Abstract
During the reduction of extracellular [Fe(CN)6]3− at the plasmalemma of intact, K+-starvedLemna gibba L. fronds, the external medium was acidified and K+ released, in the absence of inhibitors with rates of 10 e−/8.5 H+/1.5 K+ (μmol·(g FW)−1·−1). In K+ plants the larger K+ efflux caused a lag phase in extracellular acidification and a change in rates to 10 e−/6 H+/4 K+ and in the presence of CN−+salicylhydroxamic acid at pH 5 to 5.2 e−/0 H+/6.6 K+. The e− transfer was accompanied by a membrane depolarization of up to 100 mV and a cytosolic acidification of about 0.6 pH units, but only in K+ plants, where the extracellular acidification was smaller. These results indicate that a stimulation of the plasmalemma H+-ATPase may be triggered either by a cytosolic acidification or by a strong membrane depolarization. It is concluded that the redox system catalyses only uncoupled e− transfer without H+ transfer across the plasmalemma. The obligatory, but secondary charge compensation is partially achieved by the rapid K+ release upon membrane depolarization and partially by the activity of the plasma membrane H+-ATPase, but not by an e−/anion exchange. The extracellular acidification during [Fe(CN)6]3− reduction is generated by the conversion of a strong trivalent into a strong tetravalent anion. This acidification is caused by changes in the concentration ratio of strong cations to strong anions. Efflux of K+ and not the production of organic acids or NAD(P)H oxidation is the chemical cause of the measurable cytosolic acidification. Extracellular acidification was inversely correlated with intracellular acidification. Similarly, fusicoccin-induced pH changes were correlated with changes in the strong-ion concentration difference. Extracellular ± FC-dependent acidification and intracellular alkalinization of up to 0.6 pH units were strongly dependent on K+ fluxes. The ferricyanide-triggered trans-plasmalemma electron-transfer system is an example of how measurable pH changes are the consequence and not the cause of charge-transfer-induced changes in strong-ion fluxes.
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Abbreviations
- DCCD:
-
dicyclohexylcarbodiimide
- Em :
-
electrical membrane potential difference
- FC:
-
fusicoccin
- pHc :
-
cytosolic pH
- FW:
-
fresh weight
- PM:
-
plasmalemma
- SHAM:
-
salicylhydroxamic acid
- SID:
-
strong-ion concentration difference
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This work was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. We gratefully acknowledge the Alexander von Humboldt award donated to J.G. We thank Professor Ulrich Lüttge (TH Darmstadt, FRG) for his kind support and Annett Ehrhardt and Dr. Karl Fischer (TH Darmstadt, FRG) for their valuable help with Cl− and CO2 experiments. Special thanks are due to Professor Erasmo Marrè (Università di Milano, Italy) for continuous discussions and also to Professor Alessandro Ballio (Università di Roma, Italy) for their kind gifts of fusicoccin.
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Ullrich, C.I., Guern, J. Ion fluxes and pH changes induced by trans-plasmalemma electron transfer and fusicoccin inLemna gibba L. (strain G1). Planta 180, 390–399 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01160395
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01160395