M. CAPRINI

A pathophysiological increase in free arachidonic acid (AA) is thought to regulate the channel-mediated astrocytic swelling occurring in several brain injuries. We report that in cultured rat type-1 cortical astrocytes, exposure to 10 microM AA activates an open rectifier K(+) channel, which exhibits many similarities with TREK/TRAAK members of...

Voltage-gated ion channels are modular proteins designed by the structural linkage of a voltage sensor and a pore domain. The functional coupling of these two protein modules is a subject of intense research. A major focus has been directed to decipher the role of the S4-S5 linker and the C-end of the inner pore helix in channel gating....