Background and purpose: Thymol, a major component of thyme and oregano, has medical uses in oral care products as an astringent and antibiotic. Its distinctive sharp odour and pungent flavour are considered aversive properties. The molecular basis of these aversive properties is not well understood. Experimental approach: The ability of thymol to activate human transient receptor potential channel A1 (hTRPA1) expressed in stably transfected human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) cells was measured by membrane potential and calcium-sensitive dyes in a fluorescence-imaging plate reader (FLIPR) assay. Direct activation of hTRPA1 currents was measured by whole-cell voltage clamp recording. Intracellular calcium changes were measured using fura-2 dye. The FLIPR assay was also used to measure membrane potential changes elicited by thymol after pretreatment with camphor, a known TRPA1 inhibitor. The ability of related alkyl phenols to activate hTRPA1 was also determined. Key results: Thymol potently activated a membrane potential response and intracellular calcium increase in hTRPA1-expressing HEK293 cells in a concentration-dependent manner. Activation by thymol desensitized hTRPA1 to further exposure to thymol or the known ligand allyl isothiocyanate (AITC). The related phenols 2-tert-butyl-5-methylphenol, 2,6-diisopropylphenol (propofol) and carvacrol also activated hTRPA1. Phenols with less bulky carbon substitutions and lower logP values were less potent in general. The response to thymol was blocked by camphor. Conclusions and implications: These results suggest a role for hTRPA1 activation in the reported pungent and aversive properties of some of these pharmaceutically important phenols.

The SLC12A6 gene encoding the K(+)-Cl(-) cotransporter KCC3 is expressed in multiple tissues, including kidney. Here, we report the molecular characterization of several NH(2)-terminal isoforms of human and mouse KCC3, along with intrarenal localization and functional characterization in Xenopus laevis oocytes. Two major isoforms, KCC3a and KCC3b, are generated by transcriptional initiation 5' of two distinct first coding exons. Northern blot analysis of mouse tissues indicates that KCC3b expression is particularly robust in the kidney, which also expresses KCC3a. Western blotting of mouse tissue using an exon 3-specific antibody reveals that the kidney is also unique in expressing immunoreactive protein of a lower mass, suggestive evidence that the shorter KCC3b protein predominates in kidney. Immunofluorescence reveals basolateral expression of KCC3 protein along the entire length of the proximal tubule, in both the mouse and rat. Removal of the 15-residue exon 2 by alternative splicing generates the KCC3a-x2M and KCC3b-x2M isoforms; other splicing events at an alternative acceptor site within exon 1a generate the KCC3a-S isoform, which is 60 residues shorter than KCC3a. This variation in sequence of NH(2)-terminal cytoplasmic domains occurs proximal to a stretch of highly conserved residues and affects the content of putative phosphorylation sites. Kinetic characterization of KCC3a in X. laevis oocytes reveals apparent K(m)s for Rb(+) and Cl(-) of 10.7 +/- 2.5 and 7.3 +/- 1.2 mM, respectively, with an anion selectivity of Br(-) > Cl(-) > PO(4) = I(-) = SCN(-) = gluconate. All five NH(2)-terminal isoforms are activated by cell swelling (hypotonic conditions), with no activity under isotonic conditions. Although the isoforms do not differ in the osmotic set point of swelling activation, this activation is more rapid for the KCC3a-x2M and KCC3a-S proteins. In summary, there is significant NH(2)-terminal heterogeneity of KCC3, with particularly robust expression of KCC3b in the kidney. Basolateral swelling-activated K(+)-Cl(-) cotransport mediated by KCC3 likely functions in cell volume regulation during the transepithelial transport of both salt and solutes by the proximal tubule.

Transient receptor potential melastatin-5 (TRPM5) is a calcium-gated monovalent cation channel expressed in highly specialized cells of the taste bud and gastrointestinal tract, as well as in pancreatic β-cells. Well established as a critical signaling protein for G protein-coupled receptor-mediated taste pathways, TRPM5 also has recently been implicated as a regulator of incretin and insulin secretion. To date, no inhibitors of practical use have been described that could facilitate investigation of TRPM5 functions in taste or secretion of metabolic hormones. Using recombinant TRPM5-expressing cells in a fluorescence imaging plate reader-based membrane potential assay, we identified triphenylphosphine oxide (TPPO) as a selective and potent inhibitor of TRPM5. TPPO inhibited both human (IC₅₀ = 12 μM) and murine TRPM5 (IC₅₀ = 30 μM) heterologously expressed in HEK293 cells, but had no effect (up to 100 μM) on the membrane potential responses of TRPA1, TRPV1, or TRPM4b. TPPO also inhibited a calcium-gated TRPM5-dependent conductance in taste cells isolated from the tongues of transgenic TRPM5(+/)⁻ mice. In contrast, TPP had no effect on TRPM5 responses, indicating a strict requirement of the oxygen atom for activity. Sixteen additional TPPO derivatives also inhibited TRPM5 but none more potently than TPPO. Structure-activity relationship of tested compounds was used for molecular modeling-based analysis to clarify the positive and negative structural contributions to the potency of TPPO and its derivatives. TPPO is the most potent TRPM5 inhibitor described to date and is the first demonstrated to exhibit selectivity over other channels.

Neurotrophin activation of Trk receptors elicits diverse effects on neuronal survival, differentiation, and synaptic plasticity. One of the central questions is how specificity is encoded in neurotrophin receptor signaling and actions. A unique downstream protein is the Ankyrin-Repeat Rich Membrane Spanning (ARMS)/Kinase D-interacting substrate-220 kDa (Kidins220), a very abundant scaffold protein in the hippocampus. To determine the roles of ARMS/Kidins220 in hippocampal neurons, we have analyzed the effects of synaptic activity upon the regulation and distribution of ARMS/Kidins220. At early times in vitro (<7 DIV), synaptic activity was low and ARMS/Kidins220 levels were high. As synaptic activity and markers for synapse maturation, such as PSD-95, increased, ARMS/Kidins220 significantly decreased to a plateau by later times in vitro (>12 DIV). Immunocytochemistry showed ARMS/Kidins220 to be concentrated at the tips of growing processes in immature cultures, and more diffusely distributed in older cultures. To examine the apparent inverse relationship between activity and ARMS/Kidins220 levels, neuronal firing was manipulated pharmacologically. Chronic exposure to TTX increased ARMS/Kidins220 levels, whereas bicuculline caused the opposite effect. Moreover, using shRNA to decrease ARMS/Kidins220 levels produced a corresponding increase in synaptic activity. We find that ARMS/Kidins220 may function in neuronal development as an indicator and potentially as a homeostatic regulator of overall synaptic strength in hippocampal neurons.