Quantitative analysis of proton-linked transport systems. Glutamate transport in Staphylococcus aureus.

1. The magnitude of the protonmotive force in respiring Staphylococcus aureus was measured over the range of extracellular pH from 5.6 to 7.8. 2. The membrane potential remains constant at 150 mV, inside-negative, but the pH gradient decreases from 2.1 units, inside-alkaline, at pH 5.6 to zero at pH 7.5 and above. 3. The accumulation of glutamate in the soluble cell pool is pH-independent at a value equivalent to 100 mV. 4. The results of experiments studying co-transport of protons are consistent with a proton/glutamate stoichiometry of 2 and electrogenic transport across the pH range examined. 5. The amount of glutamate uptake is the result of a kinetic steady state between influx and efflux pathways. 6. Evidence is presented for the regulation of this kinetic steady state by the response of the initial rate of uptake to changes in the protonmotive force.     

The protonmotive force in bovine heart submitochondrial particles. Magnitude, sites of generation and comparison with the phosphorylation potential.

1. The magnitude of the protonmotive force in respiring bovine heart submitochondrial particles was estimated. The membrane-potential component was determined from the uptake of S14CN-ions, and the pH-gradient component from the uptake of [14C]methylamine. In each case a flow-dialysis technique was used to monitor uptake. 2. With NADH as substrate the membrane potential was approx. 145mV and the pH gradient was between 0 and 0.5 unit when the particles were suspended in a Pi/Tris reaction medium. The addition of the permeant NO3-ion decreased the membrane potential with a corresponding increase in the pH gradient. In a medium containing 200mM-sucrose, 50mM-KCl and Hepes as buffer, the total protonmotive force was 185mV, comprising a membrane potential of 90mV and a pH gradient of 1.6 units. Thus the protonmotive force was slightly larger in the high-osmolarity medium. 3. The phosphorylation potential (= deltaG0' + RT ln[ATP]/[ADP][Pi]) was approx. 43.1 kJ/mol (10.3kcal/mol) in all the reaction media tested. Comparison of this value with the protonmotive force indicates that more than 2 and up to 3 protons must be moved across the membrane for each molecule of ATP synthesized by a chemiosmotic mechanism. 4. Succinate generated both a protonmotive force and a phosphorylation potential that were of similar magnitude to those observed with NADH as substrate. 5. Although oxidation of NADH supports a rate of ATP synthesis that is approximately twice that observed with succinate, respiration with either of these substrates generated a very similar protonmotive force. Thus there seemed to be no strict relation between the size of the protonmotive force and the phosphorylation rate. 6. In the presence of antimycin and/or 2-n-heptyl-4-hydroxyquinoline N-oxide, ascorbate oxidation with either NNN'N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine or 2,3,5,6-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine as electron mediator generated a membrane potential of approx. 90mV, but no pH gradient was detected, even in the presence of NO3-. These data are discussed with reference to the proposal that cytochrome oxidase contains a proton pump.     

The requirement for energy during export of beta-lactamase in Escherichia coli is fulfilled by the total protonmotive force.

The energy requirement for the maturation and export of the plasmid-encoded TEM beta-lactamase in Escherichia coli K12 was shown to be fulfilled by the total protonmotive force. This was demonstrated by assessing the inhibition of proteolytic processing of the precursor form of beta-lactamase caused by perturbation of the energized state of the membrane in cells treated with valinomycin. The magnitude of the membrane potential was manipulated by varying the concentration of KCl in the medium and the pH gradient was manipulated by varying the external pH. Both components were simultaneously affected by addition of the protonophore carbonylcyanide-p- trifluoromethoxy phenylhydrazone (FCCP). Inhibition of processing was demonstrated in a mutant strain having a defective ATP synthase where protonmotive force could be dissipated without altering the intracellular level of ATP, indicating that the observed inhibition was not the result of decreased ATP concentration. Half-maximal accumulation of precursor of beta-lactamase was observed in all cases when the level of protonmotive force was decreased to approximately 150 mV. Under those conditions the membrane potential varied from 65 to 140 mV (internally negative) and the pH gradient from 95 to 25 mV (internally alkaline). Thus, the energy requirement is satisfied by the total protonmotive force, with no specificity for either the membrane potential or the pH gradient.     

Evidence for an electrogenic 3-deoxy-2-oxo-D-gluconate--proton co-transport driven by the protonmotive force in Escherichia coli K12.

Evidence is presented indicating that the carrier-mediated uptake of 3-deoxy-2-oxo-D-gluconate and D-glucuronate in Escherichia coli K12 is driven by the deltapH and deltapsi components of the protonmotive force. 1. Approximately two protons enter the cells with each sugar molecule, independent of the sugar and the strain used. 2. In respiring cells, the magnitude of the pH gradient alone, as measured by distribution of [3H]acetate, appears to be insufficient to account for the chemical gradient of 3-deoxy-2-oxo-D-gluconate that is developed between pH 6.0 and 8.0. 3. If the external pH is varied between 5.5 and 8.0, 3-deoxy-2-oxo-D-gluconate uptake is gradually inhibited by valinomycin plus K+ ions, whereas the inhibition caused by nigericin is concomitantly relieved, thus reflecting the relative contribution of deltapH and deltapsi to the total protonmotive force at each external pH. 4. 3-Deoxy-2-oxo-D-gluconate can be transiently accumulated into isolated membrane vesicles in response to an artificially induced pH gradient. The process is stimulated when the membrane potential is collapsed by valinomycin in the presence of K+ ions.     

Stoichiometry of the H+-ATPase of growing and resting, aerobic Escherichia coli

The H+/ATP stoichiometry of the proton-translocating ATPase was investigated in growing and nongrowing, respiring cells of Escherichia coli. The protonmotive force, delta p, was determined by measuring the transmembrane chemical gradient of protons, delta pH, from the cellular accumulation of benzoate anions, and the electrical gradient, delta psi, from the accumulation of the lipophilic cation tetraphenylphosphonium (TPP+). The accumulation of lactose was also used to calculate the delta p in this lactose operon constitutive beta-galactosidase negative mutant. The phosphorylation potential, delta GP', was determined by measuring the cellular concentration of ATP, ADP, and inorganic phosphate. According to chemiosmotic principles, at steady state the phosphorylation potential is in thermodynamic equilibrium with the protonmotive force, and thus the ratio delta p/delta GP' can be used to determine the H+/ATP ratio. Respiring E. coli cells, in mid-exponential phase of growth or incubated in buffer, at external pHs from 6.25 to 8.25 had a constant delta GP' of about 500 mV. The H+/ATP ratio was found to be 3 when the delta p value derived from lactose accumulation levels was used. However, when the delta p values derived from delta pH and delta psi were used in the calculations, the H+/ATP ratio varied from about 2.5 at external pH 6.25 to about 4 at pH 8.25. Arguments are presented for the hypothesis that the delta psi values obtained from the TPP+ measurements are likely to be inaccurate and that a value of 3 H+/ATP, independent of the external pH, is likely to be the valid stoichiometry.     

Coupling between the sodium and proton gradients in respiring Escherichia coli cells measured by 23Na and 31P nuclear magnetic resonance

The relationship between the steady-state sodium gradient (delta pNa) and the protonmotive force developed by endogenously respiring Escherichia coli cells has been studied quantitatively, using 23Na NMR for measurement of intracellular and extracellular sodium concentrations, 31P NMR for measurement of intracellular and extracellular pH, and tetraphenylphosphonium distribution for measurement of membrane potential. At constant protonmotive force, the sodium concentration gradient was independent of extracellular concentrations over the measured range of 4-285 mM, indicating that intracellular sodium concentration is not regulated. The magnitude of delta pNa was measured as a function of the composition and magnitude of the protonmotive force. At external pH values below 7.2, delta pNa was parallel to delta pH but showed no simple relationship to the membrane potential; above pH 7.2 the parallel relationship began to diverge, with delta pH continuing to decrease but delta pNa starting to level off or increase. Although plots of delta pNa versus delta pH had slopes of close to 1, the value of delta pNa consistently exceeded that of delta pH by approximately 0.4 units, indicating a partially electrogenic character to the putative H+/Na+ antiport. The apparent stoichiometry was 1.13 +/- 0.01 at external pH below 7.2. The possible significance of this nonintegral stoichiometry is discussed according to a model in which two distinct integral stoichiometries (possibly 1H+/1Na+ and 2H+/1Na+) are available with some relative probability; the model predicts futile cycling of sodium ions and a dissipative proton current. In the course of this study, we discovered that the magnitude of the pH gradient developed by the cells was osmolarity-dependent, yielding steady-state intracellular pH values that varied from 7.1 at 100 mosm to 7.7 at 800 mosm.     

Protonmotive force as the source of energy for adenosine 5''-triphosphate synthesis in Escherichia coli.

Net synthesis of adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) in energy-depleted cells of Escherichia coli was observed when an inwardly directed protonmotive force was artificially imposed. In wild-type cells, ATP synthesis occurred whether the protonmotive force was dominated by the membrane potential (negative inside) or the pH gradient (alkaline inside). Formation of ATP did not occur unless the protonmotive force exceeded a value of 200 mV. Under these conditions, no ATP synthesis was found when cells were exposed to an inhibitor of the membrane-bound Ca2+- and Mg2+- stimulated adenosine triphosphatase (EC 3.6.1.3), dicyclohexylcarbodiimide, or to a proton conductor, carbonylcyanide-p-trifluoromethoxyphenyl-hydrazone. Adenosine triphosphatase-negative mutants failed to show ATP synthesis in response to either a membrane potential or a pH gradient. ATP synthesis driven by a protonmotive force was observed in a cytochrome-deficient mutant. These observations are consistent with the chemiosmotic hypothesis of Mitchell (1961, 1966, 1974).     

Hydrogen ion gradients across the mitochondrial, endosomal and plasma membranes in bloodstream forms of trypanosoma brucei solving the three-compartment problem.

Conditions for the use of both [14C]methylamine and 5, 5-dimethyl[14C]oxa-azolidine-2,4-dione (DMO) to measure the H+ concentration of intracellular compartments of monomorphic long thin bloodstream forms of Trypanosoma brucei were established. Neither probe was actively transported or bound to internal components of the cell and both probes equilibrated passively with a t1/2 close to 8 min. DMO was excluded from cells, while methylamine was accumulated but not metabolized. Solution of the three-compartment problem revealed that, when cells were respiring aerobically on glucose at an external pH of 7.5, the cytoplasmic pH was in the range 6.99-7.03, the pH of the mitochondrial matrix was 7.71-7.73, and the algebraic average pH of the various endosomal compartments was 5.19-5.50. Similar values were found when cells were respiring aerobically on glycerol. However, bloodstream forms of T. brucei could not maintain a constant internal H+ concentration outside the external pH range 7.0-7.5, and no evidence for the presence of an H+/Na+ exchanger was found. Full motility and levels of pyruvate production were maintained as the external pH was raised as high as 9.5, suggesting that these cells tolerate significant internal alkalinisation. However, both motility and pyruvate production were severely inhibited under acidic conditions, and the cells deteriorated rapidly below an external pH of 6.5. Physiologically, the plasma membrane of T. brucei had low permeability to H+ and the internal pH was unaffected by changes in Deltapsip, which is dominated by the potassium diffusion potential. However, in the presence of FCCP, the internal pH fell rapidly about 0.5 pH unit and came into equilibrium with Deltapsip. Oligomycin abolished the mitochondrial pH gradient (DeltapHm) selectively, whereas chloroquine abolished only the endosomal pH gradient (DeltapHe). The pH gradient across the plasma membrane (DeltapHp) alone could be abolished by careful osmotic swelling of cells. The plasma membrane had an inwardly directed proton-motive force (DeltaPp) of -52 mV and an inwardly directed sodium-motive force (DeltaNp) of -149 mV, whereas the mitochondrial inner membrane had only an inwardly directed DeltaPm of -195 mV. The pH gradient across the endosomal membranes was not accompanied by an electrical gradient. Consequently, endosomal membranes had an algebraically average outwardly directed DeltaPl within the range + 89 to +110 mV, depending on the measurement method.     

The protonmotive force in phosphorylating membrane vesicles from Paracoccus denitrificans. Magnitude, sites of generation and comparison with the phosphorylation potential

1. The magnitude of the protonmotive force in phosphorylating membrane vesicles from Paracoccus denitrificans was estimated. The membrane potential component was determined from the uptake of S(14)CN(-), and the transmembrane pH gradient component from the uptake of [(14)C]methylamine. In each case a flow-dialysis technique was used to monitor uptake. 2. With NADH as substrate, the membrane potential was about 145mV and the pH gradient was below 0.5 pH unit. The membrane potential was decreased by approx. 15mV during ATP synthesis, and was abolished on addition of carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone. In the presence of KCl plus valinomycin the membrane potential was replaced by a pH gradient of 1.5 units. 3. Succinate oxidation generated a membrane potential of approx. 125mV and the pH gradient was below 0.5 pH unit. Oxidation of ascorbate (in the presence of antimycin) with either 2,3,5,6-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine or NNN'N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine as electron mediator usually generated a membrane potential of approx. 90mV. On occasion, ascorbate oxidation did not generate a membrane potential, suggesting that the presence of a third energy-coupling site in P. denitrificans vesicles is variable. 4. With NADH or succinate as substrate, the phosphorylation potential (DeltaG(p)=DeltaG(0)'+RTln[ATP]/ [ADP][P(i)]) was approx. 53.6kJ/mol (12.8kcal/mol). Comparison of this value with the protonmotive force indicates that more than 3 protons need to be translocated via the adenosine triphosphatase of P. denitrificans for each molecule of ATP synthesized by a chemiosmotic mechanism. In the presence of 10mm-KNO(3) the protonmotive force was not detectable (<60mV) but DeltaG(p) was not altered. This result may indicate either that there is no relationship between the protonmotive force and DeltaG(p), or that for an unidentified reason the equilibration of SCN(-) or methylamine with the membrane potential and the pH gradient is prevented by NO(3) (-) in this system.     

The effect of beta-galactosides on the protonmotive force and growth of Escherichia coli

The effect of three beta-galactosides on the components membrane potential (delta psi) and pH gradient (delta pH) of protonmotive force and growth of Escherichia coli has been examined. A good correlation between the reduction of the protonmotive force and growth inhibition was observed. Thus some galactosides had little effect on either the protonmotive force or growth while lactose diminished the protonmotive force and caused growth inhibition. This effect of lactose was dependent on the ionic composition of the growth media. In Medium A (77 mM-Na+, 85 mM-K+) lactose diminished delta psi but had no effect on delta pH. Growth inhibition was transient at an external pH 6.0 but complete at pH 7.5. In medium KA (approximately 1 mM-Na+, 162 mM-K+) delta pH was diminished and delta psi was not affected and consequently growth inhibition was complete at pH 6.0. In medium NA (163 mM-Na+, 20 mM-K+) lactose had little effect on delta psi, delta pH or growth. These data support Skulachev's hypothesis of buffering of the protonmotive force by K+ and Na+ gradients.     

Nonequivalence of membrane voltage and ion-gradient as driving forces for the bacterial flagellar motor at low load

Many bacterial species swim using flagella. The flagellar motor couples ion flow across the cytoplasmic membrane to rotation. Ion flow is driven by both a membrane potential (V(m)) and a transmembrane concentration gradient. To investigate their relation to bacterial flagellar motor function we developed a fluorescence technique to measure V(m) in single cells, using the dye tetramethyl rhodamine methyl ester. We used a convolution model to determine the relationship between fluorescence intensity in images of cells and intracellular dye concentration, and calculated V(m) using the ratio of intracellular/extracellular dye concentration. We found V(m) = -140 +/- 14 mV in Escherichia coli at external pH 7.0 (pH(ex)), decreasing to -85 +/- 10 mV at pH(ex) 5.0. We also estimated the sodium-motive force (SMF) by combining single-cell measurements of V(m) and intracellular sodium concentration. We were able to vary the SMF between -187 +/- 15 mV and -53 +/- 15 mV by varying pH(ex) in the range 7.0-5.0 and extracellular sodium concentration in the range 1-85 mM. Rotation rates for 0.35-microm- and 1-microm-diameter beads attached to Na(+)-driven chimeric flagellar motors varied linearly with V(m). For the larger beads, the two components of the SMF were equivalent, whereas for smaller beads at a given SMF, the speed increased with sodium gradient and external sodium concentration.     

The effect of sorbic acid and esters of p-hydroxybenzoic acid on the protonmotive force in Escherichia coli membrane vesicles

The effect of three food preservatives, sorbic acid and methyl and butyl esters of p-hydroxybenzoic acid, on the protonmotive force in Escherichia coli membrane vesicles was investigated. Radioactive chemical probes were used to determine the two components of the protonmotive force: delta pH (pH difference) and delta psi (membrane potential). Both types of compound selectively eliminated delta pH across the membrane, while leaving delta psi much less disturbed indicating that transport inhibition by neutralization of the protonmotive force cannot be the only mechanism of action for the food preservatives tested.     

Studies on energy supply for genetic processes. Requirement for membrane potential in Escherichia coli infection by phage T4

In this study the hypothesis considering the requirement for an electrochemical proton gradient in the injection of phage T4 DNA into Escherichia coli cell has been verified experimentally. The phage caused a reversible depolarization of cell membrane, while phage 'ghosts' induced an irreversible depolarization. The phage infection was strictly dependent on E. coli membrane potential value when phage/cell ratio was 5 and higher. When the ratio was close to 1, the decrease in the membrane potential up to -100 mV caused practically no effect on the phage infection. The infection inhibition was observed when the membrane potential was lowered below this 'threshold' value. On the other hand, the decrease in the membrane potential caused no effect on the phage infection under conditions promoting a concomitant increase in the value of the transmembranous pH gradient. The phage DNA transfer through the membrane of ATPase-deficient cells was reversibly inhibited by switching off the respiratory chain - the sole generator of a protonmotive force in these mutant cells. The membrane should be kept in the energized state during the phage DNA entrance into the cell. Adsorption of the phage on E. coli was followed by the reversible release of the respiratory control. Thus the results presented here indicate the requirement of the electrochemical proton gradient across the plasma membrane for injection of phage T4 DNA into E. coli. They support the concept postulating an expenditure of host cell metabolic energy for phage T4 DNA transfer through the membrane.     

Estimation with an ion-selective electrode of the membrane potential in cells of Paracoccus denitrificans from the uptake of the butyltriphenylphosphonium cation during aerobic and anaerobic respiration.

1. Aerobic respiration by cells of Paracoccus dentrificans drives the uptake of the lipophilic cation butyltriphenylphosphonium. Anaerobiosis or addition of an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation (carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone) results in efflux of the cation. Changes in the concentration of butyltriphenylphosphonium in the suspension medium were measured by using an ion-selective electrode, the construction of which is described. 2. If the uptake of butyltriphenylphosphonium is used as an indicator of membrane potential, then at pH 7.3 an estimate of about 160 mV is obtained for cells of P. dentrificans respiring aerobically in 100 mM-Hepes [4-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1-piperazine-ethanesulphonic acid/NaOH or 100mM-NaH2PO4/NaOH. This potential, however, is decreased by more than 20 mV in reaction media containing a high concentration of phosphate (100 mM) together with at least 1 mM-K+. 3. Anaerobic electron transport with NO3-, NO2- or N2O as terminal electron acceptor generates a membrane potential of about 150mV in described suspension media. The presence of these species under aerobic conditions, moreover, has negligible effect upon the extent of uptake of butyltriphenylphosphonium normally driven by aerobic respiration. These data indicate that none of these molecules exert a significant uncoupling effect on the protonmotive force. 4. No 204Tl+ uptake into respiring cells was detected. This adds to the evidence that 204Tl+ is not a freely permeable cation in bacterial cells and therefore not an indicator of membrane potential as has been proposed. The absence of respiration-driven 204Tl+ uptake indicates that P. denitrificans cells grown under the conditions specified in the present work do not possess K+-transport systems of either the Kdp or TrkA types that have been described in Escherichia coli.     

Dextransucrase secretion in Leuconostoc mesenteroides depends on the presence of a transmembrane proton gradient.

The relationship between proton motive force and the secretion of dextransucrase in Leuconostoc mesenteroides was investigated. L. mesenteroides was able to maintain a constant proton motive force of -130 mV when grown in batch fermentors at pH values 5.8 to 7.0. The contribution of the membrane potential and the transmembrane pH gradient varied depending on the pH of the growth medium. The differential rate of dextransucrase secretion was relatively constant at 1,040 delta mU/delta mg (dry weight) when cells were grown at pH 6.0 to 6.7. Over this pH range, the internal pH was alkaline with respect to the external pH. When cells were grown at alkaline pH values, dextransucrase secretion was severely inhibited. This inhibition was accompanied by an inversion of the pH gradient as the internal pH became more acidic than the external pH. Addition of nigericin to cells at alkaline pH partially dissipated the inverted pH gradient and produced a fourfold stimulation of dextransucrase secretion. Treatment of cells with the lipophilic cation methyltriphenylphosphonium had no effect on the rate of dextransucrase secretion at pH 5.5 but inhibited secretion by 95% at pH 7.0. The reduced rate of secretion correlated with the dissipation of the proton motive force by this compound. Values of proton motive force greater than -90 mV were required for maximal rates of dextransucrase secretion. The results of this study indicate that dextransucrase secretion in L. mesenteroides is dependent on the presence of a proton gradient across the cytoplasmic membrane that is directed into the cell.     

Magnitude of the proton moving force of Staphylococcus aureus cells and features of the interaction of staphylococci with phages

The magnitude of the transmembrane electrical potential difference and the proton gradient across the energy-transducing membrane of Staphylococcus aureus were determined. The delta psi value was shown to rise from 100 to 160 mV upon alkalinization of the medium within the pH range of 5.0-8.0; at the same time, the pH value dropped from 90 to 40 mV. The proton motive force magnitude remained within the range of 191-198 mV at the pH values under study. Membrane potential generation took place, when the respiratory chain and H+-ATPase were operative. An addition of phages to cell suspensions resulted in a decrease of the membrane potential magnitude. Phage infection was effectively suppressed by inhibitors which affect the proton motive force generation in cell membranes of staphylococci.     

Map location of the pcbA mutation and physiology of the mutant.

The obligate aerobe Cowpea Rhizobium sp. strain 32H1 in axenic culture is able to fix N2 when grown under 0.2% O2 but not when grown under 21% O2. It was, therefore, of interest to investigate ATP synthesis in these cells grown under the two conditions. When respiring in buffers having pHs ranging from 6 to 8.5, cells grown under either O2 tension maintained an intracellular pH more alkaline than the exterior. The transmembrane chemical gradient of H+ (delta pH) was essentially the same under both conditions of growth, decreasing from ca. 90 mV at medium pH 6 to ca. 30 mV at pH 8.5. However, the transmembrane electrical gradient (delta psi) was significantly higher in cells grown under 21% O2 (150 to 166 mV) than in cells grown under 0.2% O2, the latter being 16 mV at pH 6 and increasing to 88 mV at pH 8.5. Therefore, the proton motive force of 21% O2-grown cells ranged from 237 mV at external pH 6 to 185 mV at pH 8.5, compared with a proton motive force of 114 to 121 mV in the 0.2% O2-grown cells. The cells grown in 0.2% O2 had the same proton motive force whether tested at 21 or at 0.2% O2. The phosphorylation potential, calculated from the intracellular ATP, ADP, and Pi concentrations, was 424 mV in the 21% O2-grown cells and 436 mV in the 0.2% O2-grown cells. Thus, the 21% O2-grown cells translocated 1.8 to 2.3 H+/ATP synthesized by the H+-ATPase, whereas the H+/ATP ratio for 0.2% O2-grown cells was 3.7 to 3.8.     

Acid,protons and Helicobacter pylori.

The anti-ulcer drugs that act as covalent inhibitors of the gastric acid pump are targeted to the gastric H+/K+ ATPase by virtue of accumulation in acid and conversion to the active sulfenamide. This results in extremely effective inhibition of acid secretion. Appropriate dosage is able to optimize acid control therapy for reflux and peptic ulcer disease as compared to H2 receptor antagonists. However, clinical data on recurrence show that Helicobacter pylori eradication should accompany treatment of the lesion. These drugs have been found to synergize with many antibiotics for eradication. The survival of aerobes depends on their ability to maintain a driving force for protons across their inner membrane, the sum of a pH and potential difference gradient, the protonmotive force (pmf). The transmembrane flux of protons across the F1F0 ATPase, driven by the pmf, is coupled to the synthesis of ATP. The internal pH of H. pylori was measured using the fluorescent dye probe, BCECF, and the membrane potential defined by the uptake of the carbocyanine dye, DiSC3 [5] at different pHs to mimic the gastric environment. The protonmotive force at pH 7.0 was composed of a delta pH of 1.4 (-84mV) and a delta potential difference of -131mV, to give a pmf of -215 mV. The effect of variations in external pH on survival of the bacteria in the absence of urea correlated with the effect of external pH on the ability of the bacteria to maintain a pmf. The effect of the addition of 5 mM urea on the pmf was measured at different medium pH values. Urea restored the pmf at pH 3.0 or 3.5, but abolished the pmf at pH 7.0 or higher, due the production of the alkalinizing cation, NH3. Hence H. pylori is an acid-tolerant neutrophile due to urease activity, but urease activity also limits its survival to an acidic environment. These data help explain the occupation of the stomach by the organism and its distribution between fundus and antrum. This distribution and its alteration by proton pump inhibitors also explains the synergism of proton pump inhibition and antibiotics such as amoxicillin and clarithromycin in H. pylori eradication.     

Quantitative analysis of proton-linked transport systems. The lactose permease of Escherichia coli.

Evidence is presented that lactose uptake into whole cells of Escherichia coli occurs by symport with a single proton over the range of external pH 6.5--7.7. The proton/lactose stoicheiometry has been measured directly over this pH range by comparison of the initial rates of proton and lactose uptake into anaerobic resting cell suspensions of E. coli ML308. Further, the relationship between the protonmotive force and lactose accumulation has been studied in E. coli ML308-225 over the range of external pH 5.9--8.7. At no point was the accumulation of the beta-galactoside in thermodynamic equilibrium with the protonmotive force. It is concluded that the concentration of lactose within the cell is governed by kinetic factors rather than pH-dependent changes in the proton/substrate stoicheiometry. The relevance of these findings to the model of pH-dependent proton/substrate stoicheiometries derived from studies with E. coli membrane vesicles is discussed.     

Estimation of the pH gradient and donnan potential in de-energized heart mitochondria

The transmembrane pH gradient maintained by nonrespiring, uncoupled heart mitochondria has been estimated using the distribution of methylamine and of 5,5-dimethyl-2,4-oxazolidinedione (DMO) and compared with the delta pH reported by the fluorescent probe 2,7-biscarboxyethyl-5(6)-carboxyfluorescein (BCECF). Under these conditions the protonmotive force approaches zero and the membrane potential (delta psi) should equal 59 delta pH (P. Mitchell and J. Moyle (1969) Eur. J. Biochem. 7, 471-484). The delta pH reported by DMO corresponds closely to that estimated by BCECF and is consistent with a Donnan potential of no greater than about -30 mV (interior negative) for nonenergized mitochondria in a sucrose medium. This potential appears to result from the presence of immobile negative charges in the matrix and is eliminated by addition of 10 to 25 mM KCl. Measurements of delta pH using the methylamine and of delta tsi using the distribution of 42K+ in the presence of valinomycin result in an apparent overestimation of these parameters due to binding of these components to negative sites on the membrane. Increasing ionic strength decreases this contribution of surface potential, but significant binding can still be detected in 100 mM KCl. These studies suggest that 42K+ (or 86Rb+) is far from an ideal probe for measuring delta tsi in respiring mitochondria and may significantly overestimate this parameter, especially in sucrose media.