The S6 gate in regulatory Kv6 subunits restricts heteromeric K+ channel stoichiometry.

The Shaker-like family of voltage-gated K+ channels comprises four functionally independent gene subfamilies, Shaker (Kv1), Shab (Kv2), Shaw (Kv3), and Shal (Kv4), each of which regulates distinct aspects of neuronal excitability. Subfamily-specific assembly of tetrameric channels is mediated by the N-terminal T1 domain and segregates Kv1-4, allowing multiple channel types to function independently in the same cell. Typical Shaker-like Kv subunits can form functional channels as homotetramers, but a group of mammalian Kv2-related genes (Kv5.1, Kv6s, Kv8s, and Kv9s) encodes subunits that have a "silent" or "regulatory" phenotype characterized by T1 self-incompatibility. These channels are unable to form homotetramers, but instead heteromerize with Kv2.1 or Kv2.2 to diversify the functional properties of these delayed rectifiers. While T1 self-incompatibility predicts that these heterotetramers could contain up to two regulatory (R) subunits, experiments show a predominance of 3:1R stoichiometry in which heteromeric channels contain a single regulatory subunit. Substitution of the self-compatible Kv2.1 T1 domain into the regulatory subunit Kv6.4 does not alter the stoichiometry of Kv2.1:Kv6.4 heteromers. Here, to identify other channel structures that might be responsible for favoring the 3:1R stoichiometry, we compare the sequences of mammalian regulatory subunits to independently evolved regulatory subunits from cnidarians. The most widespread feature of regulatory subunits is the presence of atypical substitutions in the highly conserved consensus sequence of the intracellular S6 activation gate of the pore. We show that two amino acid substitutions in the S6 gate of the regulatory subunit Kv6.4 restrict the functional stoichiometry of Kv2.1:Kv6.4 to 3:1R by limiting the formation and function of 2:2R heteromers. We propose a two-step model for the evolution of the asymmetric 3:1R stoichiometry, which begins with evolution of self-incompatibility to establish the regulatory phenotype, followed by drift of the activation gate consensus sequence under relaxed selection to limit stoichiometry to 3:1R.

CNS-wide Sexually Dimorphic Induction of the Major Histocompatibility Complex 1 Pathway With Aging.

The major histocompatibility complex I (MHCI) pathway, which canonically functions in innate immune viral antigen presentation and detection, is functionally pleiotropic in the central nervous system (CNS). Alternative roles include developmental synapse pruning, regulation of synaptic plasticity, and inhibition of neuronal insulin signaling; all processes altered during brain aging. Upregulation of MHCI components with aging has been reported; however, no systematic examination of MHCI cellular localization, expression, and regulation across CNS regions, life span, and sexes has been reported. In the mouse, MHCI is expressed by neurons and microglia, and MHCI components and receptors (H2-K1, H2-D1, ß2M, Lilrb3, Klra2, CD247) display markedly different expression profiles across the hippocampus, cortex, cerebellum, brainstem, and retina. MHCI components, receptors, associated inflammatory transcripts (IL1α, IL1ß, IL6, TNFα), and TAP (transporter associated with antigen processing) components are induced with aging and to a greater degree in female than male mice across CNS regions. H2-K1 and H2-D1 expression is associated with differential CG and non-CG promoter methylation across CNS regions, ages, and between sexes, and concomitant increased expression of proinflammatory genes. Meta-analysis of human brain aging data also demonstrates age-related increases in MHCI. Induction of MHCI signaling could contribute to altered synapse regulation and impaired synaptic plasticity with aging.

Bilaterian Giant Ankyrins Have a Common Evolutionary Origin and Play a Conserved Role in Patterning the Axon Initial Segment.

In vertebrate neurons, the axon initial segment (AIS) is specialized for action potential initiation. It is organized by a giant 480 Kd variant of ankyrin G (AnkG) that serves as an anchor for ion channels and is required for a plasma membrane diffusion barrier that excludes somatodendritic proteins from the axon. An unusually long exon required to encode this 480Kd variant is thought to have been inserted only recently during vertebrate evolution, so the giant ankyrin-based AIS scaffold has been viewed as a vertebrate adaptation for fast, precise signaling. We re-examined AIS evolution through phylogenomic analysis of ankyrins and by testing the role of ankyrins in proximal axon organization in a model multipolar Drosophila neuron (ddaE). We find giant isoforms of ankyrin in all major bilaterian phyla, and present evidence in favor of a single common origin for giant ankyrins and the corresponding long exon in a bilaterian ancestor. This finding raises the question of whether giant ankyrin isoforms play a conserved role in AIS organization throughout the Bilateria. We examined this possibility by looking for conserved ankyrin-dependent AIS features in Drosophila ddaE neurons via live imaging. We found that ddaE neurons have an axonal diffusion barrier proximal to the cell body that requires a giant isoform of the neuronal ankyrin Ank2. Furthermore, the potassium channel shal concentrates in the proximal axon in an Ank2-dependent manner. Our results indicate that the giant ankyrin-based cytoskeleton of the AIS may have evolved prior to the radiation of extant bilaterian lineages, much earlier than previously thought.

Nicotinamide is an endogenous agonist for a C. elegans TRPV OSM-9 and OCR-4 channel.

TRPV ion channels are directly activated by sensory stimuli and participate in thermo-, mechano- and chemo-sensation. They are also hypothesized to respond to endogenous agonists that would modulate sensory responses. Here, we show that the nicotinamide (NAM) form of vitamin B3 is an agonist of a Caenorhabditis elegans TRPV channel. Using heterologous expression in Xenopus oocytes, we demonstrate that NAM is a soluble agonist for a channel consisting of the well-studied OSM-9 TRPV subunit and relatively uncharacterized OCR-4 TRPV subunit as well as the orthologous Drosophila Nan-Iav TRPV channel, and we examine stoichiometry of subunit assembly. Finally, we show that behaviours mediated by these C. elegans and Drosophila channels are responsive to NAM, suggesting conservation of activity of this soluble endogenous metabolite on TRPV activity. Our results in combination with the role of NAM in NAD+ metabolism suggest an intriguing link between metabolic regulation and TRPV channel activity.