The history and current situation of cell membrane ion-channel gating mechanism study were reviewed, with an emphasis on the application and the latest developments of kinetic model in gating mechanism study; the problems in present study and ion-channel gating mechanism kinetics model for future investigations were finally discussed.
Cell Membrane ; physiology ; Humans ; Ion Channel Gating ; Kinetics ; Models, Biological ; Research ; trends

The gating mechanical kinetical of ion channels has been modeled as a Markov process. In these models it is assumed that the channel protein has a small number of discrete conformational states and kinetic rate constants connecting these states are constant, the transition rate constants among the states is independent both of time and of the previous channel activity. It is assumed in Liebovitch's fractal model that the channel exists in an infinite number of energy states, consequently, transitions from one conductance state to another would be governed by a continuum of rate constants. In this paper, a statistical comparison is presented of Markov and fractal models of ion channel gating, the analysis is based on single-channel data from ion channel voltage-dependence K+ single channel of neuron cell and simulation data from three-states Markov model.
Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Computer Simulation ; Electrophysiology ; Female ; Fractals ; Ion Channel Gating ; physiology ; Male ; Markov Chains ; Models, Biological ; Neurons ; physiology ; Patch-Clamp Techniques ; Potassium Channels ; physiology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley