocytes, furosemide antagonized potently (IC50, about 10 microM), rapidly, and reversibly GABA-evoked currents of cerebellar granule cell-specific alpha 6 beta 2 gamma 2 receptors but not alpha 1 beta 2 gamma 2 receptors (IC50, > 3 mM). Furosemide reversed GABA inhibition of [35S]TBPS binding and elevated basal [35S]TBPS binding only with alpha 6 beta 2 gamma 2 and alpha 6 beta 3 gamma 2 receptors and not with alpha 6 beta 1 gamma 2 or alpha 1 beta 1/2/3 gamma 2 receptors. It appeared to interact with the receptor complex via a novel recognition site that allosterically regulates the Cl- ionophore. Furosemide is the first subtype-selective GABAA receptor (alpha 6 beta 2/3 gamma 2) antagonist and should facilitate studies on cerebellar physiology. It might serve as a prototypic structure for the development of additional subtype-selective GABAA ligands.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Control of kinetic properties of AMPA receptor channels by nuclear RNA editing.

AMPA (alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid) receptor channels mediate the fast component of excitatory postsynaptic currents in the central nervous system. Site-selective nuclear RNA editing controls the calcium permeability of these channels, and RNA editing at a second site is shown here to affect the kinetic aspects of these channels in rat brain. In three of the four AMPA receptor subunits (GluR-B, -C, and -D), intronic elements determine a codon switch (AGA, arginine, to GGA, glycine) in the primary transcripts in a position termed the R/G site, which immediately precedes the alternatively spliced modules "flip" and "flop." The extent of editing at this site progresses with brain development in a manner specific for subunit and splice form, and edited channels possess faster recovery rates from desensitization.

Alternative Splicing↗
PubMed1994

Molecular biology of glutamate receptors.

The ligand-gated receptors for L-glutamate play a central role in acute neuronal degeneration. Recently cDNAs have been isolated for subunits of several glutamate receptor subtypes. By sequence homology all these subunits clearly belong to one large gene family. Several subfamilies exist and match roughly previously pharmacologically and electrophysiologically defined subtypes of glutamate receptors. Currently four genes (GluR A, B, C and D) are known that code for the AMPA subtypes of glutamate receptors. Recombinant expression of wild type and mutated sequences identified a critical residue in the putative TM2 channel-lining segment that controls Ca2+ ion permeability. The arginine (R) found in GluR B subunits at that position renders AMPA channels impermeable for Ca2+ ions, whereas glutamine (Q) containing GluR A, C and D subunits give rise to Ca2+ permeable channels. RNA editing converts the genomically encoded glutamine codon into the arginine codon found in GluR B cDNAs for the Q/R site. NMDA subtypes of glutamate receptors are formed after coexpression of the NR1 cDNA with a cDNA of the NR2 family. Depending on the member of the NR2 family used, NMDA receptors with different kinetical and pharmacological properties are generated. Common to all channels of these NMDA receptors is a high permeability for Ca2+ ions and a voltage dependent block by Mg2+ ions. All currently known NMDA receptor subunits have an asparagine at the Q/R homologous position. We found that this residue is critical for Mg2+ block and Ca2+ permeability of NMDA receptor channels.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Small N-terminal deletion by splicing in cerebellar alpha 6 subunit abolishes GABAA receptor function.

Sequence variation was found in cDNA coding for the extracellular domain of the rat gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) receptor alpha 6 subunit. About 20% of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-amplified alpha 6 cDNA prepared from rat cerebellar mRNA lacked nucleotides 226-255 as estimated by counting single-stranded phage plaques hybridized specifically to the short (alpha 6S) and long (wild-type) forms of the alpha 6 mRNA. Genomic PCR revealed an intron located upstream of the 30-nucleotide sequence. Both splice forms were detected in the cerebellum by in situ hybridization. Recombinant receptors, resulting from coexpression of the alpha 6S subunit with the GABAA receptor beta 2 and gamma 2 subunits in human embryonic kidney 293 cells, were inactive at binding [3H]muscimol and [3H]Ro 15-4513. In agreement, injection of complementary RNAs encoding the same subunits into Xenopus oocytes produced only weak GABA-induced currents, indistinguishable from those produced by beta 2 gamma 2 receptors. Therefore, the 10 amino acids encoded by the 30-nucleotide fragment may be essential for the correct assembly or folding of the alpha 6 subunit-containing receptors.

Amino Acid Sequence↗