Mapping general anesthetic binding site(s) in human α1β3 γ-aminobutyric acid type A receptors with 3HTDBzl-etomidate a photoreactive etomidate analog

摘要

The γ-aminobutyric acid type-A receptor (GABAAR) is a target for general anesthetics of diverse chemical structures, which act as positive allosteric modulators at clinical doses. Previously, in a heterogeneous mixture of GABAARs purified from bovine brain, [³H]azietomidate photolabeling of αMet-236 and βMet-286 in the αM1 and βM3 transmembrane helices identified an etomidate binding site in the GABAAR transmembrane domain at the interface between the β and α subunits. To further define GABAAR etomidate binding sites, we now use [³H]TDBzl-etomidate, an aryl diazirine with broader amino acid side-chain reactivity than azietomidate, to photolabel purified human FLAG-α1β3 GABAARs and obtain a more extensive identification of photolabeled GABAAR amino acids. [³H]TDBzl-etomidate photolabeled in an etomidate-inhibitable manner β3Val-290, in the β3M3 transmembrane helix, as well as α1Met-236 in α1M1, a residue photolabeled by [³H]azietomidate, while no photolabeling was detected of amino acids in the αM2 or βM2 helices that also border the etomidate binding site. The location of these photolabeled amino acids in GABAAR homology models derived from the recently solved structures of prokaryote (GLIC) or invertebrate (GluCl) homologs and the results of computational docking studies predict the orientation of [³H]TDBzl-etomidate bound in that site and the other amino acids contributing to this GABAAR intersubunit etomidate binding site. Etomidate-inhibitable photolabeling of β3Met-227 in βM1 by [³H]TDBzl-etomidate and [³H]azietomidate also provides evidence of an homologous etomidate binding site at the β3-β3 subunit interface in the α1β3 GABAAR.