Anion conductance selectivity mechanism of the CFTR chloride channel

All ion channels are able to discriminate between substrate ions to some extent, a process that involves specific interactions between permeant anions and the so-called selectivity filter within the channel pore. In the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) anion-selective channel, both anion relative permeability and anion relative conductance are dependent on anion free energy of hydration--anions that are relatively easily dehydrated tend to show both high permeability and low conductance. In the present work, patch clamp recording was used to investigate the relative conductance of different anions in CFTR, and the effect of mutations within the channel pore. In constitutively-active E1371Q-CFTR channels, the anion conductance sequence was Cl(-) > NO3(-) > Br(-) > formate > SCN(-) > I(-). A mutation that disrupts anion binding in the inner vestibule of the pore (K95Q) disrupted anion conductance selectivity, such that anions with different permeabilities showed almost indistinguishable conductances. Conversely, a mutation at the putative narrowest pore region that is known to disrupt anion permeability selectivity (F337A) had minimal effects on anion relative conductance. Ion competition experiments confirmed that relatively tight binding of permeant anions resulted in relatively low conductance. These results suggest that the relative affinity of ion binding in the inner vestibule of the pore controls the relative conductance of different permeant anions in CFTR, and that the pore has two physically distinct anion selectivity filters that act in series to control anion conductance selectivity and anion permeability selectivity respectively.