Insights into the function and regulation of the calcium-activated chloride channel TMEM16A.

The TMEM16A channel, a member of the TMEM16 protein family comprising chloride (Cl) channels and lipid scramblases, is activated by the free intracellular Ca increments produced by inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3)-induced Ca release after GqPCRs or Ca entry through cationic channels. It is a ubiquitous transmembrane protein that participates in multiple physiological functions essential to mammals' lives. TMEM16A structure contains two identical 10-segment monomers joined at their transmembrane segment 10. Each monomer harbours one independent hourglass-shaped pore gated by Ca ligation to an orthosteric site adjacent to the pore and controlled by two gates. The orthosteric site is created by assembling negatively charged glutamate side chains near the pore´s cytosolic end. When empty, this site generates an electrostatic barrier that controls channel rectification. In addition, an isoleucine-triad forms a hydrophobic gate at the boundary of the cytosolic vestibule and the inner side of the neck. When the cytosolic Ca rises, one or two Ca ions bind to the orthosteric site in a voltage (V)-dependent manner, thus neutralising the electrostatic barrier and triggering an allosteric gating mechanism propagating via transmembrane segment 6 to the hydrophobic gate. These coordinated events lead to pore opening, allowing the Cl flux to ensure the physiological response. The Ca-dependent function of TMEM16A is highly regulated. Anions with higher permeability than Cl facilitate V dependence by increasing the Ca sensitivity, intracellular protons can replace Ca and induce channel opening, and phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate bound to four cytosolic sites likely maintains Ca sensitivity. Additional regulation is afforded by cytosolic proteins, most likely by phosphorylation and protein-protein interaction mechanisms.