Selective inhibition by ionophore A23187 of the enzyme isomerization in the catalytic cycle of Na+, K+ -ATPase.

The effect of an ionophore A23187 on the purified Na+,K+-ATPase from the outer medulla of pig kidney was investigated. When the enzyme was pretreated with A23187 in the presence of Na+ and K+, the ATPase activity was inhibited almost completely. When the pretreatment was performed in the presence of Na+ and absence of K+, formation of the phosphoenzyme (EP) from ATP was only slightly retarded. The steady state level of EP thus formed was not altered, but EP decomposition was strongly inhibited. Under these conditions, the accumulated EP was sensitive to ADP and insensitive to K+. On the other hand, when the pretreatment was performed in the absence of Na+ and presence of K+, EP formation following simultaneous addition of Na+ and ATP was extremely slow, but the steady state level of EP was not substantially altered. When the pretreatment was performed in the absence of Na+ and presence of K+, EP formation from Pi was unaffected, and the EP formed was in rapid equilibrium with Pi of the medium. These results demonstrate that A23187 selectively inhibits isomerization of the enzyme between the high Na+ and low K+ affinity form and the low Na+ and high K+ affinity form in the catalytic cycle, whether or not the enzyme is phosphorylated. This inhibition is quite similar to the A23187-induced inhibition of the enzyme isomerization in the catalytic cycle of the Ca2+ -ATPase from sarcoplasmic reticulum (Hara, H., and Kanazawa, T. (1986)J. Biol. Chem.261, 16584-16590). These findings suggest that some common mechanism, which is involved in the enzyme isomerization, between these two transport ATPases is strongly disturbed by A23187.