Concanavalin A induced inhibition of 5'-nucleotidase from guinea pig skeletal muscle and bull seminal plasma: a comparative study

Phosphatidylserine translocation into brain mitochondria: involvement of a fusogenic protein associated with mitochondrial membranes

Data reported in the literature indicate that lipid movement between intracellular organelles can occur through contacts and close physical association of membranes (Vance, J.E. 1990. J Biol Chem 265: 7248-7256). The advantage of this mechanism is that the direct interaction of membranes provides the translocation event without the involvement of lipid-transport systems. However, pre-requisite for the functioning of this machinery is the presence of protein factors controlling membrane association and fusion. In the present work we have found that liposomes fuse to mitochondria at acidic pH and that the pre-treatment of mitochondria with pronase inhibits the fusogenic activity. Mixing of 14C-phosphatidylserine (PS) labeled liposomes with mitochondria at pH 6.0 results in the translocation of 14C-PS into mitochondria and in its decarboxylation to 14C-phosphatidylethanolamine through the PS decarboxylase activity localized on the outer surface of the inner mitochondrial membrane. Incorporation of 14C-PS is inhibited by the pre-treatment of mitochondria with pronase or with EEDQ, a reagent for the derivatization of the protonated form of carboxylic groups. These results indicate the presence of a protein associated with mitochondria which is able to trigger the fusion of liposomes to the mitochondrial membrane. A partial purification of a mitochondrial fusogenic glycoprotein is described in this work. The activity of the fusogenic protein appears to be dependent on the extent of protonation of the residual carboxylic groups and is influenced by the glucidic moiety, as demonstrated by its interaction with Concanavalin A. The purified protein is able to promote the recover of the 14C-PS import from liposomes to pronase-treated mitochondria. Therefore, the protein is candidate to be an essential component in the machinery for the mitochondrial import of PS.

The soluble 'low-Km' 5'-nucleotidase of rat kidney represents solubilized ecto-5'-nucleotidase

A soluble 'low-Km' 5'-nucleotidase has been described previously in several organs. It has been presumed to be of cytosolic origin and thus to play a role in the intracellular production of adenosine. Its catalytic properties are similar to those of the ecto-5'-nucleotidase of cell membranes. In the present study we compared molecular properties of the two enzymes in the kidney of the rat. The Mr of the main peak of soluble 'low-Km' 5'-nucleotidase in gel-filtration chromatography was similar to that of the ecto-5'-nucleotidase solubilized by a phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C from renal brush-border membranes. In phase-partition experiments using Triton X-114, the soluble enzyme appeared to be hydrophobic. Its hydrophobicity was decreased on treatment with a phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C, suggesting that the soluble 'low-Km' 5'-nucleotidase contains the phosphatidylinositol anchor which is characteristic for the ecto-enzyme. An anti-ecto-5'-nucleotidase antiserum provoked an almost complete inhibition of the soluble enzyme. Immunoblotting using anti-ecto-5'-nucleotidase antiserum revealed in the high-speed supernatants a polypeptide with a similar Mr to the subunit of the ecto-5'-nucleotidase. The soluble 'low-Km' 5'-nucleotidase, like the ecto-5'-nucleotidase, bound specifically to concanavalin A. We conclude that the soluble 'low-Km' 5'-nucleotidase is not a cytosolic enzyme, but that it most probably originates from the solubilization of the ecto-5'-nucleotidase, and that it therefore cannot participate in the intracellular production of adenosine.

ESR study of 5'-nucleotidase from bull seminal plasma

5'-Nucleotidase of bull seminal plasma has been spin labeled with the sulfhydryl reagent 3-maleimidoproxyl. ESR analysis reveals the presence of two classes of labeled sites. The first is characterized by a long spin label rotational correlation time, from which a protein diameter of about 70 A can be estimated, under the assumption of a spherical shape. The second class is characterized by a shorter correlation time of the covalently bound spin labels and binding of the substrate sodium thymidine 5'-monophosphate to 5'-nucleotidase results in a reduction of their mobility. Low-temperature ESR analysis shows that no paramagnetic ion is bound to the native protein.