Download MendeleyIon coupling and inhibitory mechanisms of the human presynaptic high-affinity choline transporter CHT1.
Qiu, Y., Gao, Y., Bai, Q., Zhao, Y.(2025) Structure 33: 321
- PubMed: 39657660 Search on PubMed
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.str.2024.11.009
- Primary Citation Related Structures:
8ZQO, 8ZQP, 8ZQQ, 8ZQR - PubMed Abstract:
In cholinergic neurons, choline is the precursor of the excitatory neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh), which plays a fundamental role in the brain. The high-affinity choline transporter, CHT1, mediates the efficient recycling of choline to facilitate ACh synthesis in the presynapse. Here, we report high-resolution cryoelectron microscopic (cryo-EM) structures of CHT1 in complex with the inhibitors HC-3 and ML352, the substrate choline, and a substrate-free state. Our structures show distinct binding modes of the inhibitors with different chemical structures, revealing their inhibition mechanisms. Additionally, we observed a chloride ion that directly interacts with the substrate choline, thereby stabilizing its binding with CHT1. Two sodium ions, Na2 and Na3, were clearly identified, which we speculate might be involved in substrate binding and conformational transitions, respectively. Our structures provide molecular insights into the coupling mechanism of ion binding with substrate binding and conformational transitions, promoting our understanding of the ion-coupled substrate transport mechanism.
- Key Laboratory of Biomacromolecules (CAS), National Laboratory of Biomacromolecules, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Beijing 100101, China; College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
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