Voltage-Gated Sodium Channel Pharmacology: Insights From Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Abstract

Voltage-gated ion channels are the target of a range of naturally occurring toxins and therapeutic drugs. There is a great interest in better understanding how these diverse compounds alter channel function in order to design the next generation of therapeutics that can selectively target one of the channel subtypes found in the body. Since the publication of a number of bacterial sodium channel structures, molecular dynamics simulations have been invaluable in gaining a high resolution understanding where many of these small molecules and toxins bind to the channels, how they find their binding site, and how they can selectively bind to one channel subtype over another. This chapter summarizes these recent studies to highlight what has been learnt about channel pharmacology using computer simulations and to draw out shared conclusions, focusing separately on toxin–channel interactions and small molecule–channel interactions.