Changes in fluorescence of 8-anilino-1-naphthalene sulfonate after bacteriophage T5 infection of Escherichia coli. Initial fluorescence rise coincides with onset of rubidium efflux.

Escherichia coli cells pre-loaded with 86Rb+ begin to lose 86Rb+ immediately after phage T5 addition. The loss proceeds with negative-exponential (first-order) kinetics for up to approximately 15 min after phage addition. The constant which characterizes the rate of loss increases with increasing numbers of infecting phage per cell. It is known that anaerobic, fermenting cells of E. coli show a two-step increase in 8-anilino-1-naphthalene sulfonate (ANS) fluorescence upon infection with bacteriophage T5; the first rise begins immediately upon phage addition, the second 6 min later. The onset of 86Rb+ release, therefore, is correlated with the first fluorescence rise with respect to timing and response to the multiplicity of infection.     

Pre-steady-state kinetic evidence for a cyclic interaction of myosin subfragment one with actin during the hydrolysis of adenosine 5'-triphosphate.

A single cycle of adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) hydrolysis by a complex of actin and myosin subfragment one (acto-S-1) was studied in a stopped-flow apparatus at low temperature and low ionic strength, using light scattering to monitor the interaction of S-1 with actin and fluorescence to detect the formation of fluorescent intermediates. Our results show that the addition of a stoichiometric concentration of ATP to the acto-S-1 causes a cycle consisting of first, a rapid dissociation of the S-1 from actin by ATP; second, a slower fluorescence change in the S-1 that may be related to the initial phosphate burst; and third, a much slower rate limiting recombination of the S-1 with actin. This latter step equals the acto-S-1 steady-state adenosine 5'-triphosphatase (ATPase) rate at both low and high actin concentrations, and like the steady-state ATPase levels off at a V max of 0.9s-1 at high actin concentration. Therefore, the release of adenosine 5'-diphosphate and inorganic phosphate is not the rate-limiting step in the acto-S-1 ATPase. Rather, a slow first-order step corresponding to the previously postulated transition from the refractory to the nonrefractory state precedes the rebinding of the S-1 to the actin during each cycle of ATP hydrolysis.     

Chemiosmotic coupling in Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum: hydrogen-dependent adenosine 5''-triphosphate synthesis by subcellular particles.

Hydrogenase and the adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) synthetase complex, two enzymes essential in ATP generation in Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum, were localized in internal membrane systems as shown by cytochemical techniques. Membrane vesicles from this organism possessed hydrogenase and adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) activity and synthesized ATP driven by hydrogen oxidation or a potassium gradient. ATP synthesis depended on anaerobic conditions and could be inhibited in membrane vesicles by uncouplers, nigericin, or the ATPase inhibitor N,N'-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide. The presence of an adenosine 5'-diphosphate-ATP translocase was postulated. With fluorescent dyes, a membrane potential and pH gradient were demonstrated.     

Energetics of syntrophic fatty acid oxidation

Abstract: Fatty acids are key intermediates in methanogenic degradation of organic matter in sediments as well as in anaerobic reactors. Conversion of butyrate or propionate to acetate, (CO₂), and hydrogen is endergonic under standard conditions, and becomes possible only at low hydrogen concentrations (10^-4-10^-5 bar). A model of energy sharing between fermenting and methanogenic bacteria attributes a maximum amount of about 20 kJ per mol reaction to each partner in this syntrophic cooperation system. This amount corresponds to synthesis of only a fraction (one-third) of an ATP to be synthesized per reaction. Recent studies on the biochemistry of syntrophic fatty acid-oxidizing bacteria have revealed that hydrogen release from butyrate by these bacteria is inhibited by a protonophore or the ATPase inhibitor DCCD ( N , N '-dicyclohexyl carbodiimide), indicating that a reversed electron transport step is involved in butyrate or propionate oxidation. Hydrogenase, butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase, and succinate dehydrogenase acitivities were found to be partially associated with the cytoplasmic membrane fraction. Also glycolic acid is degraded to methane and CO₂ by a defined syntrophic coculture. Here the most difficult step for hydrogen release is the glycolate dehydrogenase reaction ( E '₀=−92 mV). Glycolate dehydrogenase, hydrogenase, and ATPase were found to be membrane-bound enzymes. Membrane vesicles produced hydrogen from glycolate only in the presence of ATP; protonophores and DCCD inhibited this hydrogen release. This system provides a suitable model to study reversed electron transport in interspecies hydrogen transfer between fermenting and methanogenic bacteria in methanogenic biomass degradation.     

Protein-bound adenosine 5'-triphosphate: properties of a key intermediate of the magnesium-dependent subfragment 1 adenosinetriphosphatase from rabbit skeletal muscle

The time course of formation and decay of protein-bound adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) has been monitored during single turnovers of the myosin subfragment 1 ATPase with nonspectrophotometric techniques. The rate constant controlling the ATP cleavage step increases markedly with ionic strength, so that in low salt the protein--ATP complex is observed transiently at higher concentration than the protein-products complex. The kinetics of the ATP cleavage step in a single turnover of the actosubfragment 1 ATPase indicates that under appropriate conditions this step is partially rate limiting during overall steady-state ATPase activity. It follows that a binary subfragment 1-ATP complex is a significant component of the steady-state intermediate of the actosubfragment 1 ATPase. Transient kinetic studies of ATP and adenosine 5'-(3-thiotriphosphate) [ATP (gamma S)] binding show directly that a substrate-induced protein isomerization accompanies ligand binding. The rate constant of the isomerization is 170 s-1 at pH 7.0, 15 degrees C, and 0.01 M ionic strength. Under these conditions nucleotide binding appears to be accompanied by a protein fluorescence increase that is 50% of the increase associated with magnesium-dependent steady-state ATPase activity.     

Kinetic characterization of tail swing steps in the ATPase cycle of Dictyostelium cytoplasmic dynein

According to the power stroke model of dynein deduced from electron microscopic and fluorescence resonance energy transfer studies, the power stroke and the recovery stroke are expected to take place at the two isomerization steps of the ATPase cycle at the primary ATPase site. Here, we have conducted presteady-state kinetic analyses of these two isomerization steps with the single-headed motor domain of Dictyostelium cytoplasmic dynein by employing fluorescence resonance energy transfer to probe ATPase steps at the primary site and tail positions. Our results show that the recovery stroke at the first isomerization step proceeds quickly ( approximately 180 s(-1)), whereas the power stroke at the second isomerization step is very slow ( approximately 0.2 s(-1)) in the absence of microtubules, and that the presence of microtubules accelerates the second but not the first step. Moreover, a comparison of the microtubule-induced acceleration of the power stroke step and that of steady-state ATP hydrolysis implies the intriguing possibility that microtubules simultaneously accelerate the ATPase activity not only at the primary site but also at other site(s) in the motor domain.     

Demonstration of Phosphoryl Group Transfer Indicates That the ATP-binding Cassette (ABC) Transporter Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) Exhibits Adenylate Kinase Activity

Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) is a membrane-spanning adenosine 5′-triphosphate (ATP)-binding cassette (ABC) transporter. ABC transporters and other nuclear and cytoplasmic ABC proteins have ATPase activity that is coupled to their biological function. Recent studies with CFTR and two nonmembrane-bound ABC proteins, the DNA repair enzyme Rad50 and a structural maintenance of chromosome (SMC) protein, challenge the model that the function of all ABC proteins depends solely on their associated ATPase activity. Patch clamp studies indicated that in the presence of physiologically relevant concentrations of adenosine 5′-monophosphate (AMP), CFTR Cl⁻ channel function is coupled to adenylate kinase activity (ATP+AMP ⇆ 2 ADP). Work with Rad50 and SMC showed that these enzymes catalyze both ATPase and adenylate kinase reactions. However, despite the supportive electrophysiological results with CFTR, there are no biochemical data demonstrating intrinsic adenylate kinase activity of a membrane-bound ABC transporter. We developed a biochemical assay for adenylate kinase activity, in which the radioactive γ-phosphate of a nucleotide triphosphate could transfer to a photoactivatable AMP analog. UV irradiation could then trap the ³²P on the adenylate kinase. With this assay, we discovered phosphoryl group transfer that labeled CFTR, thereby demonstrating its adenylate kinase activity. Our results also suggested that the interaction of nucleotide triphosphate with CFTR at ATP-binding site 2 is required for adenylate kinase activity. These biochemical data complement earlier biophysical studies of CFTR and indicate that the ABC transporter CFTR can function as an adenylate kinase.     

Presence of Na+-Stimulated P-Type ATPase in the Membrane of a Facultatively Anaerobic Alkaliphile, Exiguobacterium aurantiacum

It was found that a facultatively anaerobic alkaliphile, Exiguobacterium aurantiacum, possesses a membrane-bound ATPase, which was activated specifically by Na⁺. The Na⁺-stimulated ATPase activity reached a maximum value at 200 mM NaCl. In the presence of 200 mM NaCl, the activity was drastically reduced by vanadate, a potent inhibitor of P-type ATPase, with a half-maximal inhibition at 1 μM. Incubation of the membranes with [γ-³²P]ATP followed by acidic lithium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis demonstrated the existence of two phosphorylated intermediates with apparent molecular masses of 60 and 100 kDa. Only phosphorylation of the 100-kDa polypeptide was inhibited by vanadate. The membrane extract containing Na⁺-stimulated ATPase, when reconstituted into soybean phospholipid vesicles, exhibited ²²Na⁺ transport by the addition of ATP, which was inhibited by vanadate and gramicidin. It is likely that the Na⁺-stimulated ATPase belongs to P-type and is involved in Na⁺ transport. Received: 3 February 1999 / Accepted: 3 March 1999     

Effects of deuterium oxide on elementary steps in the ATPase reaction. Evidence for the similarity of key intermediates in contractile and transport ATPase.

The effects of D2O on the elementary steps in the contractile and transport ATPase [EC 3.6.1.3] reactions were studied, and the following results were obtained: 1. The rate of H-meromyosin ATPase in the steady state decreased in D2O to 60% of that in H2O. Deuterium oxide did not affect the size or rate of the initial burst of Pi liberation, i.e. the amount or rate of formation of the reactive myosin-phosphate-ADP complex, MADPP. Moreover, neither the rate of change in the fluorescence spectrum of H-meromyosin induced by ATP (the rate of formation of the second enzyme-ATP complex, M2ATP) nor the rate constant of decomposition of MADPP into M degrees + ADP + Pi was affected by D2O. However, the equilibrium constant of the step M2ATP in equilibrium MADPP decreased in D2O to about 1/2 the value in H2O. 2. In the case of the Na+-K+-dependent ATPase reactin, neither the rate constant of formation of the second enzyme-ATP complex, E2ATP, nor that of decomposition of a phosphorylated intermediate, EADP approximately P, was affected by D2O. However, the equilibrium constant of the step E2ATP in equilibrium EADP approximately P decreased in D2O to about 1/2.5-1/4 of the value in H2O. These results suggest a similarity between the modes of binding of phosphate in MADPP in the myosin ATPase reaction and in EADP approximatley P in the Na+-K+-dependent ATPase reaction.     

Alteration of active transport after bacteriophage T5 infection.

Bacteriophage T5 absorption immediately followed by injection of the first-step-transfer DNA segment produces alterations in the bacterial membrane which reduce the uptake of amino acids and of o-nitrophenyl-beta-D-galactopyranoside. Concomitantly, intracellular ATP is hydrolyzed. The extent of inhibition of uptake and of ATP hydrolysis is cooperatively increased with the multiplicity of infection. Inhibition of active transport at a high multiplicity of infection (greater than 3) is also observed after the second step of DNA injection. In contrast, at low multiplicities of infection, phage proteins are able to enhance amino acid uptake. Infection of su- bacteria with amber mutants in the first-step-transfer DNA suggests that protein A1 is implicated in this enhancement.     

Adenosine 5'-O(3-thiotriphosphate) in the control of phosphorylase activity

Rabbit muscle phosphorylase b (EC 2.4.1.1) is converted to a thio-analog of phosphorylase a by phosphorylase kinase, Mg²⁺ and adenosine 5′-O(3-thiotriphosphate)(ATPγS). Conversion proceeds at one-fifth the rate obtained with ATP though the extent of reaction and final level of activation of the enzyme are the same. However, the thiophosphorylase a produced is resistant to phosphorylase phosphatase and, therefore, behaves as a competitive inhibitor with a K_I of 3 μM, similar to the K_M obtained with normal phosphorylase a. ATPγS can also be utilized by protein kinase in the activation of phosphorylase kinase at a rate similar to that obtained with ATP. It is hydrolyzed at 5 to 10 times the normal rate by the sarcoplasmic reticulum ATPase. When added to a muscle glycogen-particulate complex in the presence of Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺, ATPγS triggers an activation of phosphorylase with simultaneous inhibition of phosphorylase phosphatase as previously observed with ATP.     

Effects of nucleotide analogs on ATP hydrolysis by P-type ATPases. Comparison between the canine kidney (Na++ K+) ATPase and maize root H+-ATPase

The mechanism by which chemical energy is converted into an electrochemical gradient by P-type ATPase is not completely understood. The effects of ATP analogs on the canine kidney (Na⁺+ K⁺) ATPase were compared to effects of the same analogs on the maize (Zea mays L. cv. W7551) root H⁺-ATPase in order to identify probes for the ATP binding site of the maize root enzyme and to determine potential similarities of ATP hydrolysis mechanisms in these two enzymes. Six compounds able to modify the ATP binding site covalently were compared. These compounds could be classed into three distinct groups based on activity. The first group had little or no effect on catalytic activity of either enzyme and included 7-chloro-4-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1.3-diazole. The second group, which included azido adenine analogs. fluorescein isothiocyanate and 5′-p-fluorosulfonylbenzoyladenine, were inhibitors of ATP hydrolysis by both enzymes. However, the sensitivity of the (Na⁺+ K⁺) ATPase to inhibition was much greater than that exhibited by the maize root enzyme. The third group, which included periodate treated nucleotide derivatives and 2′,3′-o-(4-benzoylbenzoyl)adenosine triphosphate. inhibited both enzymes similarly. This initial screening of these covalent modifiers indicated that 2′,3′-o-(4-benzoylbenzoyl)adenosine triphosphate was the optimal covalent modifier of the ATP binding site of the maize root enzyme. Certain reagents were much more effective against the (Na⁺+ K⁺) ATPase than the maize root enzyme, possibly indicating differences in the ATP binding and hydrolysis pathway for these two enzymes. Two ATP analogs that are not covalent modifiers were also tested: the trinitrophenyl derivatives of adenine nucleotides were better than 5′-adenylylimidodiphosphate for use as an ATP binding probe.     

Pathway of ATP hydrolysis by monomeric kinesin Eg5

Kinesin-5 family members including human Eg5/KSP contribute to the plus-end-directed force necessary for the assembly and maintenance of the bipolar mitotic spindle. We have used monomeric Eg5-367 in the nucleotide-free state to evaluate the role of microtubules at each step in the ATPase cycle. The pre-steady-state kinetic results show that the microtubule-Eg5 complex binds MgATP tightly, followed by rapid ATP hydrolysis with a subsequent slow step that limits steady-state turnover. We show that microtubules accelerate the kinetics of each step in the ATPase pathway, suggesting that microtubules amplify the nucleotide-dependent structural transitions required for force generation. The experimentally determined rate constants for phosphate product release and Eg5 detachment from the microtubule were similar, suggesting that these two steps are coupled with one occurring at the slow rate after ATP hydrolysis followed by the second step occurring more rapidly. The rate of this slow step correlates well with the steady-state k(cat), indicative that it is the rate-limiting step of the mechanism.     

Stimulation of active uptake of nucleosides and amino acids by cyclic adenosine 3' :5'-monophosphate in the yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe.

In conditions of glucose starvation, the maximum velocity of the mediated transport of nonmetabolized and metabolized amino acids, uridine, adenosine, and sucrose across the plasma membrane is stimulated by a factor of two by the addition of 1 mM adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate to Schizosaccharomyces pombe 972h- wild strain, to the glucose-super-repressed and derepressed mutants COB5 and COB6, and to Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain IL 216-IA. The mediated uptake of 2-D-deoxyglucose and the apparently nonmediated uptake of guanosine are not stimulated by the cyclic nucleotide. N6,O2'-Dibutyryl adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate is also efficient, whereas theophylline, guanosine 3':5'-monophosphate, 5'-AMP, ATP, and adenosine are ineffective. The cellular ATP content of glycerol-grown S. pombe COB5 is about 10 nmol per mg of protein and is not decreased by further incubation in the starvation medium. The addition of 100 mM glucose markedly enhances transport without any increase of the cellular ATP content. The addition of antimycin A or Dio-9 decreases markedly both cellular ATP content and transport. The addition of 2.5 mM glucose to antimycin A-containing medium restores both transport is not necessarily of mitochondrial origin. The uptake of 2-D-deoxyglucose is unaffected by the respiratory inhibitors. Stimulation of uptake by cyclic adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate occurs only in glucose-deprived cells. The addition of 10 mM glucose elicits the disappearance of the stimulation and prevents the 30% decrease of the cellular adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate content produced by glucose starvation. Adenosine 3':5'-'monophosphate does not enhance the steady state ATP level but requires cellular ATP produced either by endogenous respiration or, in the absence of respiration blocked by antimycin A, by further addition of 2.5 mM glucose. Stimulation of active uptake by adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate does not require protein synthesis because the addition of cycloheximide or anisomycin does not prevent the stimulation of L-leucine uptake. In the absence of respiration, Dio-9, and ATPase inhibitor, suppresses instantaneously the cellular ejection of protons as well as the uptake of uridine and amino acids. It abolishes also the adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate-stimulated transport. In the presence of antimycin A, specific mitochondrial ATPase inhibitors such as venruricidin A do not inhibit metabolite uptakes and their stimulation by adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate. These results suggest that in these conditions, the target of Dio-9 is not the mitochondrial ATPase but a plasma membrane proton-translocating function generating an electrochemical gradient required for active transport. That adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate enhances the Dio-9-sensitive proton extrusion supports the view that the cyclic nucleotide might modulate the plasma membrane ATPase.     

Fluid transport, ATP level and ATPase activities in isolated rabbit corneal endothelium

The effect of certain biochemical parameters on transendothelial fluid transport has been studied. Cellular ATP level and (Na⁺ + K⁺)-activated as well as Mg²⁺-activated ATPase activities were measured by ultramicrotechniques using individual rabbit corneal endothelium after they had been subjected to in vitro perfusion with solutions fully supplemented or deficient singly or severally in glucose, adenosine and glutathione (GSH). With the complete medium, the transport system operates in vitro for approx. 6 h. Deletion of glucose alone, glucose and adenosine or glucose, adenosine and GSH brings about a cessation of fluid transport after 3.5 h, 2 to 2.5 h and 0.5 to 1 h, respectively. A marked decrease (62%) of the endothelial ATP level, however, occurs only when all metabolites are omitted. The favorable effect of GSH on transport activity is attributable to its capacity to sustain cellular ATP rather than to protect the functionality of (Na⁺ + K⁺)-activated ATPase. Adenosine, in the presence of GSH, maintains normal ATP levels and, additionally, exerts a protective effect on Mg²⁺-activated ATPase and possibly also on (Na⁺ + K⁺)-activated ATPase.     

The inhibitory effect of aluminium on the (Na+/K+)ATPase activity of rat brain cortex synaptosomes

The effect of AlCl(3) on the (Na(+)/K(+))ATPase activity of freeze-thawed synaptosomes, isolated from rat brain cortex, has been studied. The AlCl(3) action on the enzyme hydrolytic activity was examined using in vitro and in vivo approaches. Following exposure to AlCl(3) using both in vitro (synaptosomes incubated in the presence of AlCl(3) for 5 min) and in vivo (synaptosomes isolated from rats that received 0.03 g AlCl(3)/day for 4 months) approaches, the (Na(+)/K(+))ATPase activity was inhibited in a concentration-dependent way. The maximal inhibitory effect (approximately 60%) was observed in the presence of a AlCl(3) concentration >75 microM and at non-limiting ATP concentrations. Conversely, AlCl(3) did not inhibit the enzyme activity when UTP was used as substrate instead of ATP. Analysis of the substrate dependence of membrane-bound (Na(+)/K(+))ATPase by a computer simulation model suggests that the AlCl(3)-induced inhibitory effect is characterised by a reduction of the rate-limiting step velocity of the reaction cycle. Moreover, it seems that aluminium can induce impairment of the interprotomeric interaction within the oligomeric ensemble of membrane-bound (Na(+)/K(+))ATPase. In fact, this effect was accompanied by a slight, but significant, decrease of readily accessible SH groups, which are involved in the maintenance of the membrane-bound (Na(+)/K(+))ATPase oligomeric structure. In conclusion, during exposure to aluminium, reduction of the activation of membrane-bound (Na(+)/K(+))ATPase by high ATP concentrations occurs, which results in a partial inhibition of the enzyme.     

Lead ion activates phosphorylation of electroplax Na+- and K+-dependent adenosine triphosphatase ((NaK)-ATPase) in the absence of sodium ion.

PbCl₂ in micromolar concentrations stimulates phosphorylation of electroplax microsomal protein in the absence of Na⁺. Other divalent cations showed little or no such effect. The (Mg²⁺ + Pb²⁺)- and (Mg²⁺ + Na⁺)-dependent membrane-bound protein kinase activities in electroplax particulate preparations exhibit properties in common, including their acid stability, ouabain sensitivity, ATP specificity, and molecular size. It is concluded that the (Mg²⁺ + Pb²⁺)-dependent phosphoprotein is part of the Na⁺-, K⁺-dependent adenosine triphosphatase [(NaK)ATPase]. The Pb²⁺-dependent product, in contrast to the Na⁺-dependent one, is insensitive to K⁺ and the hydrolysis of ATP is thus inhibited.     

Characterization of the ATPase and GTPase activities of elongation factor 3 (EF-3) purified from yeasts

Three steps of chromatography of a post-ribosomal supernatant fraction have provided a highly purified preparation of peptide elongation factor 3 (EF-3) with a molecular weight of 125,000 from the typical budding yeast Saccharomyces carlsbergensis and of the factor with a molecular weight of 120,000 from the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Both of the proteins consist of a single peptide chain. The purified factors fulfilled the requirement for polyphenylalanine synthesis on yeast ribosomes and exhibited strong ATPase and GTPase activities dependent on yeast ribosomes. The activity profiles of the nucleotidases dependent on pH and salt concentration and the inhibition studies indicated that the ATPase and GTPase activities of EF-3 were displayed by the same active site with a wide substrate specificity, showing the highest activity with ATP. Those experiments also revealed that the ATPase and GTPase of EF-3 were characteristically different from the GTPases of EF-1 alpha and EF-2. Both Km and kcat of EF-3 for ATP (Km = 0.12 mM and Kcat = 610 mol/mol/min) and GTP (Km = 0.20 mM and kcat = 390 mol/mol/min) are much higher than those of the GTPases of EF-1 alpha and EF-2. Inactivation experiments and studies on the ATP effect led us to conclude that this ATPase activity was an essential requirement for the functional role of EF-3 and therefore, in addition to the GTPases of EF-1 alpha and EF-2, the third nucleoside triphosphate hydrolyzing step by the ATPase of EF-3 was necessary for the yeast peptide elongation cycle.     

Energy conservation in the decarboxylation of dicarboxylic acids by fermenting bacteria

Decarboxylation of dicarboxylic acids (oxalate, malonate, succinate, glutarate, and malate) can serve as the sole energy source for the growth of fermenting bacteria. Since the free energy change of a decarboxylation reaction is small (around –20 kJ per mol) and equivalent to only approximately one-third of the energy required for ATP synthesis from ADP and phosphate under physiological conditions, the decarboxylation energy cannot be conserved by substrate-level phosphorylation. It is either converted (in malonate, succinate, and glutarate fermentation) by membrane-bound primary decarboxylase sodium ion pumps into an electrochemical gradient of sodium ions across the membrane; or, alternatively, an electrochemical proton gradient can be established by the combined action of a soluble decarboxylase with a dicarboxylate/monocarboxylate antiporter (in oxalate and malate fermentation). The thus generated electrochemical Na⁺ or H⁺ gradients are then exploited for ATP synthesis by Na⁺- or H⁺-coupled F₁F₀ ATP synthases. This new type of energy conservation has been termed decarboxylation phosphorylation and is responsible entirely for ATP synthesis in several anaerobic bacteria. Received: 5 December 1997 / Accepted: 16 March 1998     

Membrane bound and soluble adenosine triphosphatase of Escherichia coli K 12. kinetic properties of the basal and trypsin-stimulated activities

Basal and trypsin-stimulated adenosine triphosphatase activities of Escherichia coli K 12 have been characterized at pH 7.5 in the membrane-bound state and in a soluble form of the enzyme. The saturation curve for Mg2+/ATP = 1/2 was hyperbolic with the membrane-bound enzyme and sigmoidal with the soluble enzyme. Trypsin did not modify the shape of the curves. The kinetic parameters were for the membrane-bound ATPase: apparent Km = 2.5 mM, Vmax (minus trypsin) = 1.6 mumol-min-1-mg protein-1, Vmax (plus trypsin) = 2.44 mumol-min-1-mg protein-1; for the soluble ATPase: [S0.5] = 1.2 mM, Vmax (-trypsin) = 4 mumol-min-1-mg protein-1; Vmax (+ trypsin) = 6.6 mumol-min-1-mg protein-1. Hill plot analysis showed a single slope for the membrane-bound ATPase (n = 0.92) but two slopes were obtained for the soluble enzyme (n = 0.98 and 1.87). It may suggest the existence of an initial positive cooperativity at low substrate concentrations followed by a lack of cooperativity at high ATP concentrations. Excess of free ATP and Mg2+ inhibited the ATPase but excess of Mg/ATP (1/2) did not. Saturation for ATP at constant Mg2+ concentration (4 mM) showed two sites (groups) with different Kms: at low ATP the values were 0.38 and 1.4 mM for the membrane-bound and soluble enzyme; at high ATP concentrations they were 17 and 20 mM, respectively. Mg2+ saturation at constant ATP (8 mM) revealed michealian kinetics for the membrane-bound ATPase and sigmoid one for the protein in soluble state. When the ATPase was assayed in presence of trypsin we obtained higher Km values for Mg2+. These results might suggest that trypsin stimulates E. coli ATPase by acting on some site(s) involved in Mg2+ binding. Adenosine diphosphate and inorganic phosphate (Pi) act as competitive inhibitors of Escherichia coli ATPase. The Ki values for Pi were 1.6 +/- 0.1 mM for the membrane-bound ATPase and 1.3 +/- 0.1 mM for the enzyme in soluble form, the Ki values for ADP being 1.7 mM and 0.75 mM for the membrane-bound and soluble ATPase, respectively. Hill plots of the activity of the soluble enzyme in presence of ADP showed that ADP decreased the interaction coefficient at ATP concentrations below its Km value. Trypsin did not modify the mechanism of inhibition or the inhibition constants. Dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (0.4 mM) inhibited the membrane-bound enzyme by 60-70% but concentrations 100 times higher did not affect the residual activity nor the soluble ATPase. This inhibition was independent of trypsin. Sodium azide (20 muM) inhibited both states of E. coli ATPase by 50%. Concentrations 25-fold higher were required for complete inhibition. Ouabain, atebrin and oligomycin did not affect the bacterial ATPase.