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Related Concept Videos

Non-gated Ion Channels01:24

Non-gated Ion Channels

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Ion channels are specialized proteins on the plasma membrane that allow charged ions to pass down their electrochemical gradient. Their main function is to maintain the membrane potential which is critical for cell viability. These channels are either gated or non-gated and can transport more than a thousand ions within milliseconds for the cellular event to occur.
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Mechanically-gated Ion Channels01:12

Mechanically-gated Ion Channels

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Mechanically-gated ion channels are proteins found in eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell membranes that open in response to mechanical stress. Tension, compression, swelling, and shear stress can alter the conformation of the protein, opening a transmembrane channel that allows the passage of ions for signal transmission. In eukaryotes, mechanically-gated channels are distributed in several regions like the neurons, lungs, skin, bladder, and heart, where they play critical roles in numerous...
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Ligand-gated Ion Channels01:19

Ligand-gated Ion Channels

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Ligand-gated ion channels are transmembrane proteins with a channel for ions to pass through and a binding site for a ligand. The channel opens only when a ligand attaches to the binding site.
Three Subfamilies of Ligand-gated Ion Channels
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Voltage-gated Ion Channels01:26

Voltage-gated Ion Channels

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Voltage-gated ion channels are transmembrane proteins that open and close in response to changes in the membrane potential. They are present on the membranes of all electrically excitable cells such as neurons, heart, and muscle cells.
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G-Protein Gated Ion Channels01:21

G-Protein Gated Ion Channels

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GPCRs are primarily responsible for our sense of smell, taste, and vision.  The binding of a sensory stimulus activates GPCR to stimulate effector proteins, many of which are ion channels in the sensory organs. GPCRs modulate the opening and closing of the target ion channels either directly by binding them, or by releasing second messengers that activate these channels. As ions move across the membrane, the membrane potential is altered, which induces an appropriate response.
Sensory...
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Ion Channels01:19

Ion Channels

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The movement of ions like sodium, potassium, and calcium into and out of the cell is essential to maintain the electrochemical gradient in living cells. The ion channels—a class of membrane transport proteins—help maintain this ionic gradient for the smooth functioning of physiological activities such as maintaining cell size and volume, conducting nerve impulses, and gas and nutrient exchange.
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Updated: Jan 30, 2026

Optimized Transfection Strategy for Expression and Electrophysiological Recording of Recombinant Voltage-Gated Ion Channels in HEK-293T Cells
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Cholesterol-Dependent Gating Effects on Ion Channels.

Qiu-Xing Jiang1

  • 1Department of Microbiology and Cell Science, IFAS, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA. qxjiang@ufl.edu.

Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology
|January 17, 2019
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Cholesterol (CHOL) inhibits voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channels by altering the lipid composition surrounding them. This lipid-dependent gating mechanism affects various ion channels and transporters.

Keywords:
Annular lipidsCholesterol organizationCholesterol packingInhibitory effectsVoltage-sensor conformationbSUMs

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Area of Science:

  • Biochemistry
  • Cell Biology
  • Biophysics

Background:

  • Biomembranes maintain cellular homeostasis and are composed of phospholipids and nonphospholipids like cholesterol (CHOL).
  • Cholesterol is a key regulator of membrane fluidity and function, with its levels tightly controlled in cells.
  • Voltage-gated ion channels are crucial for cellular electrical signaling and exhibit diverse functions across eukaryotes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the lipid-dependent gating hypothesis for voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channels.
  • To elucidate the inhibitory effects of cholesterol on Kv channel activity.
  • To explore the broader implications of cholesterol-channel interactions for other ion channels and transporters.

Main Methods:

  • Review of recent progress in cholesterol-dependent gating of voltage-gated ion channels.
  • Thermodynamic analysis of cholesterol's effects on channel gating.
  • Examination of experimental data from in vitro membranes, cultured cells, and animal models.

Main Results:

  • High cholesterol content significantly inhibits Kv channel activity.
  • Cholesterol's inhibitory effects stem from collective interactions with the channel's annular lipid layer.
  • The observed effects are consistent across various experimental systems and suggest a general mechanism.

Conclusions:

  • Cholesterol plays a critical role in regulating voltage-gated ion channel function through lipid-dependent gating.
  • The findings provide a mechanistic understanding of how cholesterol modulates channel activity.
  • This principle may extend to other cholesterol-sensitive ion channels and transporters, impacting cellular physiology and disease.