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Watching single protons bind

Using single-molecule biophysical studies in an ion channel, the protonation state of engineered basic amino acids was measured in real time, making it possible to calculate the pKas of the substituted residues and creating a unique, comprehensive dataset for theorists studying the effects of an electrostatic environment on integral membrane protein function.

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Figure 1: Structure of the acetylcholine receptor channel used to measure the protonation state in real time of ionizable amino acids engineered into its channel-lining M2 segment.

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Akabas, M. Watching single protons bind. Nat Chem Biol 2, 128–130 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/nchembio0306-128

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