Evidence of a calcium-ion-transport system in mitochondria isolated from flight muscle of the developing sheep blowfly Lucilia cuprina.

The EGTA (ethanedioxybis(ethylamine)tetra-acetic acid)-Ruthenium Red-quench technique (Reed & Bygrave, 1974a) was used to measure initial rates of Ca-2+ transport in mitochondria from flight muscle of the blowfly Lucilia cuprina. Evidence is provided for the existence in these mitochondria of a Ca-2+-transport system that has many features in common with that known to exist in rat liver mitochondria. These include requirement for energy, saturation at high concentrations of Ca-2+, a sigmoidal relation between initial rates of Ca-2+ transport and Ca-2+ concentration, a high affinity for free Ca-2+ (Km approx. 5 muM) and high affinity for the Ca-2+-transport inhibitoy, Ruthenium Red (approx. 0.03 nmol of carrier-specific binding-sites/mg of protein; Ki approx. 1.6 x 10- minus 8 M). Controlled respiration can be stimulated by Ca-2+ after a short lag-period provided the incubation medium contains KCl and not sucrose. The ability of Lucilia mitochondria to transport Ca-2+ critically depends on the stage of mitochondrial development; Ca-2+ transport is minimal in mitochondria from pharate adults, is maximal between 0 and 2h post-emergence and thereafter rapidly declines to reach less than 20% of the maximum value by about 2-3 days post-emergence. Respiration in mitochondria from newly emerged flies does not respond to added Ca-2+; that from 3-5-day-old flies is stimulated approx. 50%. Whereas very low concentrations of Ca-2+ inhibit ADP-stimulated respiration and oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria from newly emerged flies (Ki approx. 60 ng-ions of Ca-2+/mg of protein); much higher concentrations (approx. 200 ng-ion/mg of protein) are needed to inhibit these processes in those from older flies. The potential of this system for studying the function and development of metabolite transport systems in mitochondria is discussed.