SK channel

Calcium-activated SK potassium channel
SK Channel
Identifiers
SymbolSK_channel
PfamPF03530
InterProIPR015449
Available protein structures:
Pfam  structures / ECOD  
PDBRCSB PDB; PDBe; PDBj
PDBsumstructure summary

SK channels (small conductance calcium-activated potassium channels) are a subfamily of calcium-activated potassium channels.[1] They are so called because of their small single channel conductance in the order of 10 pS.[2] SK channels are a type of ion channel allowing potassium cations to cross the cell membrane and are activated (opened) by an increase in the concentration of intracellular calcium through N-type calcium channels. Their activation limits the firing frequency of action potentials and is important for regulating afterhyperpolarization in the neurons of the central nervous system as well as many other types of electrically excitable cells. This is accomplished through the hyperpolarizing leak of positively charged potassium ions along their concentration gradient into the extracellular space. This hyperpolarization causes the membrane potential to become more negative.[3] SK channels are thought to be involved in synaptic plasticity and therefore play important roles in learning and memory.[4]

  1. ^ Bond CT, Maylie J, Adelman JP (April 1999). "Small-conductance calcium-activated potassium channels". Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 868 (1): 370–8. Bibcode:1999NYASA.868..370B. doi:10.1111/j.1749-6632.1999.tb11298.x. PMID 10414306. S2CID 22930702.
  2. ^ Köhler M, Hirschberg B, Bond CT, Kinzie JM, Marrion NV, Maylie J, Adelman JP (September 1996). "Small-conductance, calcium-activated potassium channels from mammalian brain". Science. 273 (5282): 1709–14. Bibcode:1996Sci...273.1709K. doi:10.1126/science.273.5282.1709. PMID 8781233. S2CID 11603552.
  3. ^ Faber ES, Sah P (October 2007). "Functions of SK channels in central neurons". Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology & Physiology. 34 (10): 1077–83. doi:10.1111/j.1440-1681.2007.04725.x. PMID 17714097. S2CID 5553791.
  4. ^ Stackman RW, Hammond RS, Linardatos E, Gerlach A, Maylie J, Adelman JP, Tzounopoulos T (December 2002). "Small conductance Ca2+-activated K+ channels modulate synaptic plasticity and memory encoding". The Journal of Neuroscience. 22 (23): 10163–71. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.22-23-10163.2002. PMC 6758766. PMID 12451117.