Impedance of the electrogenic Cl(-) pump inAcetabularia: Electrical frequency entrainements, voltage-sensitivity, and reaction kinetic interpretation

Fast, triangular voltage clamp for recording and kinetic analysis of an ion transporter expressed in Xenopus oocytes

We present a procedure for determination of 11 system parameters of an ion transporter expressed in Xenopus oocytes. The experiments consist of fast triangular voltage-clamp experiments in the presence and absence of external substrate. A four-state enzymatic cycle operating between an external and an internal section of electrodiffusion is used for analysis. The explicit example treats experiments with the fungal 2H+-NO3- symporter EnNRT, a member of the major superfamily transporters. The results comprise a density of approximately 150 fmol functional transporter molecules per oocyte, a gross charge number z(E) approximately -0.3 of the empty binding site of the enzyme, individual rate constants for reorientation of the empty and occupied binding site in the range of 5-500 s(-1), electrical access sections between bulk solutions and reaction cycle of approximately 3% inside and 15% outside, an increase of internal NO3- at the plasma membrane from approximately 0.5 to approximately 2 mM during exposure to external NO3-, and K(D) approximately 0.3 microM3 inside and K(D) approximately 3 microM3 outside in binding the triplicate substrate (2H+ +NO3-). The results compare well with the known structure of the lactose permease, another major superfamily transporter.

Current-voltage-time records of ion translocating enzymes

Membrane currents, as non-linear functions of membrane voltage, V, and time, t, can be recorded quickly by triangular V protocols. From the differences, d I(V, t), of these relationships upon addition of a putative substrate of a charge-translocating membrane protein, the I(V, t) relationships of the transporter itself can be determined. These relationships likely comprise a steady-state component, I(a)(V), of the active transporter, and a dynamic component, p(a)(V, t), of its V- and time-dependent activity, p(a). Here, the steady-state component is modeled by a central reaction cycle, which senses a fraction delta(tr) of the total V, whereas 1-delta(tr) can be assigned to an inner and outer pore section with delta(i) and delta(o), respectively (delta(i)+delta(tr)+delta(o) = 1). For the enzymatic cycle, fast binding/debinding is assumed, plus V-sensitive and -insensitive reaction steps which may become rate limiting for charge translocation. At given substrate concentrations, I(a)(V) is defined by eight independent system parameters, including a coefficient for the barrier shape of charge translocation. In ordinary cases, the behavior of p(a)(V, t) can be described by two rate constants (for activation and inactivation) and their respective V-sensitivity coefficients. Here, the effects of the individual system parameters on I(V, t) from triangular V-clamp experiments are investigated systematically. The results are illustrated by panels of typical curve shapes for non-gated and gated transporters to enable a first classification of mechanisms. We demonstrate that all system parameters can be determined fairly well by fitting the model to "experimental" data of known origin. Applicability of the model to channels, pumps and cotransporters is discussed.

The primary structure of the Cl(-)-translocating ATPase, b subunit of Acetabularia acetabulum, which belongs to the F-type ATPase family

The genes possibly encoding the b subunit (50 kDa) of the Cl(-)-translocating ATPase of Acetabularia acetabulum were cloned from total RNA and from poly(A)+ RNA and sequenced. The deduced amino acid sequence of the open reading frame consisted of 478 amino acids and showed high similarity to the beta subunit of chloroplast F1-ATPase. Gene fragments encoding the putative beta subunit of chloroplast F1- (273 bp) and mitochondrial F1-ATPases (332 bp) were also cloned from A. acetabulum and sequenced, respectively. The deduced amino acid sequence of the chloroplast F1-ATPase showed 92.5% identity to be primary structure of the b subunit of the Cl(-)-translocating ATPase, while the nucleotide sequences were 79.9% identical. The deduced amino acid sequence of the latter was 77.3% identical to that of the b subunit of the Cl(-)-translocating ATPase and the nucleotide sequences were 67.5% identical. By Northern analysis, these three beta-like genes were demonstrated to be transcribed with different sizes of RNA species. A putative chloroplast F1-beta fragment also hybridized with chloroplast DNA isolated from the organism.

Effects of light and inhibitors of ATP-synthesis on the chloride carrier of the alga Valonia utricularis: is the carrier a chloride pump?

The effect of metabolic inhibitors, such as cyanide, antimycin A and azide was studied on the chloride transport system of the giant marine alga Valonia utricularis by using the charge pulse relaxation method. Two clearly defined voltage relaxations were resolved. The addition of 10-30 microM cyanide to the artificial sea water (ASW) bathing the algal cells increased the time constants of the slow voltage relaxation, tau 2, significantly when the algal cells were kept in the dark. The cyanide-effect reached a plateau value at 100-300 microM and was fully reversible when cyanide was removed from the ASW. Analysis of the charge pulse data in terms of the Läuger-model demonstrated that the translocation rates of the free, kS, and the charged carrier, kAS, decreased. The decrease of kS was more pronounced than that of kAS. 10 microM antimycin A and 3 mM azide had similar effects on the rate constants when the light was switched off. Upon illumination the cyanide- and antimycin A-, but not the azide-mediated effects disappeared. At concentrations higher than 1 mM cyanide caused a further, dramatic decrease of kS and kAS, while the surface concentration of the carrier molecules, N0, was not affected. This cyanide-effect was also reversible, but not light-dependent. Measurements of the ATP level showed that 3 mM cyanide reduced the ATP level by about 70% both under light and dark conditions. In the presence of 30 microM cyanide (or 10 microM antimycin A) the ATP level decreased by about 50%, but only in the dark. These results suggest two different effects of cyanide on the Cl(-)-carrier system: in the micromolar concentration range cyanide (and antimycin A) reduced predominantly the translocation of the free carrier by inhibition of ATP synthesis by oxidative phosphorylation, whereas in the millimolar concentration range cyanide apparently inhibits the translocation rates of both the free and charged carriers by its binding to the carrier. The results provide some evidence that the chloride transport of V. utricularis could be coupled to metabolic energy but it is an open question whether it is a pump or not.

Characterization of the chloride carrier in the plasmalemma of the alga Valonia utricularis: the inhibition by 4,4'-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid

The effect of the anion transport inhibitor 4,4'-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (DIDS) on the Cl(-)-transport system located in the plasmalemma of cells of the giant marine alga Valonia utricularis was studied by using the charge pulse relaxation technique. Analysis of the biphasic relaxation patterns in terms of the kinetic model published previously (Wang, J., Wehner, G., Benz, R. and Zimmermann, U. (1991) Biophys. J. 59, 235-248) demonstrated that extracellular DIDS dramatically reduced the translocation rate, KAS, of the Cl(-)-carrier complex (maximal inhibition 79%). The translocation rate of the free carrier molecules, KS, as well as the total surface concentration of the carrier, No, were not affected. A Hill-plot of DIDS inhibition on KAS yielded an half-maximal inhibition concentration (IC50) of 3.9 x 10(-5) M and Hill-coefficient of 1.61, suggesting a co-operative binding of the inhibitors to the Cl(-)-carrier. The maximal inhibition of DIDS was dependent on the extracellular Cl(-)-concentration. This inhibition was not competitive to chloride, since it increased and did not decrease with increasing chloride concentration. The DIDS effect decreased with increasing pH-value (investigated pH range between 6.5 and 10). Intravascular DIDS or SITS (4-acetamido-4'-isothiocyanatostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid) had no effect on the biphasic voltage relaxation pattern. These results showed that the binding sites of DIDS must be located on the outer surface of the plasmalemma of V. utricularis and, in turn, supported previous conclusions that the Cl(-)-carrier (which is assumed to be part of the turgor-pressure-sensing mechanism) is only located in the outer membrane.

Improvement of reconstitution of the Cl(-)-translocating ATPase isolated from Acetabularia acetabulum into liposomes and several anion pump characteristics

The improved reconstitution of the Mono Q-III fraction, a Cl(-)-translocating ATPase, isolated from Acetabularia acetabulum (Ikeda et al. (1990) Biochemistry 29, 2057-2065) into liposomes rendered transport properties of this enzyme clear. The liposomes were prepared by the reversed-phase method using egg lecithin and cholesterol in a molar ratio of 2:1 and the purified ATPase was incorporated into the liposomes by a dialysis for 3 h. About 80% of the ATPase was incorporated into the liposomes. The weight ratio of the enzyme to lipid was 1:400-600. A sigmoid curve was obtained when the Cl(-)-transport activity of the enzyme was plotted against Cl- concentration. Hill's plot afforded a half-substrate concentration [S]0.5 of 45 mM and a Hill's coefficient n of 2.33. Effects of Br- and F- on the Cl(-)-transport were also examined in the reconstituted system, both halide ions decreased the 36Cl- efflux significantly. These kinetic data are in good agreement with the electrophysiological data presented by Tittor et al. ((1983) J. Membr. Biol. 75, 129-139).

Action potentials in Acetabularia: measurement and simulation of voltage-gated fluxes

Amounts and temporal changes of the release of the tracer ions K+ (86Rb+), 22Na+, and 36Cl- as well as of H+ in the course of action potentials in Acetabularia have been recorded. New results and model calculations confirm in quantitative terms the involvement of three major ion transport systems X in the plasmalemma: Cl- pumps, K+ channels, and Cl- channels (which are marked in the following by the prefixes, P, K and C) with their equilibrium voltages XVe and voltage/time-dependent conductances, which can be described by the following, first approximation. Let the maximum (ohmic) conductance of each of the three populations of transporter species be about the same (pL, KL, CL = 1) but voltage gating be different: the pump (pVe about -200 mV) being inactivated (open, o----closed, c) at positive going transmembrane voltages, Vm; the K+ channels (KVe about -100 mV) are inactivated at negative going Vm; and the Cl- channels (CVe: around 0 mV), which are normally closed (c) at a resting Vm (near pVe) go through an intermediate open (o) state at more positive Vm before they enter a third "shut" state (s) in series. Model calculations, in which voltage sensitivities are expressed by the factor f = exp(VmF/(2RT], simulate the action potential fairly well with the following parameters (pkco: 10/fks-1, pkoc: 1000.f ks-1, Kkco: 200.f ks-1, Kkoc: 2/f ks-1, ckco: 500.f ks-1, fkoc: 5/f ks-1, Cks0: 0.1/f ks-1,Ckos: 20.f ks-1). It is also shown that the charge balance for the huge transient Cl- efflux, which frequently occurs during an action potential, can be accounted for by the observation of a corresponding release of Na+.

A Cl(-)-translocating adenosinetriphosphatase in Acetabularia acetabulum. 2. Reconstitution of the enzyme into liposomes and effect of net charges of liposomes on chloride permeability and reconstitution

The Mono Q-III fraction, a Mg2(+)-ATPase, isolated from Acetabularia acetabulum was reconstituted into liposomes of various net charges prepared by the reversed-phase method and tested for a Cl(-)-translocating activity. The liposomes from a mixture of egg lecithin, dicetyl phosphate, and cholesterol (63:18:9 mole ratio, negative liposomes) and from a mixture of egg lecithin and cholesterol (63:9 mole ratio, neutral liposomes) were less leaky than positive liposomes from asolectin, and from a mixture of egg lecithin, stearylamine, and cholesterol (63:18:9 mole ratio). A significant increase in 36Cl- efflux from the negative and neutral liposomes was observed by addition of ATP in the presence of valinomycin after incorporation of the enzyme by short-term dialysis. The ATP-driven 36Cl- efflux was inhibited by addition of azide, an inhibitor of the ATPase. The preincubation of the enzyme with phenylglyoxal, an arginine-modifying reagent, inactivated ATP-mediated 36Cl- efflux, but the ATPase activity of the preparation was not affected. When chloride was replaced by 35SO4(2)-, no ATP-dependent 35SO4(2)- efflux was detectable from the proteoliposomes. Proton-translocating activity of the enzyme was also tested, and no fluorescent quenching of 9-ACMA was observed.

A Cl(-)-translocating adenosinetriphosphatase in Acetabularia acetabulum. 1. Purification and characterization of a novel type of adenosinetriphosphatase that differs from chloroplast F1 adenosinetriphosphatase

ATPases were solubilized from membranes of Acetabularia acetabulum using nonanoyl-N-methylgluconamide and purified by ion-exchange and gel permeation chromatography. Three fractions of ATPase, Mono Q-I, -II, and -III, were separated. Activity in fraction Mono Q-I was very labile and could not be accurately determined. Fractions Mono Q-II and -III had specific activities of 0.6 and 6 units/mg of protein, respectively. By SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, isoelectric focusing, and peptide mapping, it was shown that fractions Mono Q-II and -III consisted of the same polypeptides with molecular masses of 54K (a-subunit) and 50K (b-subunit). Fractions Mono Q-II and -III had the following catalytic properties: pH optimum at 6.0; substrate specificity, ATP = GTP = ITP much greater than UTP = CTP (Km for ATP 0.6 mM); divalent cation requirement, Mn2+ = Mg2+ greater than Co2+ greater than Zn2+ much greater than Ca2+, Ni2+. Both activities were inhibited by monovalent anions, while monovalent cations had neither inhibitory nor stimulatory effects. Orthovanadate inhibited both activities to 50% at 1 mM, and the most effective inhibitor of both was azide (95% inhibition at 100 microM). An enzyme-phosphate complex was formed after incubation of fraction Mono Q-III with [gamma-32P]ATP. The CF1-ATPase subcomplexes were isolated from the same organism and compared with the fraction Mono Q-III. Data supported the difference of fraction Mono Q-III from CF1-ATPase.

Mobile charges in the cell membranes ofHalicystis parvula

Charge-pulse experiments were performed on cells of the giant marine algaHalicystis parvula. At normal pH (8.2), the voltage decay following a charge-pulse of 500 ns duration fed to the vacuole could be described by summing two exponential relaxations. The amplitudes and time constants of these relaxations were widely separated. The parameters of the two relaxation processes were found to be pH-dependent. Reduction of the external pH value from pH 8.2 to 5 resulted in a complete change of the two relaxation processes within a few minutes. Only one relaxation process could be observed at pH 5, within the time resolution of our instrumentation. The experimental data could not be explained by a two-membrane model with reasonable values for the specific capacitances of tonoplast and plasmalemma. The results of the charge-pulse relaxations were found to be consistent with the assumption that both membranes have very similar electrical properties and that both contain mobile charges with a total surface concentration of about 30 nmol·m(-2) and a translocation-rate constant of about 500·s(-1). The mobile charges became neutralized at pH 5 hhich led to a decrease of the apparent specific capacitance of the algal cells. They are presumably either part of a transport system for cations or connected with the chloride pump ofHalicystis parvula.

Potassium channels in Eremosphaera viridis : II. Current- and voltage-clamp experiments

To characterize the assumed potassium channels in the plasma membrane of the green alga Eremosphaera viridis (Köhler et al. 1985), current-voltage (I/V)-curves under resting conditions and during an action-potential-like response (CAP) were constructed using voltage- and current-clamp techniques. Under resting conditions the I/V-curves of Eremosphaera showed a distinct upward bending when approaching zero mV, a nearly straight line in the medium part and a downward bending during strong hyperpolarization. Measurements in light and darkness frequently displayed a parallel shift of the I/V-curve in the middle part, indicating a current source which is slowed down by light-off. Using the voltage-clamp technique, N-shaped I/V-curves were sometimes observed. The potassium concentration outside influenced the downward-bending part of the I/V-curve whereas the tetraethylammonium cation, known to block potassium channels, reduced the upward-bending part in particular. A change in external pH, either to pH 7 or pH 3.1 from a standard pH 5.5, caused an increase in conductivity. Chemically induced action potentials were released in Eremosphaera under voltage-clamp conditions by light-off and there was both a current flow and an increase in conductivity during the CAP. Clamping the membrane potential at a value more negative than Nernst potential of potassium revealed an inward current, whereas clamping at a more-positive value revealed an outward current. The experiments demonstrate that there is no threshold potential in releasing a CAP. The I/V-curves performed under current clamp at the peak of CAP verify a previously found increased conductivity with hyper- or depolarization depending on the external potassium concentration. These experiments provide further evidence that in Eremosphaera potassium channels are involved in the CAP caused by a light-off signal. Additional experiments indicate that after light-off a transient acidification of the cytoplasm takes place in correlation with the CAP and the opening of potassium channels. A preliminary "battery model" is discussed to understand the role of potassium channels during a CAP in pH-regulation of the cytoplasm.

Voltage dependence of Na channel blockage by amiloride: relaxation effects in admittance spectra

Amiloride, present in the mucosal solution, causes the appearance of a distinct additional dispersion in the admittance spectrum of the apical membrane of toad urinary bladder. The parameters of this dispersion (characteristic frequency, amplitude) change with amiloride concentration and with membrane voltage. They allow the calculation of the overall rate constants for Na channel blockage by the positively charged form of amiloride, and the voltage dependence of these rate constants. The on-rate of blockage increases and the off-rate decreases when the membrane surface to which cationic amiloride has access, is made more positive. This result is suggestive of a blocking model where the cationic amidino group of amiloride, depending on its charge, senses 10 to 13% of the membrane voltage while invading the channel entrance by a single-step process, and rests at an electrical distance corresponding to 24 to 30% of membrane voltage while occupying the blocking position.