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Figure 1. Predicted kinetic relationship between S4 movement and ionic currents at −120 mV for a published HCN channel model (Altomare et al., 2001). (A) State diagram for the Altomare model. There are four independent fast S4 movements (horizontal transitions) and slow rate-limiting activation-gate (vertical) transition. Both the S4 movement and the gate opening transitions are highly voltage dependent. The arrow on the state diagram denotes the most likely transition pathway. The continuous arrow denotes fast transitions and the dashed line slow transitions. At −120 mV, α = 289.7 s−1, β = 0.59 s−1, γ = 30.2 s−1, δ = 0.35 s−1, and f = 2.23 (Altomare et al., 2001). (B) Predicted S4 movement (dashed line; movement2 and movement4 denoted with dotted lines), and onset of ionic currents (continuous line).
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Figure 3. Fluorescence from 332C precedes channel opening. (A) Representative current (A1) and fluorescence (A2) records from Alexa-488-maleimide–labeled 332C channels. Channels were held at 0 mV and then stepped to negative potentials (0 to −140 mV, ΔV = 20 mV), followed by a step to +50 mV. (B and C) Steady-state (B) and kinetic analysis (C) of the voltage dependence of the conductance (black symbols) and fluorescence (red symbols) from A. The current and the fluorescence signals were fitted with double exponentials. (D) Amplitudes of the fast (▪) and slow (•) fluorescent components from A2. (E) Normalized currents and fluorescence from A during a step to −120 mV. Note that the fluorescence signal precedes the currents, as expected if S4 movement causes channel opening.
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Figure 4. Time course of fluorescence relative to the ionic current. Relative comparison of the fluorescence and the ionic current for steps to indicated voltages. The fluorescence signal is also shown to powers of 2 (F2) and 4 (F4). The fluorescence signals to a power of 2 overlap very well with the currents at −160 to −120 mV.
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Figure 5. Fluorescence from N-terminal S4 residues. Representative current (top, black) and fluorescence (bottom, red) records for Alexa-488-maleimide–labeled residues 327C–332C. Channels were held at 0 mV and then stepped to negative potentials (0 to −140 mV, ΔV = 20 mV), followed by a step to +50 mV. Note that residues (328–332C) all have fast fluorescence signals that preceded channel opening, presumably because they report on S4 movement during the gating charge translocation.
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Figure 6. A modified 10-state model reproduces the experimental data. (A) Representative current (black lines) and fluorescence (red lines) records from Alexa-488-maleimide–labeled 332C channels (from Fig. 3 A), overlaid with the best fit (χ2 = 16.6) from our 10-state model (dashed line; see parameter values in Table II). In this model, the fluorescence changes only during the rate-limiting S4 gating charge movement (see Fig. 8). (B and C) Normalized currents and fluorescence from B Alexa-488–labeled 332C channels (data from Fig. 4 C) and (C) the 10-state model during a step to −120 mV. Note that the fluorescence signal precedes the currents, as expected if S4 movement causes channel opening. The fluorescence to a power of 2 (F2) and to a power of 4 (F4) is also shown for each case. The currents are similar to the F2 curve for both the experimental data and for the 10-state model, whereas the F4 curve follows after the current in the both the experimental data and the 10-state model.
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Figure 7. Cooperative models did not improve the fits. (A–C) Different possible models for HCN channel opening generating F2 = I relationship. The arrows through the state diagrams denote the most likely transition pathway. Continuous arrows denote fast transitions and dashed lines slow transitions. (A) An allosteric model with four independent S4 movements with a non rate-limiting activation-gate transition. This is the model used in Fig. 6. (B) An allosteric model with cooperative S4 movements, in which the movement of each S4 affects the movement of the other S4s by a constant factor c. A similar model was suggested for negative cooperativity in S4 movement in Shaker K channels (Zagotta et al., 1994a). (C) A dimer-of-dimers model for S4 activation of HCN channels as earlier proposed (DiFrancesco, 1999; Ulens and Siegelbaum, 2003). (D) Representative current (black lines) and fluorescence (red lines) records from Alexa-488-maleimide–labeled 332C channels (from Fig. 3 A), overlaid with the best fit (χ2 = 16.9) from the dimer-of-dimers model (dashed lines; see parameter values in Table II). In this model, the fluorescence changes only during the rate-limiting S4 gating charge movement. (E) Normalized currents and fluorescence from the dimer-of-dimers model from D during a step to −120 mV. The fluorescence to a power of 2 (F2) and to a power of 4 (F4) is also shown. The currents clearly precede the F2 curve in the dimer-of-dimers model. In contrast, the current overlays the F2 curve in both the experimental data and the 10-state model (Fig. 6, B and C).
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Figure 8. Model for fluorescence from S4 during HCN channel gating. Proposed model for how the S4 movement in HCN channels generates the fluorescence data from 332C channels. The S4 movement (1) in the different subunits is assumed to be independent. The proposed model for the transmembrane movement of S4 charges, with both a vertical S4 movement and a simultaneous opening of an intracellular crevice, is a combination of two models earlier proposed for HCN channels (Mannikko et al., 2002; Bell et al., 2004; Vemana et al., 2004). Channel opening (2) is assumed to be by concerted, allosteric conformational changes in all four subunits. For simplicity, only two, out of the four, subunits are shown. S4 is shown in green, the intracellular activation gate is black, and the fluorophore is shown in red (more fluorescence intensity is shown with more and thicker radiating lines). Fluorescence from the gating charge-carrying region of the voltage sensor (i.e., from 332C), increases when the gating charge-carrying portion of S4 moves down in response to hyperpolarization (1), but does not change during as a direct result of channel opening (2). Fluorescence decreases when S4 moves up in response to depolarization (3), but does not change as a direct result of channel closing (4).
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