Spinocerebellar ataxia type 19/22 mutations alter heterocomplex Kv4.3 channel function and gating in a dominant manner

Duarri, A., Meng-Chin, A. L., Fokkens, M. R., Meijer, M., Smeets, C. J. L. M., Nibbeling, E. A. R., Boddeke, E., Sinke, R. J., Kampinga, H. H., Papazian, D. M., & Verbeek, D. S. (2015). Spinocerebellar ataxia type 19/22 mutations alter heterocomplex Kv4.3 channel function and gating in a dominant manner. Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences, 72(17), 3387-3399. doi:10.1007/s00018-015-1894-2.
The dominantly inherited cerebellar ataxias are a heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative disorders caused by Purkinje cell loss in the cerebellum. Recently, we identified loss-of-function mutations in the KCND3 gene as the cause of spinocerebellar ataxia type 19/22 (SCA19/22), revealing a previously unknown role for the voltage-gated potassium channel, Kv4.3, in Purkinje cell survival. However, how mutant Kv4.3 affects wild-type Kv4.3 channel functioning remains unknown. We provide evidence that SCA19/22-mutant Kv4.3 exerts a dominant negative effect on the trafficking and surface expression of wild-type Kv4.3 in the absence of its regulatory subunit, KChIP2. Notably, this dominant negative effect can be rescued by the presence of KChIP2. We also found that all SCA19/22-mutant subunits either suppress wild-type Kv4.3 current amplitude or alter channel gating in a dominant manner. Our findings suggest that altered Kv4.3 channel localization and/or functioning resulting from SCA19/22 mutations may lead to Purkinje cell loss, neurodegeneration and ataxia.
Publication type
Journal article
Publication date
2015

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