Multifaceted Regulation of Potassium-Ion Channels by Graphene Quantum Dots

Graphene quantum dots (GQDs) are emerging as a versatile nanomaterial with numerous proposed biomedical applications. Despite the explosion in potential applications, the molecular interactions between GQDs and complex biomolecular systems, including potassium-ion (K+) channels, remain largely unknown. Here, we use molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and electrophysiology to study the interactions between GQDs and three representative K+ channels, which participate in a variety of physiological processes and are closely related to many disease states. Using MD simulations, we observed that GQDs adopt distinct contact poses with each of the three structurally distinct K+ channels. Our electrophysiological characterization of the effects of GQDs on channel currents revealed that GQDs interact with the extracellular voltage-sensing domain (VSD) of a Kv1.2 channel, augmenting current by left-shifting the voltage dependence of channel activation. In contrast, GQDs form a “lid” cluster over the extracellular mouth of inward rectifier Kir3.2, blocking the channel pore and decreasing the current in a concentration-dependent manner. Meanwhile, GQDs accumulate on the extracellular “cap domain” of K2P2 channels and have no apparent impact on the K+ flux through the channel. These results reveal a surprising multifaceted regulation of K+ channels by GQDs, which might help de novo design of nanomaterial-based channel probe openers/inhibitors that can be used to further discern channel function.