title: HERG-like K+ channels in microglia.
abstract: A voltage-gated K+ conductance resembling that of the human ether-à-go-go-related gene product (HERG) was studied using whole-cell voltage-clamp recording, and found to be the predominant conductance at hyperpolarized potentials in a cell line (MLS-9) derived from primary cultures of rat microglia. Its behavior differed markedly from the classical inward rectifier K+ currents described previously in microglia, but closely resembled HERG currents in cardiac muscle and neuronal tissue. The HERG-like channels opened rapidly on hyperpolarization from 0 mV, and then decayed slowly into an absorbing closed state. The peak K+ conductance-voltage relation was half maximal at -59 mV with a slope factor of 18.6 mV. Availability, assessed by a hyperpolarizing test pulse from different holding potentials, was more steeply voltage dependent, and the midpoint was more positive (-14 vs. -39 mV) when determined by making the holding potential progressively more positive than more negative. The origin of this hysteresis is explored in a companion paper (Pennefather, P.S., W. Zhou, and T.E. DeCoursey. 1998. J. Gen. Physiol. 111:795-805). The pharmacological profile of the current differed from classical inward rectifier but closely resembled HERG. Block by Cs+ or Ba2+ occurred only at millimolar concentrations, La3+ blocked with Ki = approximately 40 microM, and the HERG-selective blocker, E-4031, blocked with Ki = 37 nM. Implications of the presence of HERG-like K+ channels for the ontogeny of microglia are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biophysics and Physiology, Rush Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois 60612, USA.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: F S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Cayabyab
authors.forename: P S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Pennefather
authors.forename: L C
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Schlichter
authors.forename: T E
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: DeCoursey
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D027682:Cation Transport Proteins; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D000072237:ERG1 Potassium Channel; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D004594:Electrophysiology; D051638:Ether-A-Go-Go Potassium Channels; D006801:Humans; D015640:Ion Channel Gating / Q000502:physiology; D007700:Kinetics; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D017628:Microglia / Q000378:metabolism*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D011188:Potassium / Q000378:metabolism; D015221:Potassium Channels / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000378:metabolism*; D024642:Potassium Channels, Voltage-Gated; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D015534:Trans-Activators; D000071230:Transcriptional Regulator ERG
chemical_list: D027682:Cation Transport Proteins; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; C072312:ERG protein, human; D000072237:ERG1 Potassium Channel; D051638:Ether-A-Go-Go Potassium Channels; C000606913:KCNH2 protein, human; C092509:KCNH6 protein, human; D015221:Potassium Channels; D024642:Potassium Channels, Voltage-Gated; D015534:Trans-Activators; D000071230:Transcriptional Regulator ERG; D011188:Potassium