PROJECT 3 This Project will study the actions of steroid anesthetics on transmitter-gated ion channels. The focus ison potentiation of responses of the GABA-A receptor by steroids, as potentiation is most clearly related toanesthetic actions. A central goal of the work is to define the structural requirements for specific steroideffects. Work in the present funding period has shown that steroids have 3 distinct kinetic effects on theGABA-A receptor, and that the effects are mediated by binding to at least 2 sites. We will use biophysicalanalyses of evoked currents to determine the structures of the steroid molecule which are required for theseeffects, in complementary experiments, we will study the consequences of mutations to proposed steroidbinding regions in the GABA-A receptor. We will also perform experiments to identify the location of thesteroid binding pocket in the receptor with respect to the cell membrane, that is, whether it is located in theinner or outer leaflet of the membrane. In studies performed during the present funding period, we havefound that the effects of steroids depend on the concentration of transmitter (GABA) used to activate thereceptor, which may have a significant role in shaping the physiological actions of steroids. We will study thebasis for the this relationship. We will continue to produce recombinant epitope tagged GABA-A receptors,for use in biochemical studies. Finally, we will determine the effects of steroids on the function of additionalreceptors, including the glycine a3 receptor. The proposed work builds on previous results from this Project and the Program as a whole. It isexpected to lead to significant insights into the nature and location of the steroid binding sites on the GABA-A receptor. Further, it is expected to reveal the critical molecular mechanisms by which steroid anestheticsproduce functional effects associated with anesthesia. Finally, it should assist in developing insights into theparts of the steroid molecule which are associated with specific functional consequences, which could resultin increased specificity or efficacy for steroid anesthetics.
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