Water Penetration Profile at the Protein-Lipid Interface in Na,K-ATPase Membranes

The affinity of ionized fatty acids for the Na,K-ATPase is used to determine the transmembrane profile of water penetration at the protein-lipid interface. The standardized intensity of the electron spin echo envelope modulation (ESEEM) from ²H-hyperfine interaction with D₂O is determined for stearic acid, n-SASL, spin-labeled systematically at the C-n atoms throughout the chain. In both native Na,K-ATPase membranes from shark salt gland and bilayers of the extracted membrane lipids, the D₂O-ESEEM intensities of fully charged n-SASL decrease progressively with position down the fatty acid chain toward the terminal methyl group. Whereas the D₂O intensities decrease sharply at the n = 9 position in the lipid bilayers, a much broader transition region in the range n = 6 to 10 is found with Na,K-ATPase membranes. Correction for the bilayer population in the membranes yields the intrinsic D₂O-intensity profile at the protein-lipid interface. For positions at either end of the chains, the D₂O concentrations at the protein interface are greater than in the lipid bilayer, and the positional profile is much broader. This reveals the higher polarity, and consequently higher intramembrane water concentration, at the protein-lipid interface. In particular, there is a significant water concentration adjacent to the protein at the membrane midplane, unlike the situation in the bilayer regions of this cholesterol-rich membrane. Experiments with protonated fatty acid and phosphatidylcholine spin labels, both of which have a considerably lower affinity for the Na,K-ATPase, confirm these results.