RIKEN SPring-8 Center, 1-1-1 Kouto, Sayo-cho, Sayo-gun, Hyogo 679-5148, Japan; Institute of Multidisciplinary Research for Advanced Materials, Tohoku University, 2-1-1 Katahira, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8577, Japan. Electronic address: https://twitter.com/@enango_5.
RIKEN SPring-8 Center, 1-1-1 Kouto, Sayo-cho, Sayo-gun, Hyogo 679-5148, Japan; Department of Cell Biology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Yoshidakonoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.
Curr Opin Struct Biol. 2023 Aug;81:102629. doi: 10.1016/j.sbi.2023.102629. Epub 2023 Jun 22.
Microbial rhodopsin is a membrane protein with a domain of seven-transmembrane helices and a retinal chromophore. The main function of this protein is to perform light-induced ion transport, either actively or passively, by acting as pumps, channels, and light sensors. It is widely used for optogenetic application to control the activity of specific cells in living tissues by light. Time-resolved serial femtosecond crystallography (TR-SFX) with the use of X-ray free electron lasers is an effective technique for capturing dynamic ion transport and efflux structures across membranes with high spatial and temporal resolutions. Here, we outline recent TR-SFX studies of microbial rhodopsins, including a pump and a channel. We also discuss differences and similarities observed in the structural dynamics derived from the TR-SFX structures.
微生物视紫红质是一种具有七次跨膜螺旋和视黄醛发色团的膜蛋白。该蛋白的主要功能是通过充当泵、通道和光传感器来主动或被动地进行光诱导离子转运。它被广泛应用于光遗传学领域，通过光来控制活组织中特定细胞的活性。利用自由电子 X 射线激光的时间分辨连续飞秒晶体学（TR-SFX）是一种有效的技术，可以以高时空分辨率捕获跨膜的动态离子转运和外排结构。在这里，我们概述了最近关于微生物视紫红质的 TR-SFX 研究，包括泵和通道。我们还讨论了从 TR-SFX 结构中得出的结构动力学的差异和相似之处。
