title: Murine K2P5.1 Deficiency Has No Impact on Autoimmune Neuroinflammation due to Compensatory K2P3.1- and KV1.3-Dependent Mechanisms.
abstract: Lymphocytes express potassium channels that regulate physiological cell functions, such as activation, proliferation and migration. Expression levels of K2P5.1 (TASK2; KCNK5) channels belonging to the family of two-pore domain potassium channels have previously been correlated to the activity of autoreactive T lymphocytes in patients with multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. In humans, K2P5.1 channels are upregulated upon T cell stimulation and influence T cell effector functions. However, a further clinical translation of targeting K2P5.1 is currently hampered by a lack of highly selective inhibitors, making it necessary to evaluate the impact of KCNK5 in established preclinical animal disease models. We here demonstrate that K2P5.1 knockout (K2P5.1-/-) mice display no significant alterations concerning T cell cytokine production, proliferation rates, surface marker molecules or signaling pathways. In an experimental model of autoimmune neuroinflammation, K2P5.1-/- mice show a comparable disease course to wild-type animals and no major changes in the peripheral immune system or CNS compartment. A compensatory upregulation of the potassium channels K2P3.1 and KV1.3 seems to counterbalance the deletion of K2P5.1. As an alternative model mimicking autoimmune neuroinflammation, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis in the common marmoset has been proposed, especially for testing the efficacy of new potential drugs. Initial experiments show that K2P5.1 is functionally expressed on marmoset T lymphocytes, opening up the possibility for assessing future K2P5.1-targeting drugs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Münster, Albert-Schweitzer-Campus 1, Münster 48149, Germany. stefan.bittner@ukmuenster.de.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bittner
authors.affiliation: LabEx ICST, Institut de Pharmacologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, CNRS and Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Valbonne 06560, France. nicole.bobak@txcell.com.
authors.forename: Nicole
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bobak
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Münster, Albert-Schweitzer-Campus 1, Münster 48149, Germany. majella.hofmann@uni-muenster.de.
authors.forename: Majella-Sophie
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Hofmann
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Würzburg, Würzburg 97070, Germany. Schuhmann_M@ukw.de.
authors.forename: Michael K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Schuhmann
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Münster, Albert-Schweitzer-Campus 1, Münster 48149, Germany. tobias.ruck@ukmuenster.de.
authors.forename: Tobias
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ruck
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Münster, Albert-Schweitzer-Campus 1, Münster 48149, Germany. kerstin.goebel@ukmuenster.de.
authors.forename: Kerstin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Göbel
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropathology, University Medical Center, Georg August University, Göttingen 37073, Germany. neuropat@med.uni-goettingen.de.
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Brück
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Münster, Albert-Schweitzer-Campus 1, Münster 48149, Germany. heinz.wiendl@ukmuenster.de.
authors.forename: Heinz
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wiendl
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Münster, Albert-Schweitzer-Campus 1, Münster 48149, Germany. sven.meuth@ukmuenster.de.|Department of Physiology I-Neuropathophysiology, University of Münster, Münster 48149, Germany . sven.meuth@ukmuenster.de.
authors.forename: Sven G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Meuth
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002144:Callithrix; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D018450:Disease Progression; D004681:Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D017353:Gene Deletion; D007107:Immune System / Q000473:pathology; D051664:Kv1.3 Potassium Channel / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D010641:Phenotype; D024683:Potassium Channels, Tandem Pore Domain / Q000378:metabolism*; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D015854:Up-Regulation
chemical_list: D051664:Kv1.3 Potassium Channel; D024683:Potassium Channels, Tandem Pore Domain; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell
keywords: EAE; K2P channels; K2P5.1; KCNK5; TASK2; autoimmune neuroinflammation; ion channels; multiple sclerosis; potassium channels