Crystal structure analysis of a voltage-gated sodium channel

电压门控钠通道(VGSC)是离子跨细胞膜运输的重要蛋白质。它们存在于所有真核生物和一系列细菌中。在人类和低等真核生物中，它们对于正常的功能是必不可少的，在高等生物中，从心脏到大脑的不同组织中都发现了不同的亚型，在健康的有机体中具有不同的功能。钠通道突变会导致许多疾病状态；因此，它们是许多药物的靶标，包括治疗癫痫和慢性疼痛的药物。这项建议是为了确定钠通道的晶体结构，表征其功能和结合特性，作为了解钠通道功能的结构基础及其与包括药物和杀虫剂在内的配体的相互作用的基础。

Voltage-gated sodium channels (VGSC) are essential proteins enabling the transport of ions across cell membranes. They are found in all eukaryotic organisms and a range of bacteria. In humans as well as lower eukaryotes they are essential for normal functioning, and in higher organisms various isoforms are found in different tissues, ranging from heart to brain, with different functional roles in the healthy organism. Sodium channel mutations give rise to a number of disease states; as a result they are the targets of many pharmaceutical drugs, including ones for treatment of epilepsy and chronic pain. This proposal is to determine the crystal structure of a sodium channel, characterise its functional and binding properties, as a basis for understanding the structural basis of sodium channel functioning and its interactions with ligands, including drugs and insecticides.