Monospecific antibodies against a synthetic peptide predicted from the alpha-3 nicotinic receptor cDNA inhibit binding of [3H]nicotine to rat brain nicotinic cholinergic receptor

Brain nicotinic receptors isolated by a monospecific antibody against a synthetic alpha-3 subunit receptor peptide compared to a monoclonal anti-idiotypic (to nicotine) antibody

Nicotinic cholinergic receptor proteins purified from rat brain by immunoaffinity chromatography were characterized using the anti-S3 polyclonal antibody vs. the anti-idiotypic monoclonal antibody 422F11 (generated against an antibody to nicotine). Anti-S3 IgG was purified to homogeneity; anti-S3-Sepharose 4B and 422F11-Sepharose 4B each depleted 3H-nicotine binding sites from brain. Nicotinic receptors isolated from both immunoaffinity columns showed major bands (silver-stained) at 55K and 70K. Using anti-S3 serum as probe, Western blots of nicotinic receptors isolated by the two immunoaffinity gels also showed major bands at 55 and 70K. However, Western blots of fresh brain extracts revealed a major band at 80K and minor bands at 55K and 70K. These results show similar nicotinic cholinergic receptor proteins isolated by the anti-S3 and 422F11 anti-idiotypic antibodies; 80K was dominant only when fresh brain extract was subjected to Western blotting without prior immunoaffinity purification.

Modeling of agonist binding to the ligand-gated ion channel superfamily of receptors

A generalized model is presented of agonist binding to ligand-gated ion channels (LGICs). Broad similarity in the structure of agonists suggests that the binding sites of LGICs may have evolved from a protobinding site. Aligned sequence data identified as a candidate for such a site a highly conserved 15 residue stretch of primary structure in the N-terminal extracellular region of all known LGIC subunits. We modeled this subregion, termed the cys-loop, as a rigid, amphiphilic beta-hairpin and propose that it may form a major determinant of a conserved structural binding cleft. In the model of the binding complex (1) an invariant aspartate residue at position 11 of the cys-loop is the anionic site interacting with the positively charged amine group of agonists, (2) a local dipole within the pi-electron system of agonists is favorably oriented in the electrostatic field of the invariant aspartate, (3) the epsilon ring-proton of a conserved aromatic residue at the turn of the cys-loop interacts orthogonally with the agonist pi-electron density at its electronegative center, and (4) selective recognition is partly a result of the type of amino acid residue at position 6 of the cys-loop. Additionally, formation of a hydrogen bond between the electronegative atom of the pi-electron system of agonist and a complementary group in the receptor may be important in the high-affinity binding of agonists.