K+-and Mg2+-dependent hydrolysis of acetyl phosphate catalyzed by the (Ca2+ + Mg2+)-ATPase of sarcoplasmic reticulum

The (Ca²⁺ + Mg²⁺-ATPase of sarcoplasmic reticulum catalyzes the hydrolysis of acetyl phosphate in the presence of Mg²⁺ and EGTA and is stimulated by Ca²⁺. The Mg²⁺-dependent hydrolysis of acetyl phosphate measured in the presence of 6 mM acetyl phosphate, 5mM MgCl₂, and 2 mM EGTA is increased 2-fold by 20% dimethyl sulfoxide. This activity is further stimulated 1.6-fold by the addition of 30 mM KCl. In this condition addition of Ca²⁺ causes no further increase in the rate of hydrolysis and Ca²⁺ uptake is reduced to a low level. In leaky vesicles, hydrolysis continues to be back-inhibited by Ca²⁺ in the millimolar range. Unlike ATP, acetyl phosphate does not inhibit phosphorylation by P_i unless dimethyl sulfoxide is present. The presence of dimethyl sulfoxide also makes it possible to detect P_i inhibition of the Mg²⁺-dependent acetyl phosphate hydrolysis. These results suggest that dimethyl sulfoxide stabilizes a P_i-reactive form of the enzyme in a conformation that exhibits comparable affinities for acetyl phosphate and P_i. In this conformation the enzyme is transformed from a Ca²⁺- and Mg²⁺-dependent ATPase into a (K⁺ + Mg²⁺)-ATPase.