Chapter Five - Ubiquitination of Ion Channels and Transporters

Ion channels and transporters play essential roles in excitable cells including cardiac, skeletal, and smooth muscle cells, neurons, and endocrine cells. Their dysfunction underlies the pathology of various diseases. Thus, the tight regulation of these transmembrane proteins is essential for cell physiology. While the ubiquitin system is involved in many aspects of cellular processes, this chapter focuses on the ubiquitin-mediated degradation of ion channels and transporters. Ubiquitination of ion channels and transporters is multifaceted and occurs at various cellular compartments such as the plasma membrane and the endoplasmic reticulum. While various molecules are involved in the ubiquitination of ion channels and transporters, E3 ubiquitin ligases play a central role in selectively targeting substrates for ubiquitination and will be a major focus in this chapter. To date, the Nedd4 family of E3 ubiquitin ligases and their regulations of ion channels and transporters have been extensively studied. In this chapter, we will first review Nedd4/Nedd4-2 and their regulations. We will then discuss how E3 ubiquitin ligases, especially Nedd4-2, regulate various ion channels and transporters including epithelial Na(+) channels, voltage-gated Na(+) channels, KCNQ and hERG K(+) channels, Cl(-) channels such as CFTR, transporters such as Na(+)/K(+) ATPase, and gap junctions. Furthermore, diseases caused by improper ubiquitination of ion channels and transporters will be discussed to highlight the process of ubiquitination and its biological as well as clinical significance.