Cardiolipin is essential for higher proton translocation activity of reconstituted F_o

The Fo membrane domain of FoF1-ATPase complex had been purified from porcine heart mitochondria. SDS-PAGE with silver staining indicated that the purity of Fo was about 85% and the sample contained no subunits of F1-ATPase. The purified Fo was reconstituted into liposomes with different phospholipid composition, and the effect of CL (cardiolipin), PA (phosphatidic acid), PI (phosphatidylinositol) and PS (phosphatidylserine) on the H+ translocation activity of Fo was investigated. The results demonstrated that CL, PA and PI could promote the proton translocation of Fo with the order of CL>PA>>PI, while PS inhibited it. Meanwhile ADM (adriamycin) severely impaired the proton translocation activity of Fo vesicles containing CL, which suggested that CL's stimulation of the activity of reconstituted Fo might correlate with its non-bilayer propensity. After Fo was incorporated into the liposomes containing PE (phosphatidylethanolamine), DOPE (dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine) as well as DEPE (dielaidoylphospha     

Cardiolipin is essential for higher proton translocation activity of reconstituted F0

The F_o membrane domain of F_oF₁-ATPase complex had been purified from porcine heart mitochondria. SDS-PAGE with silver staining indicated that the purity of F_o was about 85% and the sample contained no subunits of F₁-ATPase. The purified F_o was reconstituted into liposomes with different phospholipid composition, and the effect of CL (cardiolipin), PA (phosphatidic acid), PI (phosphatidylinositol) and PS (phosphatidylserine) on the H⁺ translocation activity of F_o was investigated. The results demonstrated that CL, PA and PI could promote the proton translocation of F_o with the order of CL＞PA＞＞PI, while PS inhibited it. Meanwhile ADM (adriamycin) severely impaired the proton translocation activity of F_o vesicles containing CL, which suggested that CL’s stimulation of the activity of reconstituted F_o might correlate with its non-bilayer propensity. After F_o was incorporated into the liposomes containing PE (phosphatidylethanolamine), DOPE (dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine) as well as DEPE (dielaidoylphosphatidylethanolamine), it was found that the proton translocation activity of F_o vesicles increased with the increasing content of PE or DOPE, which has high propensity of forming non-bilayer structure, but was independent of DEPE. The dynamic quenching of the intrinsic fluorescence of tryptophan by HB (hypocrellin B) as well as fluorescent spectrum of acrylodan labeling F_o at cysteine indicated that CL could induce F_o to a suitable conformation resulting in higher proton translocation activity.     

Cardiolipin is essential for higher proton translocation activity of reconstituted F0

The F₀ membrane domain of F₀F₁-ATPase complex had been purified from porcine heart mitochondria. SDS-PAGE with silver staining indicated that the purity of F₀ was about 85% and the sample contained no subunits of F₁-ATPase. The purified F₀ was reconstituted into liposomes with different phospholipid composition, and the effect of CL (cardiolipin), PA (phosphatidic acid), PI (phosphatidylinositol) and PS (phosphatidylserine) on the H⁺ translocation activity of F₀ was investigated. The results demonstrated that CL, PA and PI could promote the proton translocation of F₀ with the order of CLPA>PI, while PS inhibited it. Meanwhile ADM (adriamycin) severely impaired the proton translocation activity of F₀ vesicles containing CL, which suggested that CL’s stimulation of the activity of reconstituted F₀ might correlate with its non-bilayer propensity. After F₀ was incorporated into the liposomes containing PE (phosphatidylethanolamine), DOPE (dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine) as well as DEPE (dielaidoylphosphatidylethanolamine), it was found that the proton translocation activity of F₀ vesicles increased with the increasing content of PE or DOPE, which has high propensity of forming non-bilayer structure, but was independent of DEPE. The dynamic quenching of the intrinsic fluorescence of tryptophan by HB (hypocrellin B) as well as fluorescent spectrum of acrylodan labeling F₀ at cysteine indicated that CL could induce F₀ to a suitable conformation resulting in higher proton translocation activity.     

Relevance of lipid polar headgroups on boron-mediated changes in membrane physical properties

Using liposomes composed of either brain phosphatidylcholine (PC), or binary mixtures of PC and phosphatidylserine (PS), galactolipids (GL), phosphatidylinositol (PI), cardiolipin (CL), phosphatidic acid (PA), or phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), we investigated the effects of graded amounts of boric acid (B, 0.5-1000 microM) on the following membrane physical properties: (a) surface potential, (b) lipid rearrangement through lateral phase separation, (c) fluidity, and (d) hydration. Incubation of the different populations of vesicles with B was associated with a small, but statistically significant, increase in membrane surface potential in PC, PC:PS, PC:GL, PC:PI, PC:PA, and PC:PE liposomes. B-induced lipid lateral rearrangement through lateral phase separation in PC, PC:PA, and PC:PE liposomes; but had no effects on PC:PS, PC:GL, and PC:PI liposomes. In PC liposomes B affected membrane fluidity at the water-lipid interface without affecting the hydrophobic core of the bilayer. In all the other binary liposomes studied, B increased membrane fluidity in both, the hydrophobic portion of the membrane and in the anionic domains. The above was associated with a decrease in the fluidity of the cationic domains. B (10-1000 microM) decreased membrane hydration regardless the composition of the liposomes. The obtained results demonstrate the ability of B to interact with membranes, and induce changes in membrane physical properties. Importantly, the extent of B-membrane interactions and the consequent effects were dependent on the nature of the lipid molecule; as such, B had greater affinity with lipids containing polyhydroxylated moieties such as GL and PI. These differential interactions may result in different B-induced modulations of membrane-associated processes in cells.     

Non-bilayer lipids are required for efficient protein transport across the plasma membrane of Escherichia coli.

The construction of a mutant Escherichia coli strain which cannot synthesize phosphatidylethanolamine provides a tool to study the involvement of non-bilayer lipids in membrane function. This strain produces phosphatidylglycerol and cardiolipin (CL) as major membrane constituents and requires millimolar concentrations of divalent cations for growth. In this strain, the lipid phase behaviour is tightly regulated by adjustment of the level of CL which favours a nonbilayer organization in the presence of specific divalent cations. We have used an in vitro system of inverted membrane vesicles to study the involvement of non-bilayer lipids in protein translocation in the secretion pathway. In this system, protein translocation is very low in the absence of divalent cations but can be enhanced by inclusion of Mg2+, Ca2+ or Sr2+ but not by Ba2+ which is unable to sustain growth of the mutant strain and cannot induce a non-bilayer phase in E. coli CL dispersions. Alternatively, translocation in cation depleted vesicles could be increased by incorporation of the non-bilayer lipid DOPE (18:1) but not by DMPE (14:0) or DOPC (18:1), both of which are bilayer lipids under physiological conditions. We conclude that non-bilayer lipids are essential for efficient protein transport across the plasma membrane of E. coli.     

Modulation of vitronectin receptor binding by membrane lipid composition.

The vitronectin (Vn) receptor belongs to the integrin family of proteins and although its biochemical structure is fully characterized little is known about its binding affinity and specificity. We report here that Vn receptor binding to different matrix proteins is influenced by the surrounding lipid composition of the membrane. Human placenta affinity purified Vn receptor was inserted into liposomes of different composition: (i) phosphatidylcholine (PC); (ii) PC+phosphatidylethanolamine (PE); (iii) PC+PE+phosphatidylserine (PS) + phosphatidylinositol (PI) + cholesterol (chol). The amount of purified material that could be incorporated into the three lipid vesicle preparations was proportional to the efficiency of the vesicle formation that increased from PC (38%) to PC+PE and PC+PE+PS+PI+chol (about 50%) vesicles. Electron microscopy analysis showed that the homogeneity and size of the three liposome preparations were comparable (20-nm diameter) but their binding capacity to a series of substrates differed widely. Vn receptor inserted in PC liposomes bound only Vn, but when it was inserted in PC+PE and PC+PE+PS+PI+chol liposomes it also attached to von Willebrand factor (vWF) and fibronectin (Fn). Vn receptor had higher binding capacity for substrates when it was inserted in PC+PE+PS+PI+chol than PC+PE liposomes. Antibodies to Vn receptor blocked Vn receptor liposome binding to Vn, vWF, and Fn. The intrinsic emission fluorescence spectrum of the Vn receptor reconstituted in PC+PE+PS+PI+chol liposomes was blue-shifted in relation to PC liposomes, suggesting a conformational change of the receptor in the membranes. These data provide direct evidence that the Vn receptor is "promiscuous" and can associate with Vn, vWF and Fn. The nature of the membrane lipid composition surrounding the receptor could thus influence its binding affinity, possibly by changing its conformation or exposure or both.     

Further study on the role of Mg2+ in lipid-protein interaction in reconstituted porcine heart mitochondrial H+-ATPase

Porcine heart mitochondrial H+-ATPase was reconstituted by cholate dialysis method in liposomes containing neutral (PC, PE), acidic (PG, PI, PA, PS, DPG) or neutral and acidic phospholipids. The Mg2+ effect on the ATPase activity and its sensitivity to oligomycin, ATP-induced delta psi and delta pH formation was observed for the proteoliposomes containing acidic but not neutral phospholipids. Maleimide spin labels with varying arm lengths or bromoacetamide spin probe were used to monitor the conformational difference of H+-ATPase in the Mg2+-containing and Mg2+-'free' samples. A difference in W/S ratio (weakly immobilized/strongly immobilized component in the ESR spectra) could be detected for the F0.F1-containing and F1-depleted, (F0)-containing proteoliposomes, suggesting conformational difference in the F0-F1 complex and F0 portion induced by the Mg2+ effect. A conformational change of the beta-subunits in the F1 portion was also deduced from the ATP-induced fluorescence quenching of aurovertin-complex for Mg2+-containing samples. The results obtained are in favor of our previous assumption that Mg2+ may play its role by altering the physical state of the lipid bilayer, which would induce a conformational change in F0 (buried in the lipid core), which in turn is transmitted to the catalytic F1, resulting in a higher enzyme activity.     

Cerebral Phospholipid Content and Na+, K+-ATPase Activity During Ischemia and Postischemic Reperfusion in the Mongolian Gerbil

Using bilateral carotid artery occlusion in adult gerbils we examined the effects of ischemia and ischemia/reperfusion on cerebral phospholipid content and Na+,K+-ATPase (EC 3.6.1.3) activity. In contrast to the large changes in phospholipid content and membrane-bound enzyme activity that have been observed in liver and heart tissues, we observed relatively small changes in the cerebral content of total phospholipid, phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylserine (PS), and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) following ischemic intervals of up to 240 min. Following 15 min of ischemia the cerebral content of sphingomyelin (SM) was decreased to less than 50% of control values but returned to near-normal levels with longer ischemic periods. Significant decreases in the cerebral content of phosphatidylinositol (PI) and phosphatidic acid (PA) were observed following shorter intervals of ischemia (15-45 min). Na+,K+-ATPase activity of cerebral homogenates prepared from the brains of gerbils subjected to 30-240 min of ischemia was decreased but significantly different from control activity only after 30 min of ischemia (-29%, p less than or equal to 0.05). With the exception of PS, reperfusion for 60 min following 60 min of ischemia resulted in marked increases in cerebral phospholipid content with PC, SM, PI, and PA levels exceeding and PE levels equal to preischemic values. Longer periods of reperfusion (180 min) resulted in decreases in cerebral phospholipid content toward (PC, SM, PI, and PA) or below (PE) preischemic levels. In contrast, the cerebral content of PS significantly decreased during reperfusion (-51% at 60 min, p less than or equal to 0.05) and remained below preischemic values even after 180 min of reperfusion.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Effects of lipid composition on membrane permeabilization by sticholysin I and II, two cytolysins of the sea anemone Stichodactyla helianthus

Sticholysin I and II (St I and St II), two basic cytolysins purified from the Caribbean sea anemone Stichodactyla helianthus, efficiently permeabilize lipid vesicles by forming pores in their membranes. A general characteristic of these toxins is their preference for membranes containing sphingomyelin (SM). As a consequence, vesicles formed by equimolar mixtures of SM with phosphatidylcholine (PC) are very good targets for St I and II. To better characterize the lipid dependence of the cytolysin-membrane interaction, we have now evaluated the effect of including different lipids in the composition of the vesicles. We observed that at low doses of either St I or St II vesicles composed of SM and phosphatidic acid (PA) were permeabilized faster and to a higher extent than vesicles of PC and SM. As in the case of PC/SM mixtures, permeabilization was optimal when the molar ratio of PA/SM was ~1. The preference for membranes containing PA was confirmed by inhibition experiments in which the hemolytic activity of St I was diminished by pre-incubation with vesicles of different composition. The inclusion of even small proportions of PA into PC/SM LUVs led to a marked increase in calcein release caused by both St I and St II, reaching maximal effect at ~5 mol % of PA. Inclusion of other negatively charged lipids (phosphatidylserine (PS), phosphatidylglycerol (PG), phosphatidylinositol (PI), or cardiolipin (CL)), all at 5 mol %, also elicited an increase in calcein release, the potency being in the order CL approximately PA > PG approximately PI approximately PS. However, some boosting effect was also obtained, including the zwitterionic lipid phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) or even, albeit to a lesser extent, the positively charged lipid stearylamine (SA). This indicated that the effect was not mediated by electrostatic interactions between the cytolysin and the negative surface of the vesicles. In fact, increasing the ionic strength of the medium had only a small inhibitory effect on the interaction, but this was actually larger with uncharged vesicles than with negatively charged vesicles. A study of the fluidity of the different vesicles, probed by the environment-sensitive fluorescent dye diphenylhexatriene (DPH), showed that toxin activity was also not correlated to the average membrane fluidity. It is suggested that the insertion of the toxin channel could imply the formation in the bilayer of a nonlamellar structure, a toroidal lipid pore. In this case, the presence of lipids favoring a nonlamellar phase, in particular PA and CL, strong inducers of negative curvature in the bilayer, could help in the formation of the pore. This possibility is confirmed by the fact that the formation of toxin pores strongly promotes the rate of transbilayer movement of lipid molecules, which indicates local disruption of the lamellar structure.     

Non-bilayer lipids stimulate the activity of the reconstituted bacterial protein translocase

To determine the phospholipid requirement of the preprotein translocase in vitro, the Escherichia coli SecYEG complex was purified in a delipidated form using the detergent dodecyl maltoside. SecYEG was reconstituted into liposomes composed of defined synthetic phospholipids, and proteoliposomes were analyzed for their preprotein translocation and SecA translocation ATPase activity. The activity strictly required the presence of anionic phospholipids, whereas the non-bilayer lipid phosphatidylethanolamine was found stimulatory. The latter effect could also be induced by dioleoylglycerol, a lipid that adopts a non-bilayer conformation. Phosphatidylethanolamine derivatives that prefer the bilayer state were unable to stimulate translocation. In the absence of SecG, activity was reduced, but the phospholipid requirement was unaltered. Remarkably, non-bilayer lipids were found essential for the activity of the Bacillus subtilis SecYEG complex. Optimal activity required a mixture of anionic and non-bilayer lipids at concentrations that correspond to concentrations found in the natural membrane.     

DOPE、DOPC对重组去脂肌质网Ca~(2+)-ATPase活力和构象的影响

经磷脂酶Ａ２ 去脂的肌质网Ｃａ２ ＋ － ＡＴＰａｓｅ 重组于不同比例的二油酰磷脂酰胆碱（Ｄｉｏｌｅｏｙｌｐｈｏｐｈａｔｉｄｙｌｃｈｏｌｉｎｅ,ＤＯＰＣ） 和二油酰磷脂酰乙醇胺（Ｄｉｏｌｅｏｙｌｐｈｏｐｈａｔｉｄｙｌｅｔｈａｎｏｌａｍｉｎｅ,ＤＯＰＥ） 形成脂酶体,研究了不同磷脂环境中Ｃａ２ ＋ － ＡＴＰａｓｅ 的ＡＴＰ 水解和Ｃａ２ ＋ 转运活力。结果表明,ＤＯＰＣ 和ＤＯＰＥ 分别有利于ＡＴＰ 水解和Ｃａ２ ＋ 的转运,ＤＯＰＥ 可以增强Ｃａ２ ＋ － ＡＴＰａｓｅ 的ＡＴＰ水解和Ｃａ２ ＋ 转运之间的偶联效率。利用内源荧光、荧光淬灭及Ｆｏｒｓｔｅｒ 能量转移原理测定Ｃａ２ ＋ －ＡＴＰａｓｅ 相应的构象变化, 发现随着ＤＯＰＥ／ ＤＯＰＣ 比例的改变使Ｃａ２ ＋ － ＡＴＰａｓｅ 构象发生相应的变化。     

Effects of lipids on the transport activity of the reconstituted glucose transport system from rat adipocyte

The glucose transport system, isolated from rat adipocyte membrane fractions, was reconstituted into phospholipid vesicles. Vesicles composed of crude egg yolk phospholipids, containing primarily phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), demonstrated specific d-glucose uptake. Purified vesicles made of PC and PE also supported such activity but PC or PE by themselves did not. The modulation of this uptake activity has been studied by systematically altering the lipid composition of the reconstituted system with respect to: (1) polar headgroups; (2) acyl chains, and (3) charge. Addition of small amounts (20 mol%) of PS, phosphatidylinositol (PI), cholesterol, or sphingomyelin significantly reduced glucose transport activity. A similar effect was seen with the charged lipid, phosphatidic acid. In the case of PS, this effect was independent of the acyl chain composition. Polar headgroup modification of PE, however, did not appreciably affect transport activity. Free fatty acids, on the other hand, increased or decreased activity based on the degree of saturation and charge. These results indicate that glucose transport activity is sensitive to specific alterations in both the polar headgroup and acyl chain composition of the surrounding membrane lipids.     

Fo portion of Escherichia coli ATP synthase. Further resolution of trypsin-generated fragments from subunit b

F1-stripped everted membrane vesicles of the ATP synthase-overproducing Escherichia coli strain KY 7485 were treated with trypsin for different lengths of time. Subsequently, the Fo complex was isolated and analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-gel electrophoresis, as well as immunoblotting using antibodies raised against subunit b. By these techniques 3 degradation products with apparent molecular masses of about 16 kDa could be detected in accordance with previous findings (Perlin, D.S., and Senior, A.E. (1985) Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 236, 603-611). Labeling of isolated trypsin-treated Fo fractions with the thiol-specific reagent N-(7-dimethylamino-4-methylcoumarinyl)-maleimide, which has been demonstrated recently to specifically modify subunit b (Schneider, E., and Altendorf, K. (1985) Eur. J. Biochem. 153, 105-109) revealed that the 16-kDa digestion products were degraded into two stable fragments of 12 and 8.3 kDa. These polypeptides do not react with the anti-b antibodies. Treatment of purified liposome-integrated Fo with trypsin resulted in a similar cleavage pattern. In both cases protease digestion inhibited F1 binding while proton-translocating activity remained unaffected. However, liposomes reconstituted with Fo isolated from trypsin-treated membranes were impaired in both binding of F1 and proton translocation. These activities could be restored when reconstitution was carried out in the presence of native subunit b. From this we conclude that the C-terminal region of subunit b is necessary for proper reconstitution of Fo into liposomes.     

Effect of lipid composition upon fusion of liposomes with Sendai virus membranes

How the lipid composition of liposomes determines their ability to fuse with Sendai virus membranes was tested. Liposomes were made of compositions designed to test postulated mechanisms of membrane fusion that require specific lipids. Fusion does not require the presence of lipids that can form micelles such as gangliosides or lipids that can undergo lamellar to hexagonal phase transitions such as phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), nor is a phosphatidylinositol (PI) to phosphatidic acid (PA) conversion required, since fusion occurs with liposomes containing phosphatidylcholine (PC) and any one of many different negatively charged lipids such as gangliosides, phosphatidylserine (PS), phosphatidylglycerol, dicetyl phosphate, PI, or PA. A negatively charged lipid is required since fusion does not occur with neutral liposomes containing PC and a neutral lipid such as globoside, sphingomyelin, or PE. Fusion of Sendai virus membranes with liposomes that contain PC and PS does not require Ca2+, so an anhydrous complex with Ca2+ or a Ca2+-induced lateral phase separation is not required although the possibility remains that viral binding causes a lateral phase separation. Sendai virus membranes can fuse with liposomes containing only PS, so a packing defect between domains of two different lipids is not required. The concentration of PS required for fusion to occur is approximately 10-fold higher than that required for ganglioside GD1a, which has been shown to act as a Sendai virus receptor. When cholesterol is added as a third lipid to liposomes containing PC and GD1a, the amount of fusion decreases if the GD1a concentration is low.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Membrane fusion activity of influenza virus. Effects of gangliosides and negatively charged phospholipids in target liposomes

Fusion of influenza virus with liposomes composed of negatively charged phospholipids differs from fusion with biological membranes or zwitterionic liposomes with ganglioside receptors [Stegmann, T., Hoekstra, D., Scherphof, G., & Wilschut, J. (1986) J. Biol. Chem. 261, 10966-10969]. In this study, we investigated how the kinetics and extent of fusion of influenza virus, monitored with a fluorescence resonance energy-transfer assay, are influenced by the surface charge and the presence of receptors on liposomal membranes. The results were analyzed in terms of mass action kinetic model, providing separate rate constants for the initial virus-liposome adhesion, or aggregation, and for the actual fusion reaction. Incorporation of increasing amounts of cardiolipin (CL) or phosphatidylserine (PS) into otherwise zwitterionic phosphatidylcholine (PC)/phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) vesicles results in a gradual shift of the pH threshold of fusion to neutral, relative to the pH threshold obtained with PC/PE vesicles containing the ganglioside GD1a, while also the rate of fusion increases. This indicates the emergence of a fusion mechanism not involving the well-documented conformational change in the viral hemagglutinin (HA). However, only with pure CL liposomes this nonphysiological fusion reaction dominates the overall fusion process; with pure PS or with zwitterionic vesicles containing CL or PS, the contribution of the nonphysiological fusion reaction is small. Accordingly, preincubation of the virus alone at low pH results in a rapid inactivation of the viral fusion capacity toward all liposome compositions studied, except pure CL liposomes. The results of the kinetic analyses show that with pure CL liposomes the rates of both virus-liposome adhesion and fusion are considerably higher than with all other liposome compositions studied.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Naja naja oxiana Cobra Venom Cytotoxins CTI and CTII Disrupt Mitochondrial Membrane Integrity: Implications for Basic Three-Fingered Cytotoxins

Cobra venom cytotoxins are basic three-fingered, amphipathic, non-enzymatic proteins that constitute a major fraction of cobra venom. While cytotoxins cause mitochondrial dysfunction in different cell types, the mechanisms by which cytotoxins bind to mitochondria remain unknown. We analyzed the abilities of CTI and CTII, S-type and P-type cytotoxins from Naja naja oxiana respectively, to associate with isolated mitochondrial fractions or with model membranes that simulate the mitochondrial lipid environment by using a myriad of biophysical techniques. Phosphorus-31 nuclear magnetic resonance (³¹P-NMR) spectroscopy data suggest that both cytotoxins bind to isolated mitochondrial fractions and promote the formation of aberrant non-bilayer structures. We then hypothesized that CTI and CTII bind to cardiolipin (CL) to disrupt mitochondrial membranes. Collectively, ³¹P-NMR, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), proton NMR (¹H-NMR), deuterium NMR (²H-NMR) spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and erythrosine phosphorescence assays suggest that CTI and CTII bind to CL to generate non-bilayer structures and promote the permeabilization, dehydration and fusion of large unilamellar phosphatidylcholine (PC) liposomes enriched with CL. On the other hand, CTII but not CTI caused biophysical alterations of large unilamellar PC liposomes enriched with phosphatidylserine (PS). Mechanistically, single molecule docking simulations identified putative CL, PS and PC binding sites in CTI and CTII. While the predicted binding sites for PS and PC share a high number of interactive amino acid residues in CTI and CTII, the CL biding sites in CTII and CTI are more divergent as it contains additional interactive amino acid residues. Overall, our data suggest that cytotoxins physically associate with mitochondrial membranes by binding to CL to disrupt mitochondrial structural integrity.     

Effects of lipids on the interaction of SecA with model membranes.

The effects of nonlamellar-prone lipids, diacylglycerol and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), on the kinetic association of SecA with model membranes were examined by measuring changes in the intrinsic emission fluorescence with a stopped-flow apparatus. Upon interaction with standard liposomes composed of 50 mol% dioleolyphosphatidylcholine (DOPC) and 50 mol% of dioleoylphosphatidylglycerol (DOPG), the intrinsic fluorescence intensity of SecA was decreased after a lapse of time with a rate constant of 0.0049 s(-1). When the DOPC of the standard vesicles was gradually replaced with either dioeloyl PE (DOPE) or Escherichia coli (E. coli) PE, the rate constant increased appreciably as a function of PE concentration, in the order DOPE > E. coli PE. In addition, when the PE of E. coli PE/DOPG (50/50) vesicles was replaced with more than 5 mol% dioleoylglycerol (DOG), the rate constant further increased by 40%. The incorporation of nonlamellar-prone lipids in the vesicles also enhanced the binding of SecA to model membranes in the order DOPE > or = E. coli PE/DOG > E. coli PE > DOPC. These results provide the first kinetic evidence for the importance of nonlamellar-prone phospholipids for the association rate of SecA with membranes.     

Decreased lipid order induced by microsomal cytochrome P-450 and NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase in model membranes: fluorescence and electron spin resonance studies

Cytochrome P-450 and NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase were reconstituted in unilamellar lipid vesicles prepared by the cholate dialysis technique from pure dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC), pure dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC), pure dioleoylphosphatidylcholine (DOPC), and phosphatidylcholine/phosphatidylethanolamine/phosphatidylserine (PC/PE/PS) (10:5:1). As probes for the vesicles' hydrocarbon region, 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) and spin-labeled PC were used. The steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence parameters of DPH were determined as a function of temperature and composition of liposomes. Incorporation of either protein alone or together increased the steady-state fluorescence anisotropy (rs) of DPH in DOPC and PC/PE/PS (10:5:1) liposomes. In DMPC and DPPC vesicles, the proteins decreased rs significantly below the transition temperature (Tc) of the gel to liquid-crystalline phase transition. Time-resolved fluorescence measurements of DPH performed in reconstituted PC/PE/PS and DMPC proteoliposomes showed that the proteins disorder the bilayer both in the gel and in the liquid-crystalline phase. Little disordering by the proteins was observed by a spin-label located near the mid-zone of the bilayer 1-palmitoyl-2-(5-doxylstearoyl)-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine (8-doxyl-PC), whereas pronounced disordering was detected by 1-palmitoyl-2-(8-doxylpalmitoyl)-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine (5-doxyl-PC), which probes the lipid zone closer to the polar part of the membrane. Fluorescence lifetime measurements of DPH indicate an average distance of greater than or equal to 60 A between the heme of cytochrome P-450 and DPH.     

Characterization of reconstituted Fo from wild-type Escherichia coli and identification of two other fluxes co-purifying with Fo

We purified the ATPase Fo sector from a nonoverexpressing strain of Escherichia coli, reconstituted it into lipid vesicles made of either asolectin or two different mixtures of purified lipids, and measured proton flux through the reconstituted proton channel. We measured single-channel conductances and found that Fo activity depends on both lipids and reconstitution methods. In asolectin vesicles, Fo has a single-channel conductance of about 0.2 fS. Additionally, the relatively impure Fo prepared from cells carrying single-copy ATPase genes allowed us to observe two other fluxes, a nonselective cation leak (C(L)) and a slow H+ flux (Hs). Unlike the Fo flux, these fluxes could not be blocked by the Fo inhibitor DCCD. The C, reduces the total apparent trapped volume inside vesicles and therefore must equilibrate both H+ and K+ in the vesicles that contain it. When reconstituted into bilayers, these Fo preparations displayed a 120 pS cation channel with characteristics consistent with C(L) flux. The Hs conducts only H+ but at a slower rate than the Fo. We were therefore able to: 1) quantitate the single-channel conductance of the Fo, 2) demonstrate that our Fo purification method co-purified other membrane proteins that have ion-conduction properties, and 3) show that certain lipids are necessary for functional reconstitution of Fo.     

Effect of phospholipase A2 on purified gastric vesicles

The phospholipid and fatty acid composition and role of phospholipids in enzyme and transport function of gastric (H⁺+K⁺)-ATPase vesicles was studied using phospholipase A₂ (bee venom). The composition (%) was phosphatidylcholine (PC) 33%; sphingomyelin (sph) 25%; phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) 22%; phosphatidylserine (PS) 11%; and phosphatidylinositol (PI) 8%. The fatty acid composition showed a high degree of unsaturation. In both fresh and lyophilized preparations, even with prolonged incubation, only 50% of phospholipids were hydrolyzed, but the amount of PE and PS disappearing was increased following lyophilization. There was a marked decrease in K⁺-ATPase activity (75%) but essentially no loss of the associated K₊ p-nitrophenyl phosphatase was found. ATPase activity could be largely restored by various phospholipids (PE > PC > PS). There was also an increase in Mg²⁺-ATPase activity, partially reversed in fresh preparations by the addition of phospholipids (PE > PS > PC). Proton transport activity of the preparation was rapidly inhibited, initially due to a large increase in the HC1 permeability of the preparation. Associated with these enzymatic and functional changes, the ATP-induced conformational changes, as indicated by circular dichroism spectra were inhibited.