J. Gen. Physiol. 131, 605–616 (2008)

Researchers at Stanford University in California report that proteins can alter the lipid environment around a transmembrane ion channel in a way that influences whether the channel is open or closed.

Miriam Goodman and her colleagues studied an ion channel involved in the nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans's sense of touch. The channel's core comprises the proteins MEC-4 and MEC-10. Around this core sit two other proteins, called MEC-2 and MEC-6, which are responsible for the observed effect.

MEC-2 is found on the inner side of cell membranes and seems to bind cholesterol. MEC-6 resides on the extracellular side of ion channels and contains a helical structure that may associate with various lipids. It is not clear whether MEC-2 directs the ion channel to regions in the membrane flush with cholesterol or whether it attracts cholesterol to the area around the pore.