Effects of patulin on the kinetics of substrate and cationic ligand activation of adenosine triphosphatase in mouse brain.

Patulin (4-hydroxy-4H-furo[3,2-c]pyran-2(6H)-one), a carcinogenic lactone produced as a major metabolite by several fungi, inhibited the Mg++-dependent Na+-K+ activated adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) activity of mouse brain microsomal fractions with an estimated IC50 of 3.0 X 10(-4) M. Inhibition was concentration dependent. Hydrolysis of ATP was linear with both time and enzyme concentration either with or without patulin in reaction mixtures. Altered pH and activity curves for Na+-K+ ATPase demonstrated comparable inhibition by patulin in buffered acidic ranges through an optimum of 7.5, followed by a reduction of toxicity to this system at higher alkaline pH. Kinetic studies of cationic-substrate activation of Na+-K+ ATPase indicated noncompetitive inhibition with respect to ATP (at low affinity nucleotide-directed sites) and Na+ (in the presence of low, noninterfering concentrations of K+). Competitive inhibition with respect to activation of the Na+-k+-stimulated activity and K+-stimulated p-nitrophenyl phosphatase activity of the enzyme system was indicated by altered binding site parameters without change in apparent Vmax in the presence of patulin. Activity was partially restored by washing. Preincubation of patulin with dithiothreitol or glutathione protected the enzyme from inhibition. Results suggest that patulin exerted its effect on Na+-K+ ATPase either directly by interfering with K+ binding or indirectly by inducing a conformational change in the enzyme.