weird, the potassium channel. i'm thinking about protein misfolding a lot lately, so when i did a little reading on Kir4.1, the protein connection stood out.
Clustering and enhanced activity of an inwardly rectifying potassium channel, Kir4.1, by an anchoring protein, PSD-95/SAP90.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9148889
Abstract
An inwardly rectifying potassium channel predominantly expressed in glial cells, Kir4.1/KAB-2, has a sequence of Ser-Asn-Val in its carboxyl-terminal end, suggesting a possible interaction with an anchoring protein of the PSD-95 family. We examined the effects of PSD-95 on the distribution and function of Kir4.1 in a mammalian cell line. When Kir4.1 was expressed alone, the channel immunoreactivity was distributed homogeneously. In contrast, when co-expressed with PSD-95, prominent clustering of Kir4.1 in the cell membrane occurred. Kir4.1 was co-immunoprecipitated with PSD-95 in the co-expressed cells. Glutathione S-transferase-fusion protein of COOH terminus of Kir4.1 bound to PSD-95. These interactions disappeared when the Ser-Asn-Val motif was deleted. The magnitude of whole-cell Kir4.1 current was increased by 2-fold in cells co-expressing Kir4.1 and PSD-95 compared with cells expressing Kir4. 1 alone. SAP97, another member of the PSD-95 family, showed similar effects on Kir4.1. Furthermore, we found that Kir4.1 as well as SAP97 distributed not diffusely but clustered in retinal glial cells. Therefore, PSD-95 family proteins may be a physiological regulator of the distribution and function of Kir4.1 in glial cells.
went looking for more on PSD-95/SAP-90. it's a "scaffolding protein". encoded by DLG4 gene. looked up DLG4. seems more like i looked up PSD-95, but still interesting:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DLG4
"PSD-95 (postsynaptic density protein 95) also known as SAP-90 (synapse-associated protein 90) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the DLG4 (disks large homolog 4) gene...
PSD-95 is the best studied member of the MAGUK-family of PDZ domain-containing proteins. Like all MAGUK-family proteins, its basic structure includes three PDZ domains, an SH3 domain, and a guanylate kinase-like domain (GK) connected by disordered linker regions. It is almost exclusively located in the post synaptic density of neurons,[4] and is involved in anchoring synaptic proteins. Its direct and indirect binding partners include neuroligin, NMDA receptors, AMPA receptors, and potassium channels.[5]"
okay. next i found this
http://www.nextbio.com/b/search/da/DLG4 ... ry=1206167
from that page i zeroed in on prion disease:
Disease Atlas for DLG4 (gene)
Name...........: :.....Score 0/ 50/ 100.....: :.....Supporting Data Types.....: :.....# Studies.....: :.....Effect on Query
Prion disease..: :......................99.....: :.............................RE......................2.....: :.....down-regulated
there's even a study linking DLG4 and zinc (scroll down to nutritional/metabolic diseases - zinc deficiency) but, not being a member of the disease atlas web site, i will have to dig that up on my own.
then, seeing if there's a connection between DLG4 and MS, found this:
T-cell regulation by CD46 and its relevance in multiple sclerosis
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2566619/
"CD46 is a complement regulatory molecule expressed on every cell type, except for erythrocytes. While initially described as a regulator of complement activity, it later became a ‘magnet for pathogens’, binding to several viruses and bacteria. More recently, an alternative role for such complement molecules has emerged: they do regulate T-cell immunity, affecting T-cell proliferation and differentiation. In particular, CD46 stimulation induces Tr1 cells, regulatory T cells characterized by massive production of interleukin-10 (IL-10), a potent anti-inflammatory cytokine. Hence, CD46 is likely to control inflammation. Indeed, data from CD46 transgenic mice highlight a role for CD46 in inflammation, with antagonist roles depending on the cytoplasmic tail being expressed. Furthermore, recent data have shown that CD46 is defective in multiple sclerosis, IL-10 production being severely impaired in these patients. This lack of IL-10 production probably participates in the inflammation observed in patients with multiple sclerosis. This review will summarize the data on CD46 and T cells, and how CD46 is likely involved in multiple sclerosis."
i had picked up the abstract above because of some text in the google results, which i guess were a citation..
A functional interaction between CD46 and DLG4: a role for DLG4 in epithelial polarization
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11714708
"Using a yeast two-hybrid screen, we identified a physical interaction between CD46 and DLG4. CD46 is a ubiquitous human cell-surface receptor for the complement components C3b and C4b and for measles virus and human herpesvirus 6. DLG4 is a scaffold protein important for neuronal signaling and is homologous to the Drosophila tumor suppressor DLG. We show that an interaction between CD46 and DLG4 is important for polarization in epithelial cells. Specifically, we show (i) biochemical evidence for an interaction between CD46 and DLG4, (ii) that this interaction is specific for the Cyt1 (but not Cyt2) domain of CD46, (iii) that both CD46 and an alternatively spliced isoform of DLG4 are polarized in normal human epithelial cells, and (iv) that the polarized expression of CD46 in epithelial cells requires the DLG4-binding domain and alters with expression of a truncated form of DLG4. This is the first identification of a direct and cytoplasmic domain-specific interaction between CD46 and an intracellular signaling molecule and provides a molecular mechanism for the polarization of CD46. These data also indicate that, in addition to the known role for DLG4 in neuronal cells, DLG4 may be important for polarization in epithelial cells."
quite interesting.
main article abstract:
Potassium Channel KIR4.1 as an Immune Target in Multiple Sclerosis
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1110740
Background
Multiple sclerosis is a chronic inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system. Many findings suggest that the disease has an autoimmune pathogenesis; the target of the immune response is not yet known.
Methods
We screened serum IgG from persons with multiple sclerosis to identify antibodies that are capable of binding to brain tissue and observed specific binding of IgG to glial cells in a subgroup of patients. Using a proteomic approach focusing on membrane proteins, we identified the ATP-sensitive inward rectifying potassium channel KIR4.1 as the target of the IgG antibodies. We used a multifaceted validation strategy to confirm KIR4.1 as a target of the autoantibody response in multiple sclerosis and to show its potential pathogenicity in vivo.
Results
Serum levels of antibodies to KIR4.1 were higher in persons with multiple sclerosis than in persons with other neurologic diseases and healthy donors (P<0.001 for both comparisons). We replicated this finding in two independent groups of persons with multiple sclerosis or other neurologic diseases (P<0.001 for both comparisons). Analysis of the combined data sets indicated the presence of serum antibodies to KIR4.1 in 186 of 397 persons with multiple sclerosis (46.9%), in 3 of 329 persons with other neurologic diseases (0.9%), and in none of the 59 healthy donors. These antibodies bound to the first extracellular loop of KIR4.1. Injection of KIR4.1 serum IgG into the cisternae magnae of mice led to a profound loss of KIR4.1 expression, altered expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein in astrocytes, and activation of the complement cascade at sites of KIR4.1 expression in the cerebellum.
Conclusions
KIR4.1 is a target of the autoantibody response in a subgroup of persons with multiple sclerosis.
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