Ion-channel gating, or stochastic fluctuation between an open and a closed state, is not fully understood at the atomic level. Analysis of the bacterial channel OmpA now suggests that one mode of gating depends on the switching of a salt bridge within the pore.
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Moroni, A., Thiel, G. Flip-flopping salt bridges gate an ion channel. Nat Chem Biol 2, 572–573 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/nchembio1106-572
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nchembio1106-572
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