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(Circulation Research. 2008;103:782.)
© 2008 American Heart Association, Inc.

Editorials

Simply the Best?

Identity of Vascular cGMP-Dependent Cl^– Current Revealed

Iain A. Greenwood

From the Division of Basic Medical Sciences, Ion Channels And Cell Signalling Research Centre, St George’s, University of London, United Kingdom.

Correspondence to Iain A. Greenwood, Division of Basic Medical Sciences, Ion Channels And Cell Signalling Research Centre, St George’s, University of London, London SW 17 0RE, United Kingdom. E-mail i.greenwood@sgul.ac.uk

See related article, pages 864–872

Key Words: bestrophin • vascular smooth muscle • Cl^– channel

An extract of the first 250 words of the full text is provided, because this article has no abstract.

Proteins encoded by best1 to -3 genes are implicated as molecular correlates of calcium-activated chloride channels in epithelia. In this issue of Circulation Research, Matchkov et al present compelling evidence that best-3 expression is essential for the generation of calcium-sensitive cGMP-dependent chloride channels in rat mesenteric artery.¹

Chloride channels are enigmatic beasts. Numerous phenotypes exist, as determined by their mode of activation, channel kinetics, and pore properties, but the molecular identity has only really been identified for the voltage-dependent Cl^– channels (CLCs) and the cAMP-dependent, cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator (CFTR) channels. For the other types of Cl^– channels, there is far less certainty about the molecular identity. Many candidates for the swelling-activated Cl^– channel have been promulgated that ultimately have been repudiated.² Similarly, the molecular identity of the Ca²⁺-gated Cl^– channel, common to vascular smooth muscle cells, secretory cells, and cardiomyocytes remains to be elucidated.³ In this issue of Circulation Research, Matchkov et al suggest that we can add 1 more Cl^– current to the list of identified species.¹ Perversely, the calcium-sensitive cGMP-dependent Cl current, which is the focus of the work by Matchkov et al, is among the newest additions to the Cl^– current family. This article completes a body of work by this group that begins and ends with Circulation Research. In 2001 Peng et al, proposed that the oscillatory contractile activity driven by membrane receptor agonists (vasomotion) in rat mesenteric arteries was generated by Cl^– current activation mediated by a rise in cGMP . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Related Article:

Bestrophin-3 (Vitelliform Macular Dystrophy 2–Like 3 Protein) Is Essential for the cGMP-Dependent Calcium-Activated Chloride Conductance in Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells

Vladimir V. Matchkov, Per Larsen, Elena V. Bouzinova, Aleksandra Rojek, Donna M. Briggs Boedtkjer, Veronika Golubinskaya, Finn Skou Pedersen, Christian Aalkjær, and Holger Nilsson
Circ. Res. 2008 103: 864-872. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]