The reporter learned on October 20 that the research team of Lu Peilong from the School of Life Sciences of Westlake University, together with the team of Li Bo of Westlake University and others,It took six years to achieve two "world firsts"——For the first time, the precise de novo design of voltage-gated anion channels was achieved, and the first in vivo experiment of artificially designed ion channel proteins was completed, promoting important breakthroughs in the field of protein design. Relevant research was recently published in the journal Cell.
"In the human body, ion channels are distributed on the surfaces of most cells such as nerve cells and muscle cells. Their task is to connect the inside and outside of the cells and accurately transmit information." Lu Peilong said that natural voltage-gated ion channels can sense voltage changes to control "switches" and can also screen specific ions, just like "security gates."
The scientific research team of West Lake University achieved the precise de novo design of voltage-gated anion channels for the first time. Photo courtesy of Westlake University
In this study, Lu Peilong's team achieved an important breakthrough in the field of protein design - from designing membrane proteins with static structures to designing transmembrane proteins with dynamic changes that can respond to external stimuli and undergo conformational changes. The research team collaborated with Li Bo's team at West Lake University to implant artificial channels into the neurons of mouse brains and found that the firing frequency of mouse neurons was significantly reduced, proving that artificially designed ion channel proteins can function under physiological conditions.
"This research result shows the huge potential of de novo protein design, and it also means that we are one step closer to developing artificially designed ion channel protein drugs that can regulate cellular and neural activities." Lu Peilong said.