Chemical gating of connexin channels

Abstract

The physiology of gap junctions is regulated by changes in the microenvironment of the cell. The most defined mechanism for such regulation is the closure of gap junction channels in response to acidification of the intracellular space, that is, pH gating or chemical gating. In the best studied case, that of Cx43, chemical gating involves interactions between a specific segment of the cytoplasmic carboxyl-terminal domain with a specific segment of the cytoplasmic loop domain. These interactions have been characterized at the molecular and structural levels. Additionally, there is evidence that interaction of cytoplasmic aminosulfonates and peptide reagents can also affect the gating mechanisms controlled by these inter-domain interactions.