Double Ion Trap Laser Spectroscopy of Alkali Metal Ion Complexes with a Partial Peptide of the Selectivity Filter in K+ Channels-Temperature Effect and Barrier for Conformational Conversions

Potassium ion channels selectively permeate K+, as well as Rb+ and Cs+ to some degree, while excluding Na+ and Li+. Conformations of alkali metal complexes of Ac-Tyr-NHMe, a model peptide of the selectivity filter in a K+ channel, were previously found to correlate with the permeability of alkali metal ions to a K+ channel by cold ion trap infrared spectroscopy. With an additional temperature-controlled ion trap, we examined the conformations of the alkali metal complexes, allowing the ions to collide with a He buffer gas at different temperatures, prior to spectroscopic investigation. The conformational distribution of the K+ - peptide complex shows the most significant variation with temperature, which suggests that this complex has more flexibility when complexed with K+ and suggests lower barrier heights than other metal-peptide complexes. The variability of the conformational distribution with temperature for the ions follows the same order of ion permeability of a K+ channel. This work demonstrates that the additional temperature-controlled ion trap is a powerful tool to explore the conformational landscape of flexible molecular systems.

Automated summary

The conformation of the K+ - peptide complex shows significant variation with temperature, indicating greater flexibility and lower barrier heights when complexed with K+ compared to other metal-peptide complexes. The variability of the conformational distribution with temperature for the ions follows the same order of ion permeability of a K+ channel. This study highlights the power of using an additional temperature-controlled ion trap to explore the conformational landscape of flexible molecular systems.