| Title | Formation of intermediate-conductance calcium-activated potassium channels by interaction of Slack and Slo subunits. |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 1998 |
| Authors | Joiner WJ, Tang MD, Wang LY, Dworetzky SI, Boissard CG, Gan L, Gribkoff VK, Kaczmarek LK |
| Journal | Nat Neurosci |
| Volume | 1 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Pagination | 462-9 |
| Date Published | 1998 Oct |
| ISSN | 1097-6256 |
| Keywords | Amino Acid Sequence, Animals, Caenorhabditis elegans, Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins, Electric Conductivity, Intermediate-Conductance Calcium-Activated Potassium Channels, Isomerism, Large-Conductance Calcium-Activated Potassium Channels, Molecular Sequence Data, Nerve Tissue Proteins, Potassium Channels, Potassium Channels, Calcium-Activated |
| Abstract | Large-conductance calcium-activated potassium channels (maxi-K channels) have an essential role in the control of excitability and secretion. Only one gene Slo is known to encode maxi-K channels, which are sensitive to both membrane potential and intracellular calcium. We have isolated a potassium channel gene called Slack that is abundantly expressed in the nervous system. Slack channels rectify outwardly with a unitary conductance of about 25-65 pS and are inhibited by intracellular calcium. However, when Slack is co-expressed with Slo, channels with pharmacological properties and single-channel conductances that do not match either Slack or Slo are formed. The Slack/Slo channels have intermediate conductances of about 60-180 pS and are activated by cytoplasmic calcium. Our findings indicate that some intermediate-conductance channels in the nervous system may result from an interaction between Slack and Slo channel subunits. |
| DOI | 10.1038/2176 |
| Alternate Journal | Nat. Neurosci. |
| PubMed ID | 10196543 |