Some Biochemical Properties of Mitochondria Isolated from Euglena gracilis*

SYNOPSIS. Mitochondria were isolated from Euglena gracilis strain Z by pressure-breakage of the cells and sucrose-cushion centrifugation. Multiple peaks (2-4) were observed in the rate of phosphorylation with Mg-ADP-phosphate concentration curves. The phosphorylative and oxidative activities were highest with NADH as the substrate, moderate with succinate, and lowest with glutamate. Inhibition of phosphorylation with 2,4-dinitrophenol and carbonyl cyanide, m-chlorophenylhydrazone gave sigmoidal concentration curves, with the extent of inhibition by DNP depending on the substrate used. Inhibition of phosphorylation by valinomycin, atractyloside, or carboxyatractyloside was only ～ 60%. Oligomycin inhibited phosphorylation in 2 phases at low and high concentrations; it inhibited Mg-ATPase in a sigmoidal fashion. Both phosphorylation and oxidation had discontinuities in Arrhenius plots at 34 C and 18 C. The relative Mg²⁺-dependent nucleoside triphosphatase activity was: 1 for ATP and GTP, 0.6 for ITP, 0.15 for CTP and and UTP; with Ca²⁺ in place of Mg²⁺ this activity was 0.35. Both DNP and CCCP stimulated the Mg-ATPase 50-200%. The optimal pH for the stimulation was ～ 7 regardless of the uncoupler used, and ～ 8 without the uncouplers. The few differences observed between mitochondria from Euglena and those from other sources are probably due to the fragmentation of the reticular mitochondrial structure during isolation and not to unique characteristics of these mitochondria.     

Studies on (Na+ plus K+)-activated ATPase. XXXVII. Stabilization by cations of the enzyme-ouabain complex formed with Mg1+ and inorganic phosphate.

Dissociation of the (Na+ + K+)-ATPase ouabain complex, formed in the presence of Mg2+ and inorganic phosphate (Complex II), is inhibited by Mg2+ (21-45%) and the alkali cations Na+ (25-59%) and K+ (27-75%) when kidney cortex tissue (bovine, rabbit, guinea pig) is the enzyme source. Choline chloride at 200 mM, equivalent to the highest concentration of NaCl tested, does not inhibit. Dissociation of Complex II from brain cortex (bovine, rat, rabbit) or heart muscle (rabbit) is much less inhibited: 0-11% by Na+ and 11-19% by K+. The degree of inhibition is not directly related to the size of the dissociation rate constant (k-) of the various complexes, but rather to the extent of interaction between the cation and ouabain binding sites for these tissues. Inhibition curves for Na+ and K+ are sigmoidal. Half-maximal inhibition for rabbit brain and kidney cortex is at 30-40 mM Na+ and 6-10 mM K+, and the maximally inhibitory concentrations are 50-150 and 15-20 mM, respectively. Maximal inhibition by Na+ or K+ for these tissues is the same. For guinea pig kidney cortex Na+ and K+ are almost equally effective, but 150 mM K+ or 200 mM Na+ are still not saturating, and inhibition curves indicate high- and low-affinity binding sites for the alkali cations. The inhibition curve for Mg2+ is not sigmoidal. In the kidney preparations Mg2+ inhibits half-maximally at 0.4-0.5 mM, maximally at 1-3 mM. Maximal inhibition by Mg2+ is higher than by Na+ or K+ for rabbit kidney cortex and lower for guinea pig kidney cortex. There is no competition or additivity among the cations, indicating the existence of different binding sites for Mg2+ and the alkali cations. Complex II differs in stability in the extent of inhibition, in the dependence of inhibition on the cation concentration and in the absence of antagonism between Na+ and K+, from the ouabain complex formed via phosphorylation by ATP (Complex I). This indicates that the phosphorylation states for the complexes are clearly different.     

Actin-activated Mg-ATPase activity of Dictyostelium myosin II. Effects of filament formation and heavy chain phosphorylation.

The actin-activated Mg-ATPase activities of unphosphorylated and heavy chain phosphorylated Dictyostelium myosin II and of a Dictyostelium myosin II heavy meromyosin (HMM) fragment were examined at different Mg2+ and KCl concentrations. The Mg-ATPase activity of HMM displayed a maximum rate, Vmax, of about 4.0/s and a Kapp (actin concentration required to achieve 1/2 Vmax) that increased from 8 to 300 microM as the KCl concentration increased from 0 to 120 mM. When assayed with greater than 5 mM Mg2+ and 0 mM KCl the unphosphorylated Dictyostelium myosin II yielded a Kapp of 0.25 microM and a Vmax of 2.8/s. At lower Mg2+ concentrations or with 50 mM KCl the data were not fit well by a single hyperbolic curve and Kapp increased to 25-100 microM. The increase in Kapp did not correlate with the loss of sedimentable filaments. At KCl concentrations above 100 mM Vmax increased to greater than 4/s. Heavy chain phosphorylated myosin (3.5 mol of phosphate/mol myosin) displayed a Vmax of about 5/s and a Kapp of 50 microM under all conditions tested. Thus, heavy chain phosphorylation inhibited the actin-activated Mg-ATPase activity of Dictyostelium myosin II in 5-10 mM Mg2+ and low ionic strength through an increase in Kapp.     

Studies of the phosphoenzyme intermediate of the yeast plasma membrane proton-translocating ATPase

The yeast plasma membrane proton-pumping ATPase forms a phosphorylated intermediate during the hydrolysis of ATP. The fraction of enzyme phosphorylated during steady-state ATP hydrolysis was studied as a function of substrate concentration (MgATP), Mg2+ concentration, and pH. The dependence of the fraction of enzyme phosphorylated on the concentration of MgATP is sigmoidal, and the isotherms can be fit with parameters and mechanisms similar to those used to describe ATP hydrolysis. The isotherm is significantly more sigmoidal at pH 5.5 than at pH 6.0, with the limiting percentage (100.mol of phosphate/mol of enzyme) of enzyme phosphorylated being 70% and 6%, respectively, at the two pH values. The maxima in the steady-state rate of ATP hydrolysis occur at higher concentrations of Mg2+ and higher pH than the maxima in the fraction of enzyme phosphorylated. This suggests that the rate-determining step for ATP hydrolysis is different from that for enzyme phosphorylation and the hydrolysis of phosphoenzyme is enhanced by Mg2+ and high pH. The rate of phosphoenzyme formation was investigated with the quenched-flow method, but only a lower bound of 140 s-1 could be obtained for the rate constant at MgATP concentrations greater than 2.5 mM. Since the turnover number for ATP hydrolysis under similar conditions is 14 s-1, the rate-determining step in ATP hydrolysis occurs after enzyme phosphorylation.     

Human hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyltransferase. The role of magnesium ion in a phosphoribosylpyrophosphate-utilizing enzyme

The role of Mg ions in the hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyltransferase-catalyzed reaction have been studied using accurate values of proton and Mg stability constants of phosphoribosylpyrophosphate (P-Rib-PP) determined from pH titration data. The results obtained favor the conclusion that the dimagnesium salt of P-Rib-PP is the true substrate of the enzyme. The other species of P-Rib-PP do not appreciably affect the initial reaction rate. The inhibition of the hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyltransferase-catalyzed reaction observed at high MgCl2 concentration can be attributed to a competitive inhibition of Mg2+ with respect to the dimagnesium salt of P-Rib-PP, suggesting that these ionic species bind to the same enzyme form. At a fixed [P-Rib-PPtot], the concentration of its dimagnesium complex is a sigmoidal function of MgCl2 concentration, suggesting that caution must be employed in the interpretation of sigmoidal saturation curves for P-Rib-PP-utilizing enzymes when low and not constant concentrations of the divalent cation are used.     

Occurrence and characterization of fructose 6-phosphate, 2-kinase and fructose 2,6-bisphosphatase in Euglena gracilis

1. Fructose 6-phosphate, 2-kinase and fructose 2,6-bisphosphatase occurred in Euglena gracilis SM-ZK, and is located in cytosol. 2. Fructose 6-phosphate, 2-kinase and fructose 2,6-bisphosphatase were partially purified, and both enzyme activities were not separated during the partial purification. 3. The pH optimum for fructose 6-phosphate, 2-kinase activity was 7.0. The saturation curve of the enzyme activity for ATP concentration was hyperbolic, and the Km value for the substrate was 0.88 mM. On the other hand, the saturation curve of the enzyme activity for fructose 6-phosphate concentration was sigmoidal, and the K0.5 value for the substrate was 70 microM. 4. The pH optimum for fructose 2,6-bisphosphatase activity was 6.5. The saturation curve for fructose 2,6-bisphosphate concentration was sigmoidal, and the K0.5 value for the substrate was 1.29 microM. Fructose 2,6-bisphosphate showed a substrate inhibition at high concentration over 5 microM, and the enzyme activity was completely inhibited by 20 microM of fructose 2,6-bisphosphate.     

cAMP-dependent regulation of the active transport of Ca2+ in plasma membranes of the swine myometrium

Plasma membranes of pig myometrium show the ability for endogenous phosphorylation (160 +/- 45 pmol 32P/mg.min); the initial rate of this process increases 2.5-fold in the presence of 10(-6) cAMP. Micromolar concentrations of cAMP activate the ATP-dependent transport of Ca2+ in myometrium plasma membranes; cAMP at concentrations of 10(-9)-10(-4) M has no effect on Ca,Mg-ATPase. Myometrium plasma membranes possess the Mg2+-dependent phosphatase activity. Dephosphorylation of membranes is accompanied by a decrease (by 25-50%) of the Ca,Mg-ATPase activity and Ca2+ uptake, respectively. The exogenous catalytic subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase increases the activity of Ca,Mg-ATPase in native and dephosphorylated membranes. Tolbutamide diminishes the activity of Ca,Mg-ATPase in native membranes by 25% without causing any appreciable influence on the enzyme activity in dephosphorylated membranes. Taking into account the similarity of dependence of Ca2+ uptake on Ca2+ concentration in native and cAMP-phosphorylated vesicles, it can be assumed that the cAMP-dependent phosphorylation affects the enzyme turnover number but not its affinity for Ca2+. The dephosphorylation-induced inhibition of Ca,Mg-ATPase activity and accumulation of Ca2+ are reversible processes.     

Characterization of furosemide-sensitive Mg2+ influx in Yoshida ascites tumor cells

Partially Mg2+-depleted Yoshida ascites tumor cells took up Mg2+ after reincubation in Mg2+- and HCO3(-)-containing media. Mg2+ influx was insensitive to ouabain, amiloride and disulfonic stilbenes, but was noncompetitively inhibited by furosemide (Ki = 0.4 mM) and bumetanide. Mg2+ influx obeyed Michaelis-Menten kinetics with respect to Mg2+ concentration (Km = 1.1 mM) and was sigmoidal with respect to HCO3- concentration. Electroneutral Mg2+, HCO3- cotransport was supposed to be the mechanism of Mg2+ influx.     

Purification and characterization of a Ca2+- or Mg2+-stimulated ATPase from plasma membrane enriched fractions of Dictyostelium discoideum

Evidence is presented for the presence of both diethylstilbestrol (DES)-sensitive and DES-insensitive Mg2+-ATPase activities in plasma membrane enriched fractions of Dictyostelium discoideum. When removed from the membrane, the DES-sensitive activity is markedly less stable than the DES-insensitive activity, and the two activities display a number of quite distinct properties. The DES-sensitive enzyme has a decided preference for Mg2+ over Ca2+, displays saturation kinetics in response to ATP as substrate (Km = 0.2 mM) and has a narrow pH optimum range. In contrast, the DES-insensitive activity is stimulated equally by Mg2+ or Ca2+, is not saturable by ATP within the mM concentration range and has a much broader pH optimum. The DES-insensitive activity has been purified extensively. The purified enzyme is inhibited by vanadate and fluoride, but is insensitive to N,N'-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCCD), N-ethylmaleimide and thimerosal. In the absence of divalent cations, the enzyme displays a sigmoidal activity curve in response to substrate concentration, which is abolished by addition of either Mg2+ or Ca2+, suggesting a binding site for a divalent cation and a positive cooperative interaction. The enzyme is capable of hydrolyzing other nucleotide triphosphates and ADP, but is without activity on AMP, p-nitrophenyl phosphate and pyrophosphate. The enzyme has an apparent molecular weight of approximately 64,000.     

Control of rabbit liver fructose-1, 6-diphosphatase activity by magnesium ions.

EDTA at a concentration of 1 muM produced a threshold effect in the activation of purified rabbit liver fructose-1, 6-diphosphatase [EC 3.1.3.11] in the presence of 5 mM Mg2+ at pH 7.2. Without EDTA, biphasic activation curves were produced by Mg2+. A double-reciprocal plot of the data gave the Km values corresponding to the two linear regions. They were 0.19 and 0.83 mM at pH 7.5, and 0.055 and 0.83 mM at pH 9.1. In the presence of 5muM EDTA a sigmoidal curve was obtained for Mg2+ activation in the range of noninhibitory Mg2+ concentrations at pH 7.2. The apparent Km value for Mg2+ was 0.15 mM, and the Hill coefficient was 2.0. At pH 9.1 cooperativity among the Mg2+ sites disappeared, and the apparent Km value for Mg2+ was 0.055 mM. These Km values at pH 7.2 or 9.1 corresponded to the smaller of the biphasic Km values obtained without EDTA. In the absence of EDTA, no inhibition by Mg2+ was observed in the Mg2+ concentration range below 10 mM. In the presence of EDTA, the enzyme was inhibited markedly by Mg2+ at concentrations above 0.5 mM at pH 7.2, and was more sensitive to inhibition at pH 9.1. The effects of pH on the Km value for Mg2+ activation and on the Mg2+ inhibition contributed to an apparent shift of the pH optimum for activity induced by EDTA. Cooperative interaction among fructose-1, 6-diphosphate sites was observed for the enzyme in the presence of EDTA. The Hill coefficient was approximatley 1.8, and the apparent Km value for the substrate was 0.74 muM. EDTA appears to make liver fructose-1, 6-diphosphatase very sensitive to various effectors. It is suggested that Mg2+ serves as a regulator for the enzyme activity.     

Competitive and uncompetitive effects of 2,4-dinitrophenol on ATPase activities of rabbit skeletal actomyosin and myosin.

A kinetic study of the ATPase reactions catalyzed by myosin and actomyosin was carried out by varying the concentrations of ATP and 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP). Mg-ATPase of myosin in the initial burst and that of actomyosin were both inhibited competitively by DNP. The dissociation contants for the DNP-myosin interaction (Ki) were estimated to be very similar, that is, 4.2 mM in the initial burst of ATP splitting, and 3.3 mM for the actomyosin ATPase. It is therefore suggested that DNP acts at the same site when it inhibits the burst splitting of ATP and the actomyosin ATPase. In contrast, Mg,-Ca-, and EDTA-ATPase activities of myosin in the steady state were all affected uncompetitively by DNP. Moreover, the Ki value for Mg-ATPase of myosin in the steady state was found to be 31 mM, which is much higher than those mentioned above for the initial burst and actomyosin ATPase. It is therefore suggested that the site at which DNP acts to inhibit the burst splitting of ATP is different from the site at which DNP acts to affect Mg-, Ca-, and EDTA-ATPases in the steady state.     

Role of magnesium in the (Ca2+ + Mg2+)-stimulated membrane ATPase of human red blood cells.

(Ca2+ + Mg2+)-stimulated ATPase of human red cell membranes as a function of ATP concentration was measured at fixed Ca2+ concentration and at two different but constant Mg2+ concentrations. Under the assumption that free ATP rather than Mg-ATP is the substrate, a value for Km (for ATP) of 1-2 micron is found which is in good agreement with the value obtained in the phosphorylation reaction by A.F. Rega and P.J. Garrahan (1975. J. Membrane Biol. 22:313). Mg2+ increases both the maximal rate and the affinity for ATP, whereas Ca2+ increases the maximal rate without affecting Km for ATP. As a by-product of these experiments, it was shown that after thorough removal of intracellular proteins the adenylate kinase reaction at approximately 1 mM substrate concentration is several times faster than maximal rate of (Ca2+ + Mg2+)ATPase in red cell membranes.     

Identification of Zn2+-dependent and Mg2+/Triton X-100-dependent tyrosine protein kinases in ethylenediaminetetraacetate-treated P2 membrane fraction of monkey brain basal ganglia

Tyrosine phosphorylation of a 55- and 60-kDa protein was observed when EDTA-treated P2 membrane fraction from monkey basal ganglia was incubated with [gamma-32P]-ATP in the presence of Zn2+. Other metal ions were less effective in this phosphorylation. The effect of Zn2+ did not appear to be due to its inhibition of a tyrosine phosphatase. In the presence of Mg2+/Triton X-100 instead of Zn2+, phosphorylation on tyrosine residues of a 17-kDa protein and the external substrate poly(Glu, Tyr) 4:1 copolymer was observed. Both Mg2+ and Triton X-100 were essential for this and Zn2+ inhibited both of these phosphorylations. Convincing evidence for the existence of Zn2+-dependent and Mg2+/Triton X-100-dependent tyrosine protein kinases was obtained when the two kinases could be separated by extraction of the membranes by Triton X-100. The Zn2+-dependent phosphorylation was present exclusively in the Triton-solubilized supernatant whereas the Mg2+/Triton X-100-dependent phosphorylation was found associated with the Triton-insoluble membrane fractions. Externally added histone could also be phosphorylated on tyrosine residues in a Zn2+- or Mg2+/Triton X-100-dependent manner by the supernatant or membrane fraction, respectively.     

The effects of linoleate hydroperoxide on respiration and oxidative phosphorylation of rat liver mitochondria.

Linoleate hydropepoxide, purified by silica gel chromatography and at concentrations 70-100 nmol/mg mitochondrial protein, activated state 4 respiration and Mg-ATPase activity of mitochondria to levels of 80% and 25%, respectively, of those induced by 300 microM DNP, and completely inhibited oxidative phosphorylation. These effects are the same as those caused by linoleate, but the hydroperoxide caused more rapid degeneration of the activated respiration of mitochondria than linoleate. Further addition of the hydroperoxide induced oligomycin-insensitive Mg-ATPase to a level 3 times that obtained with DNP, accompanied by clearing of the mitochondrial suspension and release of malate dehydrogenase from the matrix. The extent of the effects caused by the methyl ester of linoleate hydroperoxide was much less than by the free acid.     

Inhibition of oxidative phosphorylation by Ca2+ or Sr2+: a competition with Mg2+ for the formation of adenine nucleotide complexes

Intramitochondrial Sr2+, similar to Ca2+, inhibits oxidative phosphorylation in intact rat-liver mitochondria. Both Ca2+ and Sr2+ also inhibit the hydrolytic activity of the ATPase in submitochondrial particles. Half-maximal inhibition of ATPase activity was attained at a concentration of 2.5 mM Ca2+ or 5.0 mM Sr2+ when the concentration of Mg2+ in the medium was 1.0 mM. The inhibition of ATPase activity by both cations was strongly decreased by increasing the Mg2+ concentration in the reaction medium. In addition, kinetical data and the determination of the concentration of MgATP, the substrate of the ATPase, in the presence of different concentrations of Ca2+ or Sr2+ strongly indicate that these cations inhibit ATP hydrolysis by competing with Mg2+ for the formation of MgATP. On the basis of a good agreement between these results with submitochondrial particles and the results of titrations of oxidative phosphorylation with carboxyatractyloside or oligomycin in mitochondria loaded with Sr2+ it can be concluded that intramitochondrial Ca2+ or Sr2+ inhibits oxidative phosphorylation in intact mitochondria by decreasing the availability of adenine nucleotides to both the ADP/ATP carrier and the ATP synthase.     

Phosphorylation of C-protein, troponin I and phospholamban in isolated rabbit hearts.

Phosphorylation of myofibrillar and sacroplasmic-reticulum (SR) proteins was studied in Langendorff-perfused rabbit hearts subjected to various inotropic interventions. Stimulation of hearts with isoprenaline resulted in the phosphorylation of both troponin I (TnI) and C-protein in myofibrils and phospholamban in SR. Phosphorylation of phospholamban could be reversed by a 15 min perfusion with drug-free buffer, after a 1 minute pulse perfusion with isoprenaline, at which time the mechanical effects of isoprenaline stimulation had also been reversed. However, both TnI and C-protein remained phosphorylated at this time. Moreover, the inhibition of Ca2+ activation of the Mg2+-dependent ATPase (Mg-ATPase) activity associated with myofibrillar phosphorylation persisted in myofibrils prepared from hearts frozen after 15 min of washout of isoprenaline. To assess the contribution of C-protein phosphorylation in the decrease of Ca2+ activation of the myofibrillar Mg-ATPase activity, we reconstituted a regulated actomyosin system in which only C-protein was phosphorylated. In this system, C-protein phosphorylation did not contribute to the decrease in Ca2+ activation of Mg-ATPase activity, indicating that TnI phosphorylation is responsible for the diminished sensitivity of the myofibrils to Ca2+. These observations support the hypothesis that phospholamban phosphorylation plays a more dominant role than TnI or C-protein phosphorylation in the mechanical response of the mammalian heart to beta-adrenergic stimulation.     

Further studies on 5'-Nucleotidase from serum of liver cirrhotic individuals.

The kinetic properties of 5'-Nucleotidase were investigated in untreated patients with liver cirrhosis at 37 degrees C. Mg+2 and Mn+2 were found to activate both normal and liver cirrhotic 5'-Nucleotidase, but Nickel inhibited the enzyme in both systems competitively. Both ATP and adenosine act as inhibitors to 5'-Nucleotidase. The inhibitory constant for ATP was different in normal and liver cirrhotic individuals, 0.1 +/- 0.03 for normal and 0.225 +/- 0.02 for liver cirrhosis. In our investigation, ATP was found to be a competitive inhibitor of 5'-Nucleotidase which compete the substrate (A-5'-MP) for the active site. Inhibition of 5'-Nucleotidase by adenosine is of non-competitive type, for both normal and liver cirrhotic sera. It was observed that both serum 5'-Nucleotidase exhibited pH dependent characteristics; in that there was an optimum substrate concentration at each pH value and the plot of pKm versus pH shows great dependency of km on pH.     

(Ca + Mg)-stimulated ATPase activity of a rat brain microsomal preparation.

ATPase activity of freshly prepared brain microsomes was stimulated 20% when 0.1 mm CaCl₂ was added in the presence of a “saturating” concentration of MgCl₂ (4 mm). This (Ca + Mg)-stimulated activity declined rapidly on storage. Treatment of the microsomes with 0.12% deoxycholate in 0.15 m KCl, followed by centrifugation and resuspension in sucrose, produced a preparation both stable on storage at ?15 °C and with an increased stimulation in the presence of CaCl₂. SrCl₂ was more effective than CaCl₂, but BaCl₂ was a poor activator. KCl and NaCl stimulated the (Ca + Mg)-ATPase activity by reducing substrate (ATP) inhibition. The K_m for ATP was 0.1 mm, a third that of the Mg-ATPase. CTP, ITP, and GTP could not substitute for ATP, although they were fair substrates for the Mg-ATPase. The energy of activation of the (Ca + Mg)-ATPase was 21 kcal, nearly twice that of the Mg-ATPase. After sucrose density-gradient centrifugation of the microsomal preparation, the (Ca + Mg)-ATPase activity was distributed with the (Na + K)-ATPase and not with the mitochondrial marker succinic dehydrogenase. Studies with ouabain, oligomycin, and azide distinguished the (Ca + Mg)-stimulated ATPase from (Na + K)- and mitochondrial ATPases. Sensitivity to ruthenium red suggested a link to Ca transport, although the microsomal ⁴⁵Ca accumulating system was much more sensitive to the inhibitor than was this ATPase activity.     

Vaccinia virus-induced ribonucleotide reductase can be distinguished from host cell activity

Increased ribonucleotide reductase activity has been detected in vaccinia virus-infected BSC-40 cells. We have studied certain biochemical and kinetic properties of CDP reduction in extracts from infected and uninfected cells. ATP inhibited reductase activity in crude extracts by rapid and extensive substrate phosphorylation. Substitution of adenylylimido-diphosphate (AMP-PNP), a noncleavable analog that functions as positive activator for reductase, but inhibits phosphorylation and cleavage of substrate, allowed us to reliably measure reductase activity. In the presence of AMP-PNP, CDP reduction by extracts from infected or uninfected cells was linear with time for 60 min and with enzyme concentration, except at very low enzyme levels. Activities from both sources were optimally active at pH 8.1. Variation of AMP-PNP and Mg2+ concentrations revealed, however, that in the absence of exogenous Mg2+, AMP-PNP strongly stimulated virus-induced CDP reduction, but inhibited endogenous CDP reduction. In the presence of the activator, increasing Mg2+ concentrations progressively inhibited the induced activity, but stimulated the endogenous activity up to a 1:2 Mg2+/activator molar ratio. The vaccinia virus-induced activity was highly dependent on AMP-PNP and was not detectable over underlying cellular activity in its absence. Determination of substrate kinetics with respect to CDP revealed a threefold-lower Km for the virus-induced enzyme as compared with the cellular enzyme. These data suggest, but do not prove, that a novel ribonucleotide reductase is expressed on infection by vaccinia virus.     

Calcium transport and phosphorylated intermediate of (Ca2+ + Mg2+)-ATPase in plasma membranes of rat liver

We have identified and characterized calcium transport and the phosphorylated intermediate of the (Ca2+ + Mg2+)-ATPase in plasma membrane vesicles prepared from rat liver. The calcium transport did not absolutely require the presence of oxalate and was completely inhibited by 1 microM of ionophore A23187. Oxalate, which serves as a trapping agent in calcium uptake of skeletal muscle and liver microsomes, was not absolutely required to maintain the net accumulation of calcium. The Vmax and Km for calcium uptake were 35.2 +/- 10.1 pmol of calcium/mg of protein/min, and 17.6 +/- 2.5 nM of free calcium, respectively. Ten mM magnesium was required for the maximal accumulation of calcium. Substitution of 5 and 10 mM ADP, CTP, GTP, and UTP for ATP could not support calcium uptake. The calcium uptake was not affected by 0.5 mM ouabain, 20 mM azide, or 2 micrograms/ml of oligomycin but was inhibited in a dose-dependent fashion by vanadate, with a Ki of approximately 20 microM for vanadate. The substrate affinities and specificities of this calcium-transport activity suggest that it is closely associated with the (Ca2+ + Mg2+)-ATPase reported in the plasma membranes of liver (Lotersztajn, S., Hanoune, J., and Pecker, F. (1981) J. Biol. Chem. 256, 11209-11215). A calcium-stimulated and magnesium-dependent phosphoprotein was also demonstrated in the same membrane vesicles. The free calcium concentration at which its phosphorylation was half-maximal was 15.5 +/- 5.6 nM. Sodium fluoride, ouabain, sodium azide, oligomycin, adriamycin, and N,N'-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide did not affect its formation while vanadate at 100 microM inhibited the calcium-dependent phosphorylation by approximately 60%. The properties of this phosphoprotein suggest that it may be the phosphorylated intermediate of the (Ca2+ + Mg2+)-ATPase in the plasma membranes of rat liver.