Channel proteins, a special class of membrane proteins which mediate cell signaling, are pivotal control elements of cellular homeostasis. Their dysfunction leads to disease processes and they constitute a prime target for drug intervention. The ultimate goal is to understand the fundamental principles underlying their molecular design. The immediate objective is to establish the occurrence of minimum units of structure with specific functional attributes as a tractable approach to investigate the sequence-structure determinism. The novelty of the strategy resides in the notion of a discrete modular assembly based on the premise that small, independently folded modules may be stable in the absence of the entire channel protein and that structure determination of such isolated modules reconstituted in lipid bilayers is feasible and realistic. Specifically, the program is focused on voltage- gated channel proteins. The strategy considers that given the primary structure of channel proteins it may be possible to identify functional modules associated with the ionic pore and the voltage sensor, and that such sequences may fold predictably into stable motifs that will retrieve the permeation and gating properties which are characteristic of intact channels. Sequence analysis and conformational energy calculations guide the designs. Proteins are produced by expression in bacteria of synthetic genes encoding the designed channel proteins. Channel properties are established by reconstitution of designed proteins in lipid bilayers and by heterologous expression of cDNAs encoding the proteins in amphibian oocytes. Ionic current measurements provide an assay of the permeation properties and of the voltage-dependent regulation of the probability of the channel residing in the open or closed states. Displacement current measurements probe the conformational transitions between states. Protein structure is determine by multidimensional NMR spectroscopy of isotopically labeled proteins in deuterated detergent micelles and by solid-state NMR in oriented phospholipid bilayer lamellae. Structure- function relations are developed by the convergence of structural information with the characterization of channel function. Site-specific replacements assist in refining a structure-function map. The ultimate test of a successful design is recapitulation of functional attributes of the whole protein by assembling it from independent modules. The development of a repertoire of modules, that by combination and permutation may generate functional diversity, is exciting and realistic. These discoveries may contribute clues to understand mechanisms of disease and provide structural blueprints for drug design.
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