Potassium (K+) channels act as gates to K+ diffusion across cell membranes. Control over K+ levels is an essential part of tissue homeostasis and several physiological processes such as metabolism, cell signalling, and controlling cellular electrical activity. Consequently these channels are of particular interest clinically and pharmaceutically as channel dysfunction results in a wide range of metabolic, cardiac and neuronal pathologies.
Despite their importance to basic cellular function, many aspects of K+ channel function remain poorly understood, including mechanisms of channel regulation and the structural changes that occur during gating. This study aims to use a series of structure-function based experiments to further elucidate mechanisms of channel gating.