Opening and closing of the central ion-conducting pore in voltage-dependent ion channels is gated by changes in membrane potential. Although a gate residue in the eukaryotic voltage-gated sodium ...

A detailed blueprint of how an ion channel interacts with neurotoxins at the molecular level could help guide the development of drugs for diseases caused by the aberrant transmission of electrical ...

Atomic-level studies of the architecture of tiny sodium channel proteins, critical to generating electrical signals that start off each beat of the heart, are imparting striking details about their ...

Atomic-level studies of the architecture of tiny sodium channel proteins, critical to generating electrical signals that start off each beat of the heart, are imparting striking details about their ...

Scientists now have a better picture of how voltage-gated sodium (Na v) channels interact with certain animal toxins, thanks to structures solved with cryo-electron microscopy. These channels are ...

The human cardiac voltage-gated sodium channel (Nav1.5) plays a critical role in maintaining regular heartbeats. Mutations in Nav1.5 cause life-threatening heart rhythm disorders (arrhythmias). Nav1.5 ...

The transport of ions is essential to maintain electrophysiological balance on either side of the membrane, called osmotic balance, which is needed for signals to be transduced from their chemical ...

Australian funnel-web spiders are infamous for causing human fatalities, which are induced by venom peptides known as δ-hexatoxins (δ-HXTXs). Humans and other primates did not feature in the prey or ...

The BACE protease (β-site APP cleaving enzyme) is elevated in the brains of people with Alzheimer disease and takes at least part of the blame for amyloid overload because of its role in the ...

Science, founded by Thomas A. Edison in 1880 and published by AAAS, today ranks as the world's largest circulation general science journal. Published 51 times a year, Science is renowned for its ...