The influence of 8-prenylnaringenin on the activity of voltage-gated Kv1.3 potassium channels in human Jurkat T cells.

Using the whole-cell patch-clamp technique, we investigated the influence of 8-prenylnaringenin on the activity of the voltage-gated Kv1.3 potassium channels in the human leukemic T lymphocyte cell line Jurkat. 8-prenylnaringenin is a potent plant-derived phytoestrogen that has been found to inhibit cancer cell proliferation. The results show that it inhibited the Kv1.3 channels in a concentration-dependent manner. Complete inhibition occurred at concentrations higher than 10 μM. The inhibitory effect of 8-prenylnaringenin was reversible. It was accompanied by a significant acceleration of channel inactivation without any pronounced change in the activation rate. Of the naringenin derivatives tested to date, 8-prenylnaringenin is the most potent inhibitor of the Kv1.3 channels. The potency of the inhibition may be due to the presence of a prenyl group in the molecule of this flavonoid. The inhibition of the Kv1.3 channels might be involved in the antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic effects of 8-prenylnaringenin that have been observed in cancer cell lines expressing these channels.