Effects of high hydrostatic pressures on the activity of the membrane ATPases of some organs implicated in hydromineral regulation.

1. The effects of high hydrostatic pressures have been studied on the ATPases extracted from tissues implicated in iono- and osmoregulation of a frog and various teleostean fishes. Pressure affects enzyme activity in the same qualitative way, whatever the tissue and the species considered. 2. The Mg2+ ATPase activity is maximally enhanced at 250 kg/cm2. A slight inhibition is observed at higher pressures up to 1000 kg/cm2. 3. The (Na+ + K+)ATPase is little affected by low pressures but strongly inhibited at 500 kg/cm2 and more. 4. The results are discussed in terms of pressure effects on the recently described protein-lipid interaction linked to ATPase activity.