Diverse functions of the inward-rectifying potassium channel Kir5.1 and its relationship with human diseases

Chaojie Zhang; Jia Guo

doi:10.3389/fphys.2023.1127893

Diverse functions of the inward-rectifying potassium channel Kir5.1 and its relationship with human diseases

Front Physiol. 2023 Feb 27:14:1127893. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1127893. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Chaojie Zhang^{1

2

3

4}, Jia Guo^{1

2

3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Nephrology Research Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China.
² Institute of Nephrology, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China.
³ Henan Province Research Center for Kidney Disease, Zhengzhou, China.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Precision Diagnosis and Treatment for Chronic Kidney Disease in Henan Province, Zhengzhou, China.

Abstract

The inward-rectifying potassium channel subunit Kir5.1, encoded by Kcnj16, can form functional heteromeric channels (Kir4.1/5.1 and Kir4.2/5.1) with Kir4.1 (encoded by Kcnj10) or Kir4.2 (encoded by Kcnj15). It is expressed in the kidneys, pancreas, thyroid, brain, and other organs. Although Kir5.1 cannot form functional homomeric channels in most cases, an increasing number of studies in recent years have found that the functions of this subunit should not be underestimated. Kir5.1 can confer intracellular pH sensitivity to Kir4.1/5.1 channels, which can act as extracellular potassium sensors in the renal distal convoluted tubule segment. This segment plays an important role in maintaining potassium and acid-base balances. This review summarizes the various pathophysiological processes involved in Kir5.1 and the expression changes of Kir5.1 as a differentially expressed gene in various cancers, as well as describing several other disease phenotypes caused by Kir5.1 dysfunction.

Keywords: Kir5.1; cancer; deafness; potassium channel; respiration.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 1 to JG), and the Science and Technology Research Project of Henan Province (grant numbers YXKC2021034, SBGJ202102148, and ZYQR201912174 to JG).