Effects of inhibitors on the oxygen kinetics of Nippostrongylus brasiliensis

Hypometabolism as the ultimate defence in stress response: how the comparative approach helps understanding of medically relevant questions

First conceptualized from breath-hold diving mammals, later recognized as the ultimate cell autonomous survival strategy in anoxia-tolerant vertebrates and burrowing or hibernating rodents, hypometabolism is typically recruited by resilient organisms to withstand and recover from otherwise life-threatening hazards. Through the coordinated down-regulation of biosynthetic, proliferative and electrogenic expenditures at times when little ATP can be generated, a metabolism turned 'down to the pilot light' allows the re-balancing of energy demand with supply at a greatly suppressed level in response to noxious exogenous stimuli or seasonal endogenous cues. A unifying hallmark of stress-tolerant organisms, the adaptation effectively prevents lethal depletion of ATP, thus delineating a marked contrast with susceptible species. Along with disengaged macromolecular syntheses, attenuated transmembrane ion shuttling and PO₂ -conforming respiration rates, the metabolic slowdown in tolerant species usually culminates in a non-cycling, quiescent phenotype. However, such a reprogramming also occurs in leading human pathophysiologies. Ranging from microbial infections through ischaemia-driven infarcts to solid malignancies, cells involved in these disorders may again invoke hypometabolism to endure conditions non-permissive for growth. At the same time, their reduced activities underlie the frequent development of a general resistance to therapeutic interventions. On the other hand, a controlled induction of hypometabolic and/or hypothermic states by pharmacological means has recently stimulated intense research aimed at improved organ preservation and patient survival in situations requiring acutely administered critical care. The current review article therefore presents an up-to-date survey of concepts and applications of a coordinated and reversibly down-regulated metabolic rate as the ultimate defence in stress responses.

Globins in Caenorhabditis elegans

Extensive in silico search of the genome of Caenorhabditis elegans revealed the presence of 33 genes coding for globins that are all transcribed. These globins are very diverse in gene and protein structure and are localized in a variety of cells, mostly neurons. The large number of C. elegans globin genes is assumed to be the result of multiple evolutionary duplication and radiation events. Processes of subfunctionalization and diversification probably led to their cell-specific expression patterns and fixation into the genome. To date, four globins (GLB-1, GLB-5, GLB-6, and GLB-26) have been partially characterized physicochemically, and the crystallographic structure of two of them (GLB-1 and GLB-6) was solved. In this article, a three-dimensional model was designed for the other two globins (GLB-5 and GLB-26), and overlays of the globins were constructed to highlight the structural diversity among them. It is clear that although they all share the globin fold, small variations in the three-dimensional structure have major implications on their ligand-binding properties and possibly their function. We also review here all the information available so far on the globin family of C. elegans and suggest potential functions.

Globin-like proteins in Caenorhabditis elegans: in vivo localization, ligand binding and structural properties

BACKGROUND

The genome of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans contains more than 30 putative globin genes that all are transcribed. Although their translated amino acid sequences fit the globin fold, a variety of amino-acid substitutions and extensions generate a wide structural diversity among the putative globins. No information is available on the physicochemical properties and the in vivo expression.

RESULTS

We expressed the globins in a bacterial system, characterized the purified proteins by optical and resonance Raman spectroscopy, measured the kinetics and equilibria of O2 binding and determined the crystal structure of GLB-1* (CysGH2 --> Ser mutant). Furthermore, we studied the expression patterns of glb-1 (ZK637.13) and glb-26 (T22C1.2) in the worms using green fluorescent protein technology and measured alterations of their transcript abundances under hypoxic conditions.GLB-1* displays the classical three-over-three alpha-helical sandwich of vertebrate globins, assembled in a homodimer associated through facing E- and F-helices. Within the heme pocket the dioxygen molecule is stabilized by a hydrogen bonded network including TyrB10 and GlnE7.GLB-1 exhibits high ligand affinity, which is, however, lower than in other globins with the same distal TyrB10-GlnE7 amino-acid pair. In the absence of external ligands, the heme ferrous iron of GLB-26 is strongly hexacoordinated with HisE7, which could explain its extremely low affinity for CO. This globin oxidizes instantly to the ferric form in the presence of oxygen and is therefore incapable of reversible oxygen binding.

CONCLUSION

The presented data indicate that GLB-1 and GLB-26 belong to two functionally-different globin classes.

Metabolic function in Drosophila melanogaster in response to hypoxia and pure oxygen

This study examined the metabolic response of Drosophila melanogaster exposed to O(2) concentrations ranging from 0 to 21% and at 100%. The metabolic rate of flies exposed to graded hypoxia remained nearly constant as O(2) tensions were reduced from normoxia to approximately 3 kPa. There was a rapid, approximately linear reduction in fly metabolic rate at P(O(2))s between 3 and 0.5 kPa. The reduction in metabolic rate was especially pronounced at P(O(2)) levels <0.5 kPa, and at a P(O(2)) of 0.1 kPa fly metabolic rate was reduced approximately 10-fold relative to normoxic levels. The metabolic rate of flies exposed to anoxia and then returned to normoxia recovered to pre-anoxic levels within 30 min with no apparent payment of a hypoxia-induced oxygen debt. Flies tolerated exposure to hypoxia and/or anoxia for 40 min with nearly 100% survival. Fly mortality increased rapidly after 2 h of anoxia and >16 h exposure was uniformly lethal. Flies exposed to pure O(2) for 24 h showed no apparent alteration of metabolic rate, even though such O(2) tensions should damage respiratory enzymes critical to mitochondria function. Within a few hours the metabolic rate of flies recovering from exposure to repeated short bouts of anoxia was the same as flies exposed to a single anoxia exposure.

L3 and adult Ostertagia (Teladorsagia) circumcincta exhibit cyanide sensitive oxygen uptake

Oxygen consumption by L3 and adult Ostertagia (Teladorsagia) circumcincta was examined in vitro to determine whether oxygen can be utilised in metabolism. The oxygen concentration in the abomasal fluid of sheep infected with O. circumcincta was also measured. Rates of consumption (in nmol O2/h/1000 worms) were 13+/-1 in sheathed L3, 34+/-6 in ex-sheathed L3, and 1944+/-495 in adult worms. Constant rates of consumption were maintained until media oxygen concentration dropped to between 10 and 20 microM. Consumption was inhibited 95% by cyanide in L3 and 74% in adults. Oxygen concentration in abomasal fluid varied between 10 and 30 microM in both infected and uninfected animals. During infection, oxygen concentration decreased slightly with increased abomasal pH, though the correlation between the two was poor (r=-0.30). In conclusion, O. circumcincta can consume oxygen and oxygen concentration at the infection site is sufficient to support at least some aerobic metabolism.

Caenorhabditis elegans: how good a model for veterinary parasites?

The organism about which most is known on a molecular level is a nematode, the free-living organism Caenorhabditis elegans. This organism has served as a reasonable model for the discovery of anthelmintic drugs and for research on the mechanism of action of anthelmintics. Useful information on mechanisms of anthelmintic resistance has also been obtained from studies on C. elegans. Unfortunately, there has not been a large-scale extension of genetic techniques developed in C. elegans to research on parasitic species of veterinary (or human) parasites. Much can be learned about the essentials of nematode biology by studying C. elegans, but discovering the basic biology of nematode parasitism can only be gained through comparative studies on multiple parasitic species.

Oxyconformity in the intertidal worm Sipunculus nudus: the mitochondrial background and energetic consequences

The energetic consequences of strict oxyconformity in the intertidal worm S. nudus were studied by characterizing the Po2 dependence of respiration in mitochondria isolated from the body wall tissue. Mitochondrial respiration rose in a Po2 range between 2.8 and 31.3 kPa from a mean of 56.5 to 223.9 nmol O mg protein(-1) h(-1). Respiration was sensitive to both salicylhydroxamic acid (SHAM) and KCN. Po2 dependence remained unchanged with saturating and non-saturating substrate levels (malate, glutamate and ADP). A concomitant decrease of the ATP/O ratio revealed a lower ATP yield of aerobic metabolism at elevated Po2. Obviously, oxyconforming respiration implies progressive uncoupling of mitochondria. The decrease in ATP/O ratios at higher Po2 was completely reversible. Addition of 90.9 micromol H2O2 l(-1) did not inhibit ATP synthesis. Both observations suggest that oxidative injury did not contribute to oxyconformity. The contribution of the rates of mitochondrial ROS production and proton leakiness to mitochondrial oxygen consumption and uncoupling was investigated by using oligomycin as a specific inhibitor of the ATP synthase. The maximum contribution of oligomycin independent respiration to state 3 respiration remained below 6% and showed a minor, insignificant increase at elevated Po2, at a slope significantly lower than the increment of state 3 respiration. Therefore, Po2 dependent mitochondrial proton leakage or ROS production cannot explain oxyconformity. In conclusion Po2 dependent state 3 respiration likely relates to the progressive contribution of an alternative oxidase (cytochrome o), which is characterized by a low affinity to oxygen and an ATP/O ratio similar to the branched respiratory system of bacteria. The molecular nature of the alternative oxidase in lower invertebrates is still obscure.

Mitochondrial oxyconformity and cold adaptation in the polychaete Nereis pelagica and the bivalve Arctica islandica from the Baltic and White Seas

The rates of oxygen uptake of the marine polychaete Nereis pelagica and the bivalve Arctica islandica depend on the availability of ambient oxygen. This is manifest both at the tissue level and in isolated mitochondria studied between oxygen tensions (P(O2)) of 6.3 and 47.6 kPa (47–357 mmHg). Oxyconformity was found in both Baltic Sea (Kiel Bight) and cold-adapted White Sea populations of the two species. However, mitochondria isolated from White Sea specimens of N. pelagica and A. islandica showed a two- to threefold higher aerobic capacity than mitochondria prepared from Baltic Sea specimens. We tested whether mitochondrial oxyconformity can be explained by an additional electron pathway that is directly controlled by P(O2). Mitochondrial respiration of both invertebrate species was inhibited by cyanide (KCN) and by salicylhydroxamic acid (SHAM). The overall rate of mitochondrial oxygen consumption increased at high P(O2). Phosphorylation efficiency (ADP/O ratio) decreased at elevated P(O2) (27.5-47.6 kPa, 206–357 mmHg), regardless of whether malate or succinate was used as a substrate. In contrast to the invertebrate mitochondria studied, mitochondria isolated from bovine heart, as an oxyregulating control species, did not show an elevated rate of oxygen uptake at high P(O2) in any respiratory state, with the exception of state 2 malate respiration. In addition, rates of ATP formation, respiratory control ratios (RCR) and ADP/O ratios remained virtually unchanged or even tended to decreased. In conclusion, the comparison between mitochondria from oxyregulating and oxyconforming organisms supports the existence of an alternative oxidase in addition to the classical cytochrome c oxidase. In accordance with models discussed previously, oxidative phosphorylation does not explain the rate of mitochondrial oxygen consumption during progressive activation of the alternative electron transport system. We discuss the alternative system, thought to be adaptive in confined, usually hypoxic environments, where excess oxygen can be eliminated and oxygen levels can be kept low by an increase in the rate of oxygen consumption, thereby minimizing the risk of oxidative stress.

Broad oxygen tolerance in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans

This study examined the effects of oxygen tensions ranging from 0 to 90 kPa on the metabolic rate (rate of carbon dioxide production), movement and survivorship of the free-living soil nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. C. elegans requires oxygen to develop and survive. However, it can maintain a normal metabolic rate at oxygen levels of 3.6 kPa and has near-normal metabolic rates at oxygen levels as low as 2 kPa. The ability to withstand low ambient oxygen levels appears to be a consequence of the small body size of C. elegans, which allows diffusion to supply oxygen readily to the cells without requiring any specialized respiratory or metabolic adaptations. Thus, the small size of this organism pre-adapts C. elegans to living in soil environments that commonly become hypoxic. Movement in C. elegans appears to have a relatively minor metabolic cost. Several developmental stages of C. elegans were able to withstand up to 24 h of anoxia without major mortality. Longer periods of anoxia significantly increased mortality, particularly for eggs. Remarkably, long-term exposure to 100 % oxygen had no effect on the metabolic rate of C. elegans, and populations were able to survive for a least 50 generations in 100 % (90 kPa) oxygen. Such hyperoxic conditions are fatal to most organisms within a short period.

Inactivation of myocardial dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase by myeloperoxidase systems: effect of halides, nitrite and thiol compounds

Dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase (LADH) lipoamide reductase activity decreased whereas enzyme diaphorase activity increased after LADH treatment with myeloperoxidase (MPO) dependent systems (MPO/H2O2/halide, MPO/NADH/halide and MPO/H2O2/nitrite systems. LADH inactivation was a function of the composition of the inactivating system and the incubation time. Chloride, iodide, bromide, and the thiocyanate anions were effective complements of the MPO/H2O2 system. NaOCl inactivated LADH, thus supporting hypochlorous acid (HOCl) as putative agent of the MPO/H2O2/NaCl system. NaOCl and the MPO/H2O2/NaCl system oxidized LADH thiols and NaOCl also oxidized LADH methionine and tyrosine residues. LADH inactivation by the MPO/NADH/halide systems was prevented by catalase and enhanced by superoxide dismutase, in close agreement with H2O2 production by the LADH/NADH system. Similar effects were obtained with lactoperoxidase and horse-radish peroxidase supplemented systems. L-cysteine, N-acetylcysteine, penicillamine, N-(2-mercaptopropionylglycine), Captopril and taurine protected LADH against MPO systems and NaOCl. The effect of the MPO/H2O2/NaNO2 system was prevented by MPO inhibitors (sodium azide, isoniazid, salicylhydroxamic acid) and also by L-cysteine, L-methionine, L-tryptophan, L-tyrosine, L-histidine and reduced glutathione. The summarized observations support the hypothesis that peroxidase-generated "reactive species" oxidize essential thiol groups at LADH catalytic site.

Redox cycling of o-naphthoquinones in trypanosomatids. Superoxide and hydrogen peroxide production

beta-Lapachone and structurally related lipophilic o-naphthoquinones, namely, CG 8-935, CG 9-442, CG 10-248 and mansonones A, C, E, and F, were investigated for redox cycling, production of reactive oxygen species, and cytotoxicity in the trypanosomatids Crithidia fasciculata and Leptomonas seymouri. Structural analysis of the assayed quinones indicated that a tricyclic structure, including a naphthalene ring, a 1,2b or 1,8bc pyran ring, and two ortho-carbonyl groups were required for quinone activities. The contribution of oxygen radical production to quinone cytotoxicity was supported by: (a) spectroscopic observation of quinone redox cycling; (b) production of the semiquinone radical; (c) H2O2 and O2- production; (d) the effect of beta-lapachone on thiol pools in C. fasciculata; (e) the effect of quinones on cell respiration; (f) superoxide dismutase inactivation after incubation of C. fasciculata with CG 8-935; and (g) the effect of quinones on cell growth.

Mitochondrial sulfide oxidation in Arenicola marina. Evidence for alternative electron pathways

Sulfide is oxidized in the mitochondria of the lugworm Arenicola marina. Mitochondrial sulfide oxidation is coupled with oxygen consumption and with an equimolar production of thiosulfate [Völkel, S. & Grieshaber, M. K. (1994) Mar. Biol. 118, 137-147]. Mitochondrial respiration in the presence of malate (or succinate) and ADP but without sulfide could be completely inhibited by rotenone, antimycin, cyanide, and sulfide. Only 40% inhibition was achieved by salicylhydroxamic acid. Sulfide oxidation (with sulfide as the only substrate) was fully inhibited by antimycin and by salicylhydroxamic acid but not by rotenone or sulfide. Moreover, sulfide oxidation was 3-4-fold less sensitive to cyanide as compared to normal respiration. The data indicate that sulfide oxidation in A. marina is linked to the respiratory electron transport chain. We suggest that electrons from sulfide enter the respiratory chain via ubiquinone or at the ubiquinol-cytochrome-c oxidoreductase. At sulfide concentrations higher than 10 microM, the cytochrome-c oxidase is blocked and electrons from sulfide are transferred to oxygen via an alternative terminal oxidase.

Oxygen uptake in cysts and trophozoites of Giardia lamblia

Oxygen uptake in cysts and trophozoites of the parasitic protozoan Giardia lamblia was examined. Both showed oxygen uptake activity, but that of cysts was only 10% to 20% that of trophozoites. Oxygen dependence of oxygen uptake in cysts and trophozoites showed oxygen maxima above which oxygen uptake decreased. The oxygen concentration at which the oxygen uptake rate was greatest was higher for trophozoites than for cysts. The effect of various inhibitors on cyst and trophozoite oxygen uptake suggested that flavoproteins and quinones play some role in oxygen uptake. The substrate specificities and the effect of inhibitors on G. lamblia trophozoites were similar to those observed for G. muris. Metronidazole, the drug most commonly used in treatment of giardiasis, inhibited oxygen uptake and motility in trophozoites; however, it had no obvious effect on either oxygen uptake or excystation in cysts. Menadione, a redox cycling naphthaquinone, first stimulated, then completely inhibited, oxygen uptake in cysts and trophozoites; a complete loss of cyst viability and trophozoite motility was also observed. The effect of menadione on G. lamblia may indicate that redox cycling compounds have potential as chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of giardiasis.

Effects of mansonones on lipid peroxidation, P450 monooxygenase activity, and superoxide anion generation by rat liver microsomes

Several structurally related ortho-naphthoquinones isolated from Mansonia altissima Chev (mansonones C, E and F) (a) inhibited NADPH-dependent, iron-catalyzed microsomal lipid peroxidation; (b) prevented NADPH-dependent cytochrome P450 destruction; (c) inhibited NADPH-supported aniline 4-hydroxylase activity; (d) inhibited Fe(III)ADP reduction by NADPH-supplemented microsomes; (e) stimulated superoxide anion generation by NADPH-supplemented microsomes; and (f) stimulated ascorbate oxidation. ESR investigation of ascorbate-reduced mansonone F demonstrated semiquinone formation. Mansonone C had a greater effect than mansonones E and F on NADPH-dependent lipid peroxidation, O2- production and ascorbate oxidation, whereas mansonone E was more effective than mansonones C and F on aniline 4-hydroxylase activity. Mansonones E and F did not inhibit hydroperoxide-dependent lipid peroxidation, cytochrome P450 destruction or microsomal aniline 4-hydroxylase activity. Mansonone C inhibited to a limited degree tert-butyl hydroperoxide-dependent lipid peroxidation, this inhibition being increased by NADPH. Mansonone A, a tetrahydro orthonapthoquinone derivative, was in all respects relatively less effective than mansonones C, E and F. It is postulated that mansonones C, E and F inhibited microsomal lipid peroxidation and cytochrome P450 catalyzed reactions by diverting reducing equivalents from NADPH to dioxygen, but mansonone C (including its reduced form) may also exert direct antioxidant activity.

Catalysis of nitrofuran redox-cycling and superoxide anion production by heart lipoamide dehydrogenase

Heart lipoamide dehydrogenase (LADH) catalyzed redox-cycling and O2-. production by (5-nitro-2-furfurylidene)amino derivatives using NADH as electron donor. NADH was a much more effective electron donor than NADPH for the nitroreductase activity. O2-. production was demonstrated by cytochrome c reduction, adrenochrome formation and the effect of superoxide dismutase. Under optimum conditions, nitroreductase activity was about 1% of LADH activity. One electron oxygen reduction and NADH oxidation correlated in 2:1 stoichiometry. The nitroreductase kinetics was in accordance with an ordered bi-bi mechanism. Nitrofuran derivatives bearing unsaturated five- or six-membered nitrogen heterocycles were more effective substrates than those bearing other groups, namely nifurtimox, nitrofurazone, nitrofurantoin and 5-nitro-2-furoic acid. Other nitro compounds (chloramphenicol, benznidazole, 2-nitroimidazole and 5-nitroindole) were ineffective. With the triazole, traizine and imidazole nitrofuran derivatives, the nitroreductase pH curve showed a maximum at pH 8.8, different from the pH optimum for the lipoamide reductase and diaphorase activities. Spectroscopic observations demonstrated pH-dependent structural changes in the triazole(I) and triazine derivatives which would affect their behavior as nitroreductase substrates. The nitroreductase activity was inhibited by p-chloromercuribenzoate and enhanced by cadmium and arsenite, whereas the NADH-induced LADH inactivation failed to affect the nitroreductase activity. In the absence of oxygen. LADH catalyzed nitrofuran reduction to products more reduced than the nitroanion, which were not reoxidized by oxygen. The anaerobic nitrofuran reduction was inhibited by cadmium and arsenite. The assayed nitrofuran compounds did not inhibit LADH lipoamide reductase activity, at variance with their action on glutathione reductase (Grinblat et al., Biochem Pharmacol 38: 767-772, 1989).

Nippostrongylus brasiliensis and Ascaridia galli: characterization of peroxisomes

A method is described for the isolation of peroxisomes from mitochondria-enriched fractions obtained from both species of nematodes. The distributions of these organelles are characterized after density gradient centrifugation in sucrose or Percoll by urate oxidase and catalase activities. The possession of peroxisomes may be part of an important defence mechanism in parasites.

Effects of isoxazolyl-naphthoquinoneimines on growth and oxygen radical production in Trypanosoma cruzi and Crithidia fasciculata

Several 4-(aminomethylisoxazolyl)-1,2-naphthoquinones inhibited growth and DNA synthesis in Trypanosoma cruzi and stimulated O2 uptake and O2-. generation by the parasite epimastigotes and their mitochondrial and microsomal membranes; these results support the idea that oxygen radicals play a role in quinone toxicity. Maximal effects on respiration and O2-. generation were observed with antimycin-inhibited cells. Similar results as well as stimulation of H2O2 production were obtained with Crithidia fasciculata despite the presence of catalase in this organism.

Respiration in the filarial nematode Brugia pahangi

Glucose-supported O2 uptake in the filarial nematode Brugia pahangi was partially inhibited by antimycin A (30-40%), with the remaining activity being sensitive to o-hydroxydiphenyl or salicylhydroxamic acid (SHAM). The production of CO2 by B. pahangi in the presence of D-glucose was stimulated by O2; the stimulation of CO2; the stimulation of CO2 production was sensitive to antimycin A. The O2 dependencies of respiration showed that the apparent O2 affinity for B. pahangi was diminished in the presence of antimycin A; O2 thresholds for inhibition of respiration were observed which showed that the alternative electron transport pathway was less sensitive to inhibition at elevated O2 concentrations. H2O2 production and its excretion could be detected in whole B. pahangi; higher rates were observed in the presence of the uncoupler carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone. The effects of inhibitors on H2O2 production suggest two sites of H2O2 production, one associated with the classical antimycin A-sensitive pathway, the other with the alternative respiratory pathway. The similarity in the O2 dependencies of H2O2 production and respiration may indicate that H2O2 production is involved in O2-mediated toxicity. Succinate and malate respiring sub-mitochondrial particles of B. pahangi produced O2.- radicals at a site on the antimycin A-sensitive respiratory pathway. Inhibition of the alternative electron pathway by SHAM was unusual; sub-millimolar concentrations markedly stimulated respiration, H2O2 production and O2.- production by 30, 20 and 25%, respectively, whereas higher concentrations (greater than 2.5 mM) inhibited respiration by 75% and H2O2 and O2.- production by up to 85%.

The O2-dependence of respiration and H2O2 production in the parasitic nematode Ascaridia galli

1. Respiration in the parasitic nematode worm Ascaridia galli was inhibited at O2 concentrations in excess of 255 microM, and an apparent Km,O2 of 174 microM was determined. 2. Mitochondria-enriched fractions isolated from the tissues of A. galli have much lower apparent Km,O2 values (approx. 5 microM). They produce H2O2 in the energized state; higher rates of H2O2 production were observed in the presence of the uncoupler carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone. 3. Antimycin A inhibited respiration in muscle tissue mitochondria by 10%, but had no effect on respiration in gut + reproductive tissue mitochondria; the major portion of respiration in both types of mitochondria could be attributed to an alternative electron-transport pathway. 4. o-Hydroxydiphenyl, an inhibitor of alternative electron-transport pathways, inhibits respiration by 98% and completely inhibits the production of H2O2 in gut-plus-reproductive-tissue mitochondria; respiration and H2O2 production in muscle tissue mitochondria were inhibited by 90 and 86% respectively. 5. Another inhibitor of alternative electron transport, salicylhydroxamic acid, had the same effect as o-hydroxydiphenyl on H2O2 production and respiration in gut-plus-reproductive-tissue mitochondria. However, its effect on muscle tissue mitochondria was complex; a low concentration (0.35 mM) stimulated H2O2 production, whereas 3 mM inhibited respiration by 87% and prevented H2O2 production completely. 6. The similarities between the apparent Km,O2 values for H2O2 production and respiration in muscle mitochondria and in gut-plus-reproductive-tissue mitochondria suggests that the site of H2O2 production on the alternative electron-transport chain is cytochrome 'o'. 7. These results are discussed in relation to potential O2 toxicity in A. galli.

Haemoprotein terminal oxidases in the nematodes Nippostrongylus brasiliensis and Ascaridia galli

1. Mitochondria isolated from the gut-dwelling nematodes Nippostrongylus brasiliensis and Ascaridia galli (muscle and gut + reproductive tissue) were examined for cytochromes, and it was observed that N. brasiliensis and A. galli muscle tissue mitochondria contained a-, b- and c-type cytochromes, but their stoichiometries were quite different (1:2:1.9 and 1:11.4:13.6 respectively); A. galli gut + reproductive-tissue mitochondria, however, only contained b and c cytochromes, in a ratio of 1:0.8. 2. CO difference spectra showed the presence of CO-reacting b-type cytochrome(s) in all three types of mitochondria; the fast-reacting species comprised 30, 44 and 39% of the total in N. brasiliensis, A. galli muscle and A. galli gut + reproductive-tissue mitochondria respectively. 3. Cytochrome aa3 was observed in N. brasiliensis mitochondria and in those from A. galli muscle, but was below the level of detectability (less than 0.005 nmol/mg of protein) for A. galli gut + reproductive-tissue mitochondria. 4. Photochemical action spectra for the reversal of CO inhibition of the endogenous respiration of whole worms (at 24 microM- and 40 microM-O2 respectively for N. brasiliensis and A. galli) gave maxima at 598 and 542-543 nm, corresponding to the alpha- and beta-absorption maxima of cytochrome aa3, and at 567 nm (b-type cytochrome) for both worms. These results suggest that cytochrome aa3 is the major functional oxidase in N. brasiliensis, whereas the CO-reacting b-type cytochrome dominates in A. galli.

Hydrogen peroxide production in uncoupled mitochondria of the parasitic nematode worm Nippostrongylus brasiliensis

1. Mitochondria from the parasitic nematode worm Nippostrongylus brasiliensis produce H2O2 in the energized state; higher rates of H2O2 production were observed in the presence of the uncoupler carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone. 2. Antimycin A inhibits respiration and H2O2 production by 70 and 65% respectively; the residual activities can be attributed to alternative electron-transport pathway(s). 3. o-Hydroxydiphenyl and 1,3,5-trihydroxybenzene, inhibitors of alternative electron transport, inhibit respiration by 37% and H2O2 production by 26%. 4. Another inhibitor of alternative electron transport, salicylhydroxamic acid, shows a complex mode of action; low concentrations (less than 0.5 mM) stimulate respiration and H2O2 production, whereas 2 mM-salicylhydroxamic acid inhibited respiration by 35% and stopped H2O2 production completely. 5. O2 thresholds were observed for the inhibition of respiration at O2 concentrations greater than 57.7 microM and inhibition of H2O2 production (greater than 20.5 microM-O2); apparent Km values for oxygen were 5.5 microM and 3.0 microM respectively. 6. In the presence of antimycin A the O2-inhibition thresholds and apparent Km values for O2 of respiration and H2O2 production matched closely, suggesting that the alternative oxidase is a likely site of H2O2 production. 7. These results are discussed in relation to O2 toxicity to N. brasiliensis.