Potassium voltage-gated channel subfamily B member 2 (KCNB2)

Potassium voltage-gated channel subfamily B member 2 (KCNB2, also known as Kv2.2) is a voltage-gated potassium channel found primarily in the brain and smooth muscle cells. As a delayed rectifier potassium channel, KCNB2 mediates outward potassium currents that activate rapidly and inactivate slowly in response to membrane depolarization, thus regulating membrane potential and neuronal excitability. It forms homotetrameric or heterotetrameric channels composed of different alpha subunits (such as with KCNB1), contributing to a variety of potassium currents in excitable tissues. KCNB2 is implicated in neurological diseases such as epilepsy, schizophrenia, and cognitive disorders, as well as disorders of smooth muscle contractility and potentially cardiac arrhythmias. Drugs such as stromatoxin-1, resveratrol, citalopram, tetraethylammonium, 4-aminopyridine, and quinine can modulate Kv2.2 function by inhibiting potassium conductance. Variants in the KCNB2 gene may serve as disease risk factors or therapeutic targets in neurology and cardiology.

Other names

Kv2.2Voltage-gated potassium channel subunit Kv2.2Delayed rectifier potassium channel proteinPotassium channel Kv2.2Potassium channel, voltage gated Shab related subfamily B, member 2Potassium voltage-gated channel, Shab-related subfamily, member 2

Blockade or inhibition of potassium conductance through channel, modulation of channel activation/inactivation kinetics; these mechanisms alter membrane potential and cellular excitability