Stansfeld C E, Marsh S J, Gibb A J, Brown D A
Department of Pharmacology, University College London, England.
Neuron. 1993 Apr;10(4):639-54. doi: 10.1016/0896-6273(93)90166-o.
We have identified the species of K+ channel that underlies the neuronal M-current in rat sympathetic ganglion cells. The channels were kinetically and pharmacologically defined using outside-out and cell-attached patches. They exhibited multiple conductance levels, predominantly 3-9 pS. Their slow gating in response to voltage change in outside-out patches was exhibited only in the presence of AIF-4 or GTP gamma S on the inner membrane surface and when the lower conductance states were dominant. In the absence of AIF-4 or GTP gamma S, the channels exhibited rapid activation and deactivation. We conclude that M-channel gating may be controlled by an associated GTP-binding protein.
