Nucleoside transport in rat erythrocytes: two components with differences in sensitivity to inhibition by nitrobenzylthioinosine and p-chloromercuriphenyl sulfonate.

The sensitivity of nucleoside transport by rat erythrocytes to inhibition by nitrobenzylthioinosine (NBMPR) and the slowly permeating organomercurial, p-chloromercuriphenyl sulfonate (pCMBS), was investigated. The dose response curve for the inhibition of uridine transport (100 microM) by NBMPR was biphasic--35% of the transport activity was inhibited with an IC50 value of 0.25 nM, but 65% of the activity remained insensitive to concentrations as high as 1 microM. These two components of uridine transport are defined as NBMPR-sensitive and NBMPR-insensitive, respectively. Uridine influx by both components was saturable and conformed to simple Michaelis-Menten kinetics, and was inhibited by other nucleosides. The uridine affinity of the NBMPR-sensitive transport component was threefold higher than for the NBMPR-insensitive transport mechanism (apparent Km for uridine 50 +/- 18 and 163 +/- 28 microM, respectively). The two transport systems also differed in their sensitivity to pCMBS. NBMPR-insensitive uridine transport was inhibited by pCMBS with an IC50 of approximately 25 microM, while 1 mM pCMBS had little effect on NBMPR-sensitive transport by intact cells. pCMBS inhibition was reduced in the presence of uridine and adenosine and reversed by the addition by beta-mercaptoethanol, suggesting that the pCMBS-sensitive thiol group is located on the exterior surface of the erythrocyte membrane within the nucleoside binding site of the transport system. Inhibition of uridine transport by NBMPR was associated with high-affinity [3H]NBMPR binding to the cell membrane (apparent Kd 46 +/- 25 pM). Binding of inhibitor to these sites was competitively blocked by uridine and inhibited by adenosine, thymidine, dipyridamole, dilazep and nitrobenzylthioguanosine. Assuming that each NBMPR-sensitive transport site binds a single molecule of NBMPR, the calculated translocation capacity of each site is 25 +/- 6 molecules/site per sec at 22 degrees C. pCMBS had no effect on [3H]NBMPR binding to intact cells but markedly inhibited binding to disrupted membranes indicating that the NBMPR-sensitive nucleoside transporter probably has a thiol group located on the inner surface of the membrane. Exposure of rat erythrocyte membranes to UV light in the presence of [3H]NBMPR resulted in covalent radiolabeling of a membrane protein(s) (apparent Mr on SDS gel electropherograms of 62,000). Labeling of this protein was abolished in the presence of nitrobenzylthioguanosine. We conclude that nucleoside transport by rat erythrocytes occurs by two facilitated-diffusion systems which differ in their sensitivity to inhibition by both NBMPR and pCMBS.