Stimulation of ATPase activity in barley (Hordeum vulgare) root plasma membranes after treatment with triacontanol and calmodulin

Triacontanol (TRIA) treatment of plasma membrane-enriched vesicles from barley ( Hordeum vulgare L., cv. Conquest) roots resulted in stimulation of membrane-associated, divalent cation-dependent ATPase activity (EC 3.6.1.3). The stimulation at physiologically active concentrations of TRIA (10⁻¹¹–10⁻⁹ M ) occurred only when the vesicles were treated with TRIA in the presence of calmodulin. Octacosanol, the C₂₈-analogue of TRIA, had no effect on divalent cation-dependent ATPase activity. Consistent with in vivo studies, simultaneous treatment of vesicles with weight equivalents of TRIA and octacosanol reduced the stimulation of ATPase activity. The effect of calmodulin on the stimulation of ATPase activity was diminished by calmidazolium, a specific inhibitor of calmodulin. Circular dichroism studies did not show a change in the α-helix content of calmodulin in the presence of TRIA. TRIA also had no apparent effect on soluble calcium-calmodulin 3',5'-cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase activity. Removal of excess TRIA from the medium after treatment still resulted in stimulation of divalent cation-dependent ATPase activity in the presence of calmodulin was comparable to treated vesicles from which excess TRIA had not been removed. These data further support the contention that TRIA affects membrane structure and function.