Transport of glutathione S-conjugates in Escherichia coli.

There are no reports concerning glutathione-S-conjugates transport in prokaryotic cells, although many studies have been performed in eukaryotic systems. This study demonstrates that glutathione S-conjugates (2,4-dinitrophenyl-S-glutathione and bimane-S-glutathione) are transported also out of Escherichia coli K12 cells. This transport is inhibited by vanadate, fluoride and other inhibitors of glutathione S-conjugate transport in mammalian cells suggesting a similarity of this process to that known in eukaryotes.