1. Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0032, Japan

Correspondence to: Chikashi Toyoshima Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to C.T. (e-mail: Email: ct@iam.u-tokyo.ac.jp). The atomic coordinates are deposited in the PDB (accession code 1IWO).

Abstract

In skeletal muscle, calcium ions are transported (pumped) against a concentration gradient from the cytoplasm into the sarcoplasmic reticulum, an intracellular organelle. This causes muscle cells to relax after cytosolic calcium increases during excitation. The Ca²⁺ ATPase that carries out this pumping is a representative P-type ion-transporting ATPase. Here we describe the structure of this ion pump at 3.1 Å resolution in a Ca²⁺-free (E2) state, and compare it with that determined previously for the Ca²⁺-bound (E1Ca²⁺) state. The structure of the enzyme stabilized by thapsigargin, a potent inhibitor, shows large conformation differences from that in E1Ca²⁺. Three cytoplasmic domains gather to form a single headpiece, and six of the ten transmembrane helices exhibit large-scale rearrangements. These rearrangements ensure the release of calcium ions into the lumen of sarcoplasmic reticulum and, on the cytoplasmic side, create a pathway for entry of new calcium ions.