Three in a row-how sodium ions cross the channel.

Sodium channels are central to a host of fundamental cellular processes, including sensory perception, pain, and muscle contraction. In order to understand any of these processes in detail, it is necessary to know the atomic structure of the channel proteins both with and without bound sodium ions. In this issue, Naylor et al (2016) present the structure of a bacterial sodium channel tetramer. The three bound, partially hydrated sodium ions line up neatly in a row inside the selectivity filter, providing us with the first detailed insights into ion conduction in sodium channels, and the mechanisms by which sodium and potassium ions are discriminated.