insertion of proteins. For the integration of proteins into the membrane, the Sec61 translocon
opens laterally to the lipid bilayer. Previous studies suggest that the lateral opening of the
channel is mediated by the helices TM2b and TM7 of a pore-forming subunit of the Sec61
translocon. To map key residues in TM2b and TM7 in yeast Sec61 that modulate lateral
gating activity, we performed alanine scanning and in vivo site-directed photocross-linking …