Proton pumping kinetics and origin of nitrate inhibition of tonoplast-type H+-ATPase.

A tonoplast-type vesicle preparation, substantially free from other subcellular membranes, was obtained from corn roots by equilibrium sucrose density gradient centrifugation. At pH 6.5 and in the presence of chloride ions, the tonoplast-type ATPase activity as measured by Pi release, was inhibited by nitrate ions. The ATPase activity was insensitive to molybdate and vanadate, indicating a minimum nonspecific phosphatase and plasma membrane contamination. The vesicles exhibited an ATP hydrolysis-supported proton uptake which was measured by the absorption change of acridine orange. The ATP hydrolysis supported uptake and the subsequent perturbant-induced release of protons (decay) was described by a kinetic model which was previously developed to evaluate the coupling between proton pumping and the primary energy yielding process for other biomembranes. The proton pumping activity was more sensitive to nitrate ions then was ATP hydrolysis. The differential effect and the kinetic analysis of nitrate inhibition led us to suggest that (i) the coupling between Pi release and proton pumping was indirect in nature and (ii) the primary inhibitory effect of nitrate ion was originated from an interaction with a protogenic protein domain which is functionally linked to the ATPase in the tonoplast-type membrane.