Intracellular potassium activities in Amphiuma small intestine.

Intracellular potassium activity (aKi) has been determined in absorptive cells lining the villi of isolated, stripped proximal segments of Amphiuma small intestine. With single-barreled liquid ion-exchanger microelectrodes aKi = 41.6 +/- 1.5 mM in normal chloride buffer; with double-barreled microelectrodes constructed by a new method aKi = 38.5 +/- 2.4 mM. Also, by the latter approach aKi = 41.1 +/- 2.1 mM in buffer in which potassium was elevated to 5 meq/liter and aKi = 44.2 +/- 1.3 mM in sulfate buffer with the same bath potassium concentration. Since the calculated potassium equilibrium potential exceeds the membrane potential this ion is accumulated by the intestinal absorptive cell. A major portion of cellular potassium is bound or compartmentalized since the intracellular potassium activity coefficient is very low. A layer exists near the villi in which the potassium activity exceeds that in the bath buffer solution.