title: Ion channels in the immune system as targets for immunosuppression.
abstract: The discovery of a diverse and unique subset of ion channels in T lymphocytes has led to a rapidly growing body of knowledge about their functional roles in the immune system. Potent and specific blockers have provided molecular tools to probe channel structure-function relations and to elucidate the involvement of K+, Ca2+, and Cl- channels in T-cell activation and cell volume regulation. Recent advances in analyzing Kv1.3 channel structure-function relationships have defined binding sites for channel blockers, which have now been shown to be effective in suppressing T-cell function in vivo. Ion channels may provide excellent pharmaceutical targets for modulating immune system function.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of California, Irvine 92697-4560, USA. mcahalan@uci.edu
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Cahalan
authors.forename: K G
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Chandy
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D006801:Humans; D007165:Immunosuppression Therapy; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D007473:Ion Channels