Recent Advances in the Structural Biology of Mg2+Channels and Transporters

Magnesium ions (Mg2+) are the most abundant divalent cations in living organisms and are essential for various physiological processes, including ATP utilization and the catalytic activity of numerous enzymes. Therefore, the homeostatic mechanisms associated with cellular Mg2+ are crucial for both eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms and are thus strictly controlled by Mg2+ channels and transporters. Technological advances in structural biology, such as the expression screening of membrane proteins, in meso phase crystallization, and recent cryo-EM techniques, have enabled the structure determination of numerous Mg2+ channels and transporters. In this review article, we provide an overview of the families of Mg2+ channels and transporters (MgtE/SLC41, TRPM6/7, CorA/Mrs2, CorC/CNNM), and discuss the structural biology prospects based on the known structures of MgtE, TRPM7, CorA and CorC. (C) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Automated summary

Magnesium ions play vital roles in various physiological processes and their homeostasis is tightly regulated by channels and transporters. This review provides an overview of magnesium ion channels and transporters and discusses the prospects of structural biology in this field.