ArticleNature2009
Crystal structure of a bacterial homologue of the kidney urea transporter.
Article in Nature, 2009. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 71 papers.
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Who cites it
71 citing papers in PubMed, 123 citations in OpenAlex.
- The SLC-ome of membrane transport: from molecular discovery to physiology and clinical applications.Physiological reviews · 2026Review
- Hotspot pocket-based discovery of urea transporter selective inhibitors.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Metabolic Origin, Role and Fate of the Denaturant Guanidine.Microbial biotechnology · 2025Article
- Structural characterization of the urea transporter bound to the orally bioavailable inhibitor E3.Acta pharmacologica Sinica · 2025Article
- Urease promotes pH homeostasis and growth ofJournal of bacteriology · 2025Article
- Ammonia transport mediated by urea transporter A isoforms.Biology open · 2025Article
- Comparative genome analysis reveals broad phylogenetic and functional diversity within the order Nitrospirales.The ISME journal · 2025Article
- Acid tolerance and metabolic potential of comammox and nitrite-oxidizingISME communications · 2025Article
- Urea Transport Mediated by Membrane Proteins of Non-urea-Transporters.Sub-cellular biochemistry · 2025Review
- Transport Characteristics of Urea Transporters.Sub-cellular biochemistry · 2025Review
- Protein Structures of Urea Transporters.Sub-cellular biochemistry · 2025Review
- Structural insights into the mechanisms of urea permeation and distinct inhibition modes of urea transporters.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Cultivation and genomic characterization of novel and ubiquitous marine nitrite-oxidizing bacteria from the Nitrospirales.The ISME journal · 2023Article
- Structural characterization of human urea transporters UT-A and UT-B and their inhibition.Science advances · 2023Article
- Non-Aquaporin Water Channels.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2023Article
- Genomic insight into strategy, interaction and evolution of nitrifiers in metabolizing key labile-dissolved organic nitrogen in different environmental niches.Frontiers in microbiology · 2023Article
- Substrate Recognition Properties from an Intermediate Structural State of the UreA Transporter.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Article
- Purification and structural characterization of the NaNature communications · 2022Article
- Article
- A critical analysis of urea transporter B inhibitors: molecular fingerprints, pharmacophore features for the development of next-generation diuretics.Molecular diversity · 2022Article
11 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Urea is highly concentrated in the mammalian kidney to produce the osmotic gradient necessary for water re-absorption. Free diffusion of urea across cell membranes is slow owing to its high polarity, and specialized urea transporters have evolved to achieve rapid and selective urea permeation. Here we present the 2.3 A structure of a functional urea transporter from the bacterium Desulfovibrio vulgaris. The transporter is a homotrimer, and each subunit contains a continuous membrane-spanning pore formed by the two homologous halves of the protein. The pore contains a constricted selectivity filter that can accommodate several dehydrated urea molecules in single file. Backbone and side-chain oxygen atoms provide continuous coordination of urea as it progresses through the filter, and well-placed alpha-helix dipoles provide further compensation for dehydration energy. These results establish that the urea transporter operates by a channel-like mechanism and reveal the physical and chemical basis of urea selectivity.
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