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Vol. 55, Issue 6, 993-999, June 1999
-Aminobutyric Acid Type AA Receptor Subtype-Selective
Antagonism by Furosemide
Merck Sharp & Dohme Research Laboratories, Neuroscience Research Centre, Terlings Park, Eastwick Road, Harlow, Essex, United Kingdom
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Summary |
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GABAA receptors in cerebellar granule cells are unique in
expressing a subtype containing the
6 subunit. This receptor subtype has high affinity for GABA and produces a degree of tonic inhibition on
cerebellar granule cells, modulating the firing of these cells via
spillover of GABA from GABAergic synapses. This receptor subtype also
has selective affinity for the diuretic furosemide over receptors containing other
-subunits. Furosemide exhibits approximately 100-fold selectivity for
6-containing receptors over
1-containing receptors. By making
1/
6 chimeras we have identified a
transmembrane region (209-279) responsible for the high furosemide
sensitivity of
6
3
2s receptors. Within the
1 transmembrane
region, a single amino acid was identified that when mutated from
threonine to isoleucine, increased furosemide sensitivity by
20-fold. We demonstrate the
-subunit selectivity of furosemide to be
due to asparagine 265 in the
2 and
3 transmembrane-domain
II similar to that observed with potentiation by the
anticonvulsant loreclezole. We also show that Ile in
transmembrane-domain I accounts for the increased GABA sensitivity
observed at
6
3
2s compared with
1
3
2s receptors, but
did not affect direct activation by pentobarbital or potentiation by
the benzodiazepine flunitrazepam. Location of these residues within
transmembrane domains leads to speculation that they may be involved in
the channel-gating mechanism conferring increased receptor activation
by GABA, in addition to conferring furosemide sensitivity.
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Introduction |
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In
the mammalian brain, inhibitory neurotransmission is mainly mediated
via activation of GABAA receptors, which belong
to a superfamily of ligand-gated ion channels. The mammalian
GABAA receptor gene family consists of a number
of subunit polypeptides (
1-6,
1-3,
1-2,
, and
) that are thought to coassemble as pentamers (Whiting et al., 1995
;
Sieghart, 1995
). Native GABAA receptor subtypes
most likely consist of
and
subunits together with a
,
,
or
subunit. The binding of GABA to the receptor complex results in
the opening of an anion channel through which chloride ions flow. In
addition to the GABA binding site, a number of allosteric sites have
been identified on the receptor, which can modulate GABAergic
activity. These include the benzodiazepines and anesthetics,
which potentiate GABAergic responses, and antagonists such as
picrotoxin and zinc, which act in a noncompetitive manner (Macdonald
and Olsen, 1994
).
Another compound identified as a noncompetitive antagonist at
GABAA receptors is the diuretic compound
furosemide. This blocker of the
Na+/2Cl-/K+
cotransporter, has also been shown to be receptor subtype-selective, eliciting approximately 100-fold greater sensitivity for
6
2
2s receptors than for
1
2
2s receptors (Korpi et al., 1995
), as well as selectivity for
6
3
2s over
6
1
2s. The aim of
this study was to identify the amino acids within the
6 subunit and
3 subunit that are responsible for conferring high affinity for this
antagonist, using chimeric receptors and point mutations.
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Materials and Methods |
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Cloning of human GABAA receptor subunit
cDNAs (
1-
6,
3, and
2s) has been described previously
(Hadingham et al., 1993a
,b
, 1996
; Wafford et al., 1996
). Chimeric and
point-mutated cDNAs were generated by standard techniques as described
previously (Wingrove et al., 1994
). Mutations were confirmed by DNA sequencing.
Expression of Human GABAA Receptors in
Xenopus Oocytes.
Adult female Xenopus
laevis were anesthetized by immersion in a 0.4% solution of
3-aminobenzoic acid ethylester for 30 to 45 min (or until
unresponsive). Ovary tissue was removed via a small abdominal incision
and stage V and VI oocytes were isolated with fine forceps. After mild
collagenase treatment to remove follicle cells (Type IA, 0.5 mg
ml
1 for 6 min), the oocyte nuclei were directly
injected with 10 to 20 nl of injection buffer (88 mM NaCl, 1 mM KCl, 15 mM HEPES, at pH 7, filtered through nitro-cellulose) containing
different combinations of human GABAA subunit
cDNAs (20 ng µl
1) engineered into the
expression vector pCDM8 or pcDNAI/Amp. After incubation for 24 to
72 h, oocytes were placed in a 50 µl bath and perfused at 4 to 6 ml/min
1 with modified Barth's medium
consisting of 88 mM NaCl, 1 mM KCl, 10 mM HEPES, 0.82 mM
MgSO4, 0.33 mM
Ca(NO3)2, 0.91 mM
CaCl2, 2.4 mM NaHCO3, at pH
7.5. Cells were impaled with two 1 to 3 M
electrodes containing 2 M
KCl and voltage-clamped at
70 mV.
Whole Cell Patch-Clamp of Human Embryonic Kidney (HEK) 293 Cells
Transiently Transfected with Human GABAA Receptors.
Experiments were performed on HEK 293 cells transiently transfected
with human cDNA combinations
1
3
2s,
6
3
2s,
1T230I
3
2s, and
6I228T
3
2s (6 µg of cDNA total per
coverslip) using calcium phosphate precipitation (Chen and Okayama,
1988
) as described previously (Hadingham et al., 1993a
). Glass
coverslips containing the cells in a monolayer culture were transferred
to a perspex chamber on the stage of Nikon Diaphot inverted microscope.
Cells were continuously perfused with a solution containing 124 mM
NaCl, 2 mM KCl, 2 mM CaCl2, 1 mM
MgCl2, 1.25 mM
KH2PO4, 25 mM
NaHCO3, 11 mM D-glucose, at pH 7.2, and observed using phase-contrast optics. Patch-pipettes were pulled
with an approximate tip diameter of 2 µm and a resistance of 4 M
with borosilicate glass and filled with 130 mM CsCl, 10 mM HEPES,
10 mM EGTA, 3 mM Mg+-ATP, pH adjusted to 7.3 with CsOH. Cells were patch-clamped in whole-cell mode using an
Axopatch-200B patch-clamp amplifier (Axon Inst., Foster City,
CA). Drug solutions were applied by a double-barreled pipette
assembly, controlled by a stepping motor attached to a Prior
manipulator, enabling rapid equilibration around the cell. Increasing
GABA concentrations were applied for 5-s pulses with a 30-s interval
between applications.
Analysis. Curves were fitted using a nonlinear square-fitting program to the equation f(x) = BMAX/[1 + (EC50/x)n] where x is the drug concentration, EC50 is the concentration of drug eliciting a half-maximal response and n is the Hill coefficient. EC50 and IC50 values are shown as mean (95% CL), n = 3 or more, and differences between means were evaluated by Student's t test and considered significant if P < .05.
Drugs Used.
-Aminobutyric acid (Sigma Chemical Co., St.
Louis, MO) was prepared as a 1 M stock solution in modified Barth's
medium. Concentrated stock solutions of furosemide (1 M) and
flunitrazepam (10 mM) (both obtained from Sigma) were freshly prepared
in 100% dimethyl sulfoxide. Pentobarbital was obtained from
Rhône Mérieux (Harlow, UK) as a concentrate in
alcohol (Sagatal for injection containing 60 mg
ml
1 pentobarbitone sodium). The concentrates
were diluted into buffer and the maximal final vehicle concentration
was 0.3% v/v for dimethyl sulfoxide and 0.4% v/v for the
alcohol. No effects on GABA currents were observed with either vehicle.
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Results and Discussion |
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As has previously been reported (Korpi et al., 1995
; Wafford et
al., 1996
) furosemide displays a greater sensitivity for
6
3
2s receptors [IC50 = 12.1 (11.4, 12.9) µM]
compared with
1-5
3
2s receptors [IC50
values ranging from 234.9 (212.3, 260) µM for
4
3
2s to
3 mM
for
2
3
2s] (Fig. 1). In
addition, the
-subunit appears not to be required for furosemide
antagonism, as
6
3 receptors are also highly sensitive to block by
furosemide, with an IC50 of 14.4 (9.5, 21.9) µM
(data not shown).
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A number of chimeras (C1-C5) were made encompassing different
regions of the
1 and
6 subunits (Fig.
2A) and expressed with human
3 and
2 subunits in Xenopus oocytes. Chimeras 1 and 3 both
displayed
1-like furosemide sensitivity (C1
IC50 = 1.38 (1.32, 1.45) mM and C3
IC50 = 0.98 (0.87, 1.10) mM). The furosemide sensitivity for chimera 2 was not significantly different from
6
3
2s receptors [17.1 (14.9, 19.7) µM compared with 12.1 (11.4, 12.9) µM] whereas chimeras 4 and 5 displayed intermediate
sensitivity [78.6 (55.8, 110.6) µM and 56.3 (37.6, 84.3) µM
respectively; Fig. 2B] (Table 1a). These
results suggest that there are at least two amino acids responsible for
the high furosemide sensitivity of
6-containing receptors, the first
being located within a region between amino acids 131 and 160 and the
second between 209 and 279 (Fig. 3).
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Identification of Isoleucine228 in Transmembrane-Domain (TM)
1.
In the region between positions 209 and 279 there are 12 amino
acid differences between
1 and
6. Fisher et al. (1997)
described a rat
6/
1 chimera with a splice site within TM1 that conferred high furosemide sensitivity and a
1 point mutation (
1L258T) where
furosemide sensitivity was unchanged. These results eliminated 5 of the
12 amino acids identified within this region. The remaining seven amino
acids were mutated (in groups of 2 or 3) in
1 to the
6 equivalent
and the furosemide IC50 determined.
1V212I,T215V,H216Y
3
2s and
1K220Q,I223M
3
2s receptors
both displayed
1-like furosemide sensitivity
[IC50 = 2.12 (1.78, 2.51) mM and 1.15 (0.94, 1.40) mM respectively].
1V227M,T230I
3
2s receptors, however,
revealed an intermediate sensitivity [IC50 = 51.4 (44.6, 59.2) µM] similar to that of chimeras 4 and 5. Individual point mutations produced IC50 values
of 0.7 (0.63, 0.78) mM for
1V227M
3
2s and 40.9 (34.6, 48.3)
µM for
1T230I
3
2s (Fig. 4), demonstrating a critical role for isoleucine 228 within the
6 subunit in conferring furosemide selectivity. Figure
5 illustrates the effects of furosemide
on oocytes expressing wild-type
1
3
2s,
6
3
2s, and
1T230I
3
2s receptors. The effects of furosemide were shown to
be significantly reduced on the equivalent
6 receptor mutant
(
6I228T), producing a 10-fold reduction in furosemide sensitivity
with an IC50 of 127.6 (86.3, 188.6) µM (Fig.
6A). In addition, when the same wild-type
and equivalent mutants were expressed in HEK cells and studied using
whole cell-patch-clamp techniques, similar differences were observed in
furosemide sensitivity (Fig. 6B, Table 1b).
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-subunits, including the
4 subunit, that has intermediate furosemide sensitivity (Wafford et al., 1996
4-containing receptors for furosemide. Mutation of this conserved threonine to isoleucine in
4 produced a
10-fold increase in furosemide sensitivity with an
IC50 of 22.3 (18.5, 26.9) µM, similar to
6
3
2s receptors. (Fig. 7).
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1 subunit from threonine
to the
6 equivalent isoleucine at position 230 produced a 20-fold
increase in furosemide sensitivity. This single amino acid change,
however, did not shift the IC50 completely to
that observed on
6
3
2 receptors, suggesting that other residues are also involved.
Additional Determinants Affecting Furosemide Sensitivity.
Our
results from the chimera studies identified a possible second domain
(131-160) within the
6 subunit, which may contribute to the high
furosemide sensitivity. Within the transmembrane domain of
1, a
single amino acid changed to the
6 equivalent,
1T230I, increased
the furosemide sensitivity of
1 by 20-fold. A further 5-fold
increase in sensitivity is required to bring the furosemide IC50 to that seen on
6
3
2s or chimera 2. Single amino acid mutations or insertion of the region 131 to 160 into
1 however, did not affect the furosemide IC50
(see Table 1a, chimera 6), so it is currently unclear how this small
additional component is conferred. The action of furosemide has also
been shown to depend on the
-subunit variant, being weaker on
1-containing receptors than on
2- and
3-containing receptors
(Korpi et al., 1995
). Potentiation of GABAA
receptors by the anticonvulsant loreclezole has been shown to be
dependent on the
-subunit (Wafford et al., 1994
) and is dependent on
the presence of asparagine 265 in the
2 or
3 subunit (Wingrove et
al., 1994
). We have compared the effects of furosemide on
6
1
2
and
6
3
2 receptors, confirming selectivity for
6
3
2. We
have also used
point mutants,
1S265N and
3N265S, coexpressed
with
6 and
2s to demonstrate that the
-subunit selectivity is
determined by the same asparagine residue as loreclezole (Fig.
8). Mutation of the serine within
1 to
asparagine (the
3 counterpart) increased furosemide sensitivity
[from an IC50 of 66.5 (63.3, 70.0) µM to 12.3 (11.8, 12.9) µM]. Conversely, mutation of the asparagine within
3
to serine decreased furosemide sensitivity [from an
IC50 of 12.4 (11.4, 12.9) µM to 224 (190, 263)
µM]. It is interesting to note that mutation within the
1 subunit
revealed an identical IC50 as
6
3
2s
whereas mutation within the
3 subunit produced a significantly
higher IC50 than
6
1
2s. Like the
threonine/isoleucine we have identified in TM1, the asparagine/serine
is located on the extracellular end of TM2 and it is possible that
these two amino acids are located close to each other at the
extracellular face of the channel.
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Isoleucine 228 in
6 Also Confers Higher GABA Affinity.
Interestingly, concentration-response curves for GABA expressing the
wild-type
1
3
2,
6
3
2, and the corresponding Thr/Ile mutants revealed significant differences in GABA affinity. The GABA
EC50 for
1T230I
3
2s receptors [0.84
(0.77, 0.91) µM] in HEK cells was significantly lower than
1
3
2s receptors [3.29 (2.50,5.37) µM] but not different
from
6
3
2s receptors [0.89 (0.74, 1.08) µM (Fig.
9; Table 1b]. However, the equivalent
mutation in
6 (I228T) did not affect GABA EC50
[0.71 (0.59, 0.86) µM]. Hence, this mutation could also account for
the higher GABA affinity of
6-containing receptors. GABA
concentration-response curves in Xenopus oocytes were also
carried out on the mutant
1 and
6 receptors, as well as all the
1/
6 chimeras, however, the greater intrinsic variability in the
oocyte expression system precluded the significant detection of such a
5-fold difference. The location in TM1 makes it unlikely that this
residue forms part of the GABA binding site, which has been shown to be
formed by residues in the
and
-subunit N-terminal regions (Sigel
et al., 1992
; Amin and Weiss, 1993
). The EC50
value is a function of both the GABA binding affinity and the
isomerization rate constants for transitions between the various
closed, open, and desensitized states. Channel gating involves
conformational changes in the membrane-spanning domains and we
hypothesize that mutation from threonine 230 to isoleucine within TM1
alters the transduction process, resulting in a lower
EC50 value. The high GABA affinity of
6-containing receptors has recently been shown to be critical to
their function in granule cells, as mediating a tonic inhibition via
spillover of GABA from Golgi to granule cell synapses (Brickley et al.,
1996
; Rossi and Hamann, 1998
).
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6 selectivity (Thompson et al., 1996
1
3
2s and
1T230I
3
2s receptors. No differences were observed in either
the EC50 or maximum response as a percentage of
the maximum GABA response (189 µM and 75% for
1
3
2 compared
with 191 µM and 66% for
1T230I
3
2s). Additionally,
potentiation of a GABA EC20 by the benzodiazepine flunitrazepam (1 µM) was unaffected by the threonine to isoleucine mutation (104 ± 13% for
1
3
2s and 90 ± 8% for
1T230I
3
2s). Although mutation of Thr230 to Ile within the
1
subunit significantly increased furosemide and GABA affinity, it did
not alter the direct activation of pentobarbital or the potentiation
elicited by flunitrazepam.
The role of the putative membrane spanning TM1 has also been
investigated in the muscle nicotinic receptor (Akabas and Karlin, 1995
2 and
3, however, is
hypothesized to be facing away from the lumen of the channel (Xu and
Akabas, 1996| |
Footnotes |
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Received September 28, 1998; Accepted March 24, 1999
Send reprint requests to: Dr. K.A. Wafford, Merck Sharp & Dohme Research Laboratories, Neuroscience Research Centre, Terlings Park, Eastwick Road, Harlow, Essex, U.K. CM20 2QR. E-mail: keith-wafford{at}merck.com
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Abbreviations |
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TM, transmembrane-domain; HEK, human embryonic kidney.
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