Terlau H, Stühmer W
Max-Planck-Institut für Experimentelle Medizin, Department Molecular Biology of Neuronal Signals, Göttingen, Germany.
Naturwissenschaften. 1998 Sep;85(9):437-44. doi: 10.1007/s001140050527.
Voltage-gated ion channels are key molecules for the generation of electrical signals in cells. They are integral membrane proteins which are activated by a depolarized membrane potential resulting in a conformational change, allowing ions to permeate. Voltage-gated ion channels can either be inactivated from this open state by an additional conformational change which leads to a nonconducting state of the channel, or they may be deactivated by a repolarized membrane potential. Following the first successful cloning of voltage-gated ion channels in 1984 the combination of molecular biological and electrophysiological techniques has been very fruitful in the investigation of the structure and function of these membrane proteins. From these studies a molecular picture of the structural elements important for the activity of voltage-gated ion channels has been established. This has assisted in clarifying the molecular basis of the electrical excitability of cells.
电压门控离子通道是细胞中产生电信号的关键分子。它们是整合膜蛋白，通过去极化膜电位激活，导致构象变化，使离子得以通透。电压门控离子通道可通过导致通道处于非传导状态的额外构象变化从开放状态失活，或者通过复极化膜电位使其失活。1984年首次成功克隆电压门控离子通道后，分子生物学和电生理技术的结合在研究这些膜蛋白的结构和功能方面成果丰硕。通过这些研究，已经建立了对电压门控离子通道活性重要的结构元件的分子图景。这有助于阐明细胞电兴奋性的分子基础。
