8ut1
From Proteopedia
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The alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor is a pentameric ligand-gated ion channel that plays an important role in cholinergic signaling throughout the nervous system. Its unique physiological characteristics and implications in neurological disorders and inflammation make it a promising but challenging therapeutic target. Positive allosteric modulators overcome limitations of traditional alpha7 agonists, but their potentiation mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we present high-resolution structures of alpha7-modulator complexes, revealing partially overlapping binding sites but varying conformational states. Structure-guided functional and computational tests suggest that differences in modulator activity arise from the stable rotation of a channel gating residue out of the pore. We extend the study using a time-resolved cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) approach to reveal asymmetric state transitions for this homomeric channel and also find that a modulator with allosteric agonist activity exploits a distinct channel-gating mechanism. These results define mechanisms of alpha7 allosteric modulation and activation with implications across the pentameric receptor superfamily. | The alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor is a pentameric ligand-gated ion channel that plays an important role in cholinergic signaling throughout the nervous system. Its unique physiological characteristics and implications in neurological disorders and inflammation make it a promising but challenging therapeutic target. Positive allosteric modulators overcome limitations of traditional alpha7 agonists, but their potentiation mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we present high-resolution structures of alpha7-modulator complexes, revealing partially overlapping binding sites but varying conformational states. Structure-guided functional and computational tests suggest that differences in modulator activity arise from the stable rotation of a channel gating residue out of the pore. We extend the study using a time-resolved cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) approach to reveal asymmetric state transitions for this homomeric channel and also find that a modulator with allosteric agonist activity exploits a distinct channel-gating mechanism. These results define mechanisms of alpha7 allosteric modulation and activation with implications across the pentameric receptor superfamily. | ||
| - | + | , PMID:38382524<ref>PMID:38382524</ref> | |
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.<br> | From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.<br> | ||
Current revision
Alpha7-nicotinic acetylcholine receptor bound to epibatidine
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