Newest Articles
The biogenesis and role of mitoflashIndividual mitochondria undergo an intermittent, all-or-none electrochemical excitation termed “mitoflash.” Feng et al. show that mitoflash occurs following build-up of mitochondrial electrochemical potential and may serve to autoregulate mitochondrial proton electrochemical potential.
Power of simple models of myosin binding to actinModels of muscle contraction often assume that a myosin motor interacts with areas of one to three distinct binding sites along an actin filament. Månsson shows that computational models employing different numbers of sites return similar predictions, suggesting one-site models are often sufficient.
Ano1 regulates lymphatic pacemakingLymphatic vessels display pressure-dependent contractions whose frequency is modulated by ion channel activity in lymphatic muscle. Zawieja et al. show that the Ca2+-activated Cl− channel Anoctamin 1 sets the lymphatic contraction rate by providing depolarizing current between action potentials.
Nitroxyl (HNO)–induced phospholamban modificationsTreatment with nitroxyl (HNO) improves cardiac function in failing hearts by inducing release of SR Ca2+-ATPase from phospholamban (PLN), thereby enhancing Ca2+ reuptake. Keceli et al. use 15N-edited NMR spectroscopy to show that HNO achieves this by reversibly modifying PLN cysteines 41 and 46.
L-type current control in β-adrenergic stimulationDuring a cardiac action potential, the activity of L-type Ca2+ channels (LTCCs) is modulated by voltage- and calcium-dependent inactivation processes. Morales et al. show that, in the context of β-adrenergic stimulation, calcium-dependent inactivation directs the regulation of LTCC activity, limiting calcium influx during the action potential.
CapZ regulates response to muscle stiffnessChanges in mechanical load, hormones, or metabolic stress provoke remodeling of the actin-based thin filaments within muscle fibers. Solís and Russell show that several signaling pathways converge at the actin-capping protein CapZ to regulate muscle fiber growth in response to mechanical stiffness and neurohumoral signaling.
Antidepressant effects on lipid bilayersAntidepressants alter the function of their target membrane proteins. They also alter lipid bilayer properties and thereby affect other membrane proteins. Kapoor et al. use gramicidin A channels to probe how antidepressants affect the lipid bilayer, providing a new mechanism for their off-target effects.
Current Issue
March 4, 2019
Volume 151, No. 3
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Reviews & Opinions
- Mentors: Doing science with Alan Hodgkin
Baylor recollects the time he spent with his mentor, Alan Hodgkin, working on phototransduction in turtle retinas.
- The enduring relationship between myosin enzymatic activity and the speed of muscle contraction
Moss and Solaro recall Bárány’s landmark study that identified myosin ATPase as the fundamental driver of contraction speed.
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McManus, Werley, and Dempsey highlight new work showing that nicotine rapidly equilibrates in the ER after extracellular application.