title: Molecular proximity of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator and epithelial sodium channel assessed by fluorescence resonance energy transfer.
abstract: We present the evidence for a direct physical association of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) and epithelial sodium channel (ENaC), two major ion channels implicated in the pathophysiology of cystic fibrosis, a devastating inherited disease. We employed fluorescence resonance energy transfer, a distance-dependent imaging technique with capability to detect molecular complexes with near angstrom resolution, to estimate the proximity of CFTR and ENaC, an essential variable for possible physical interaction to occur. Fluorescence resonance energy transfer studies were complemented with a classic biochemical approach: coimmunoprecipitation. Our results place CFTR and ENaC within reach of each other, suggestive of a direct interaction between these two proteins.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology & Biophysics, Gregory Fleming James Cystic Fibrosis Research Center, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama 35294-0005, USA. berdiev@uab.edu
authors.forename: Bakhrom K
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Berdiev
authors.forename: Estelle
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cormet-Boyaka
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tousson
authors.forename: Yawar J
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Qadri
authors.forename: Henderika M J
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Oosterveld-Hut
authors.forename: Jeong S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.forename: Patricia A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Gonzales
authors.forename: Cathy M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Fuller
authors.forename: Eric J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Sorscher
authors.forename: Gergely L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Lukacs
authors.forename: Dale J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Benos
mesh_terms: D002460:Cell Line; D003550:Cystic Fibrosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D019005:Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D053503:Epithelial Sodium Channels / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D031541:Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer; D006801:Humans; D011485:Protein Binding / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: C505032:CFTR protein, human; D053503:Epithelial Sodium Channels; D019005:Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator