The bile acid-sensitive ion channel (BASIC) is a member of the ENaC/degenerin family of ion channels. It is activated by bile acids and inhibited by extracellular Ca2+. The aim of this study was to explore the molecular mechanisms mediating these effects. The modulation of BASIC function by extracellular Ca2+ and tauro-deoxycholic acid (t-DCA) was studied in Xenopus laevis oocytes heterologously expressing human BASIC using the two-electrode voltage-clamp and outside-out patch-clamp techniques. Substitution of aspartate D444 to alanine or cysteine in the degenerin region of BASIC, a region known to be critically involved in channel gating, resulted in a substantial reduction of BASIC Ca2+ sensitivity. Moreover, mutating D444 or the neighboring alanine (A443) to cysteine significantly reduced the t-DCA-mediated BASIC stimulation. A combined molecular docking/simulation approach demonstrated that t-DCA may temporarily form hydrogen bonds with several amino acid residues including D444 in the outer vestibule of the BASIC pore or in the inter-subunit space. By these interactions, t-DCA may stabilize the open state of the channel. Indeed, single-channel recordings provided evidence that t-DCA activates BASIC by stabilizing the open state of the channel, whereas extracellular Ca2+ inhibits BASIC by stabilizing its closed state. In conclusion, our results highlight the potential role of the degenerin region as a critical regulatory site involved in the functional interaction of Ca2+ and t-DCA with BASIC.
CITATION STYLE
Ilyaskin, A. V., Kirsch, S. A., Böckmann, R. A., Sticht, H., Korbmacher, C., Haerteis, S., & Diakov, A. (2018). The degenerin region of the human bile acid-sensitive ion channel (BASIC) is involved in channel inhibition by calcium and activation by bile acids. Pflugers Archiv European Journal of Physiology, 470(7), 1087–1102. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00424-018-2142-z
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