The mode of inhibition of oxidative phosphorylation by efrapeptin (A23871): measurement of substrate effects on rates of inactivation by a tight-binding inhibitor.

Equations are derived for predicting the effects of substrate concentration on the inactivation rate constants of tight-binding competitive and uncompetitive inhibitors. These relationships are used to study the inhibition of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation by efrapeptin. The results show that the apparent rate constant for efrapeptin inactivation of ATP synthesis decreases with increase in phosphate concentration. The reciprocal of the observed rate constant varies linearly with changes in the level of phosphate as predicted for a competitive inhibitor. The concentrations of ADP during ATP synthesis and of ATP during ATP hydrolysis, on the other hand, have no effect on the rate of inactivation by efrapeptin. This is in contrast to previous observations that adenine nucleotide substrates influence the level of efrapeptin bound at equilibrium (R. L. Cross, and W. E. Kohlbrenner, 1978, J. Biol. Chem.253, 4865–4873). The results suggest that efrapeptin interacts primarily at the phosphate binding site and that adenine nucleotides may influence equilibrium binding of efrapeptin by affecting the rate of dissociation of the inhibitor. Studies of efrapeptin inhibition of ATP synthesis under pseudo-first-order conditions show that the onset of inhibition is first order with respect to efrapeptin. The maximum apparent rate constant for efrapeptin binding, obtained by extrapolation to zero phosphate concentration, is 1.5 × 10⁵m^?1 s^?1. Also described is a computer program for calculating the concentrations of complexes formed in a mixture of interacting species. The program may be used for most multiple-equilibrium calculations and permits the estimation of the levels of protonated complexes at any pH. The program was used to select Mg²⁺ concentrations which ensure that a large and relatively constant fraction of added ADP is present as MgADP. In the range of phosphate and ADP concentrations commonly used in studies of oxidative phosphorylation a 3 mm excess of Mg²⁺ relative to ADP was found sufficient to maintain high levels of MgADP at pH 8.0.     

Studies on the mechanism of oxidative phosphorylation. Catalytic site cooperativity in ATP synthesis

Oxidative phosphorylation catalyzed by bovine heart submitochondrial particles appears to exhibit negative cooperativity with respect to [ADP] and positive cooperativity in catalysis. Eadie-Hofstee plots (v/[S]versus v) of the kinetics of oxidative phosphorylation at the variable ADP concentration range of 1-1200 microM were curvilinear and could be analyzed for two apparent KmADP values differing by one order of magnitude, and two apparent Vmax values. The KmADP values with either NADH or succinate as the respiratory substrate were in the ranges of 10 and 100 microM, and the Vmax values in nmol of ATP formed X min-1 (mg of protein)-1 were, respectively, 500 and 1840 when NADH was the oxidizable substrate, and 550 and 100 when succinate was the energy source. Site-site cooperativity of the ATP synthase, which is a central feature of current theories for the mechanism of oxidative phosphorylation, has been well-documented for ATP hydrolysis by isolated F1-ATPase, but never before demonstrated for mitochondrial ATP synthesis.     

Molecular mechanism of ATP synthesis in oxidative phosphorylation

The experiments described in this paper may perhaps point the way towards a reaction mechanism for oxidative phosphorylation. However, we are not yet in a position to write a detailed chemical equation, supported by experimental evidence, for the mechanism of ATP synthesis. Continued pursuit of some of the implications of these experiments will be very much dependent on information presently unavailable. For example, it would be of great value to have three-dimensional X-ray crystal structures for F0 as well as F1. It will also be important to know the pathway of proton translocation through the ATPase complex. We shall surely require entirely new experimental tools to probe many of these questions.     

On the mechanism of ATP synthesis in oxidative phosphorylation: A review

It is shown that the presently available evidence supports the existence of two entry points for water oxygen in the mitochondrial oxygen exchanges. This in turn provides support for the pseudorotation reaction mechanism of ATP synthesis which is the only mechanism of ATP synthesis proposed to date allowing for two entry points of water oxygen. It is also shown that the pseudorotation mechanism can resolve the apparent paradox of a P₁ ? H₂O exchange·separate from the reversal of phosphorylation yet dependent on the mechanism of P₁ activation. In addition an interpretation consistent with the experimental observations concerning As_i-induced stimulation of respiration and effects associated with oligomycin and aurovertin is shown to follow from the analysis of the oxygen exchanges. Implications of the pseudorotation mechanism for the mechanism of energy coupling in oxidative phosphorylation are discussed.     

Studies on the mechanism of oxidative phosphorylation. Positive cooperativity in ATP synthesis

Kinetic and nucleotide binding studies have shown that submitochondrial particles from bovine heart possess three exchangeable binding sites for ADP or GDP. In order of decreasing affinity at neutral pH, these sites will be referred to as sites I, II, and III, and their respective dissociation constants as KI, KII, and KIII. In oxidative phosphorylation experiments in the presence of saturating amounts of inorganic phosphate, rapid ATP (or GTP) synthesis occurred only upon ADP (or GDP) binding to site III. The Eadie-Hofstee plots (v/[S] on the ordinate versus v on the abscissa) of the kinetics of ATP (or GTP) synthesis at variable ADP (or GDP) were, therefore, composed of an initial upward phase, indicating positive cooperativity with respect to substrate concentration, followed by a downward phase where rapid product formation took place. These data allowed calculation of KII from the upward phase and KIII (equivalent to apparent Km) from the downward phase. KI was estimated from Scatchard plots of binding data with radiolabeled ADP or GDP. Thus, together with our previous results, these findings have allowed characterization of the process of ATP or GTP synthesis by bovine-heart submitochondrial particles in terms of KI, KII, KIII, and kcat.     

The mechanism of inhibition by oligomycin of oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria

1. The concentration of specific oligomycin-binding sites in rat-liver mitochondria is 0.12 nmole/mg protein, whereas at least 10-times more oligomycin can be bound non-specifically.

2. The activity of oligomycin-inhibited processes in intact mitochondria and submitochondrial particles cannot be restored by treatment with egg lecithin or mitochondrial phospholipids.

3. Analysis of the kinetics of inhibition of State-3 respiration by oligomycin reveals that (i) after a certain lag period the inhibition by oligomycin is pseudo-first order with respect to the respiratory-control ratio, defined as the ratio of the respiratory rate at time t to that of the final inhibited site, (ii) the value of the pseudo-first-order rate constant (k₀) is dependent on the oligomycin: protein ratio, phospholipid: protein ratio, pH and temperature, (iii) the effects of various substrates and inhibitors of electron transfer on the kinetics of oligomycin inhibition can be explained by their effects on respiratory control.

4. A detailed model is proposed for the interaction of oligomycin with mitochondria. It is proposed that two conformations of the oligomycin-sensitive site are present, and that oligomycin specifically binds to the conformation that is involved in the induction of respiratory control.     

The kinetic mechanism of action of an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation.

The chemiosmotic hypothesis predicts that the mechanism by which weak acids uncouple oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria is identical to the mechanism by which they transport hydrogen ions across artificial bilayer membranes. We report here the results of a kinetic study of uncoupler-mediated hydrogen ion transport across bilayer membranes. We made electrical relaxation measurements on black lipid membranes exposed to the substituted benzimidazole 5,6-dichloro-2-trifluoromethylbenzimidazole. The simplest model consistent with our experimental data allowed us to deduce values for adsorption coefficients and rate constants. Our major conclusions are that the back diffusion of the neutral species is the rate limiting step for the steady state transport of hydrogen ions, that both the neutral and charged forms of the uncoupler adsorb strongly to the interfaces, and that the reactions at the membrane-solution interfaces occur sufficiently rapidly for equilibrium to be maintained. Independent measurements of the adsorption coefficients of both the neutral and anionic forms of the weak acid and also of the permeability of the membrane to the neutral form agreed well with the values deduced from the kinetic study.     

Catalytic site occupancy during ATP hydrolysis by MF1-ATPase. Evidence for alternating high affinity sites during steady-state turnover

The mechanism of ATP hydrolysis by the solubilized mitochondrial ATPase (MF1) has been studied under conditions where catalytic turnover occurs at one site, uni-site catalysis (obtained when enzyme is in excess of substrate), or at two sites, bi-site catalysis (obtained when substrate is in excess of enzyme). Pulse-chase experiments support the conclusion that the sites which participate in bi-site catalysis are the same as those which participate in uni-site catalysis. Upon addition of ATP in molar excess to MF1, label that was bound under uni-site conditions dissociates at a rate equal to the rate of bi-site catalysis. Similarly, when medium ATP is removed, label that was bound under bi-site conditions dissociates at a rate equal to the rate of uni-site catalysis. Evidence that a high affinity catalytic site equivalent to the one observed under uni-site conditions participates as an intermediate in bi-site catalysis includes the demonstration of full occupancy of a catalytically competent site during steady-state turnover at nanomolar concentrations of ATP. Improved measurements of the interaction of ADP at a high affinity catalytic site have lead to the revision of several of the rate constants that define uni-site catalysis. The rate constant for unpromoted dissociation of ADP is equal to that for Pi (4 X 10(-3) s-1). The rate of binding ADP at a high affinity chaseable site (Kd = 1 nM) is equal to the rate of binding ATP (4 X 10(6) M-1 s-1). The rate of catalysis obtained when substrate binding at one site promotes product release from an adjacent site (bi-site catalysis) is up to 100,000-fold faster than unpromoted product release (uni-site catalysis).     

Thermodynamic limits to the ATP/site stoichiometries of oxidative phosphorylation by rat liver mitochondria

From measurements of reactants, products, and the oxidation-reduction state of cytochrome c + c1 during 3-hydroxybutyrate-supported oxidative phosphorylation by rat liver mitochondria at static head (state 4), we determined the free energy change of ATP formation from ADP and Pi (phosphorylation potential or delta GP) and the oxidation-reduction free energy changes (redox potentials or delta GR values) across Sites 1 + 2 (delta GR1 + 2), across Site 3 (delta GR3), and across Sites 1 + 2 + 3 (delta GR). At pH 7.4, -delta GR1 + 2/delta GP, -delta GR3/delta GP, and -delta GR/delta GP were maximally 1.80, 1.56, and 3.37. These can be taken as thermodynamic upper limits to the ATP/Sites 1 + 2, ATP/Site 3, and ATP/O stoichiometry of 3-hydroxybutyrate-supported oxidative phosphorylation. The theory of linear nonequilibrium thermodynamics were employed to estimate lower limits to the ATP/site stoichiometries. The lower limit is given by the expression, q2(-delta GRsite/delta GP). The degree of coupling, q, was 0.977 as determined from the dependence of respiratory rate on delta GP. Determined in this way, lower limits of the ATP/Sites 1 + 2, ATP/Site 3, and ATP/O stoichiometries were 1.67, 1.44, and 3.11, respectively. ADP addition to mitochondria incubated at static head lowered delta GP by 1.1 kcal/mol and stimulated respiration by a factor of about 2.5 but caused negligible changes in delta GR1 + 2 and delta GR3. This observation demonstrates that the respiratory reactions from substrate to cytochrome c and from cytochrome c to oxygen both move away from thermodynamic equilibrium with delta GP during the transition from resting to active oxidative phosphorylation. The findings are discussed in terms of current schemes of chemiosmotic coupling.     

Evidence for a chemiosmotic mechanism of ATP synthesis in methanogenic bacteria

Recent studies on methanogenesis from methanol and H₂ in Methanosarcina barkeri have provided the first proof of a chemiosmotic mechanism of ATP synthesis in methanogenic bacteria.     

Kinetics of oxidative phosphorylation in Paracoccus denitrificans. 1. Mechanism of ATP synthesis at the active site(s) of F0F1-ATPase

(1) The rate of ATP synthesis during NADH-driven aerobic respiration has been measured in plasma membrane vesicles from Paracoccus denitrificans as a function of the concentration of the substrates, ADP and inorganic phosphate (Pi). In both cases, the response of the reaction to changes in the degree of saturation of the F0F1-ATPase generated a perfect Micaelian dependence which allowed the determination of the corresponding Michaelis constants, KmADP and KmPi. (2) These kinetic parameters possess a real mechanistic significance, as concluded from the partial reduction of the rate of phosphorylation by the energy-transfer inhibitor venturicidin and the consequent analysis of the results within the framework of the theory of metabolic control. (3) The same membrane vesicles, which catalyze very high rates of ATP synthesis, have been shown to support much lower rates of the exchange ATP in equilibrium Pi and negligible rates of ATP hydrolysis. Under similar conditions, the preparations are also capable of generating phosphorylation potentials, delta Gp, of 60-61 kJ.mol-1. (4) These properties have allowed analysis of the synthetic reaction in the presence of significant concentrations of the product, ATP, using integrated forms of the Michaelis-Menten rate equations. (5) It has been shown that ATP produces pure competitive product inhibition of the forward reaction with a value of KiATP = 16 +/- 1 microM, thus indicating that the affinity of the nucleotide for the active site(s) of the F0F1-ATPase, during net ATP synthesis, is significantly higher than previously thought. (6) The order of binding of the substrates, ADP and Pi, to the active site(s) has been determined as random. (7) At very low concentrations of ADP, a second and much smaller Michaelis constant for this substrate has been identified, with an estimated value of KmADP approximately equal to 50 nM, associated with a maximal rate of only 2% of that measured at a higher range of concentrations. (8) The results obtained are discussed in relation to the presence of two or three equivalent catalytic sites operating in the cooperative manner explicitly described by the binding change mechanism.     

The kinetic mechanism of action of an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation

Summary The chemiosmotic hypothesis predicts that the mechanism by which weak acids uncouple oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria is identical to the mechanism by which they transport hydrogen ions across artificial bilayer membranes. We report here the results of a kinetic study of uncoupler-mediated hydrogen ion transport across bilayer membranes. We made electrical relaxation measurements on black lipid membranes exposed to the substituted benzimidazole 5,6-dichloro-2-trifluoromethylbenzimidazole. The simplest model consistent with our experimental data allowed us to deduce values for adsorption coefficients and rate constants. Our major conclusions are that the back diffusion of the neutral species is the rate limiting step for the steady state transport of hydrogen ions, that both the neutral and charged forms of the uncoupler adsorb strongly to the interfaces, and that the reactions at the membrane-solution interfaces occur sufficiently rapidly for equilibrium to be maintained. Independent measurements of the adsorption coefficients of both the neutral and anionic forms of the weak acid and also of the permeability of the membrane to the neutral form agreed well with the values deduced from the kinetic study.