Pancreatic alpha-cells, like beta-cells, express ATP-sensitive K(+) (K(ATP)) channels. To determine the physiological role of K(ATP) channels in alpha-cells, we examined glucagon secretion in mice lacking the type 1 sulfonylurea receptor (Sur1). Plasma glucagon levels, which were increased in wild-type mice after an overnight fast, did not change in Sur1 null mice. Pancreas perfusion studies sh...

Hyperinsulinemic hypoglycaemia (HH) occurs due to an unregulated insulin production from the pancreatic b-cells in the presence of low blood glucose. Mutations in ABCC8 and KCNJ11 are associated with severe HH that is unresponsive to conventional medical treatment. The only treatment for patients with medically unresponsive diffuse HH is a subtotal pancreatectomy. However, following surgery, hy...

Potassium channel openers (KCOs; e.g., P1075, pinacidil) exert their effects on excitable cells by opening ATP-sensitive potassium channels. These channels are heteromultimers composed with a 4:4 stoichiometry of an inwardly rectifying K(+) channel subunit plus a regulatory subunit comprising the receptor sites for hypoglycemic sulfonylureas and KCOs (a sulfonylurea receptor). To elucidate stoi...

The ATP-sensitive K+ (KATP) channel is composed of a sulfonylurea receptor (SUR) and a pore-forming subunit, Kir6.2. SUR is an ATP-binding cassette (ABC) protein with two nucleotide-binding domains (NBD1 and NBD2). Intracellular ATP inhibits KATP channels through Kir6.2 and activates them through NBDs. However, it is still unknown how ATP-bound NBDs activate KATP channels. A prokaryotic ABC pro...