Plasma membrane studies on drug-sensitive and -resistant cell lines. II. Ouabain sensitivity of (Na+ +K+)-stimulated Mg2+-ATPase.

Mutant cell lines have been selected from the murine plasmocytoma MOPC 173 for their resistance to ouabain, dibutyryl cyclic AMP, theophyllin and concanavalin A. We have compared three wild-type cell lines with their seven resistant counterparts. All resistant mutants exhibited a (Na+ + K+)-stimulated Mg2+-ATPase resistance to ouabain inhibition when measured in microsomes. The homogeneity of ouabain binding sites has been found in most of the cell lines; however, two different populations of sites have been detected in one wild-type and in one resistant cell lines. These results led us to hypothetise the (Na+ + K+)-ATPase-ouabain interaction being modulated by a non-specific membrane structure.