The voltage-gated Kv1.5 potassium channel, conducting the ultra-rapid rectifier K(+) current (IKur), is regulated through several pathways. Here we investigate if Kv1.5 surface expression is controlled by the 2 kinases PKC and AMPK, using Xenopus oocytes, MDCK cells and atrial derived HL-1 cells. By confocal microscopy combined with electrophysiology we demonstrate that PKC activation reduces Kv1.5 current, through a decrease in membrane expressed channels. AMPK activation was found to decrease the membrane expression in MDCK cells, but not in HL-1 cells and was furthermore shown to be dependent on co-expression of Nedd4-2 in Xenopus oocytes. These results indicate that Kv1.5 channels are regulated by both kinases, although through different molecular mechanisms in different cell systems.

Epithelial cell polarization involves several kinase signaling cascades that eventually divide the surface membrane into an apical and a basolateral part. One kinase, which is activated during the polarization process, is phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K). In MDCK cells, the basolateral potassium channel Kv7.1 requires PI3K activity for surface-expression during the polarization process. Here, we demonstrate that Kv7.1 surface expression requires tonic PI3K activity as PI3K inhibition triggers endocytosis of these channels in polarized MDCK. Pharmacological inhibition of SGK1 gave similar results as PI3K inhibition, whereas overexpression of constitutively active SGK1 overruled it, suggesting that SGK1 is the primary downstream target of PI3K in this process. Furthermore, knockdown of the ubiquitin ligase Nedd4-2 overruled PI3K inhibition, whereas a Nedd4-2 interaction-deficient Kv7.1 mutant was resistant to both PI3K and SGK1 inhibition. Altogether, these data suggest that a PI3K-SGK1 pathway stabilizes Kv7.1 surface expression by inhibiting Nedd4-2-dependent endocytosis and thereby demonstrates that Nedd4-2 is a key regulator of Kv7.1 localization and turnover in epithelial cells.