1. Pulsed acid-base titrations of suspensions of rat-liver mitochondria under anaerobic equilibrium conditions show fast and slow titration processes. 2. The fast process is the titration of the outer aqueous phase of the mitochondria, which is continuous with the suspension medium, and the slow process can be identified with the titration of the inner aqueous phase of the mitochondria, which is separated from the outer aqueous phase by the non-aqueous osmotic barrier or M phase of the cristae membrane system. 3. The buffering power of the outer and inner phases have been separately measured over a range of pH values. 4. The rate of titration of the inner aqueous phase under a known protonmotive force across the M phase has been characterized by an effective proton conductance coefficient, which, near pH7 and at 25 degrees , is only 0.45mumho/cm.(2) of the M-phase membrane. 5. The low effective proton conductance of the M phase will account quantitatively for the observed respiratory control in state 4, assuming that oxidoreduction and phosphorylation are coupled by a circulating proton current as required by the chemi-osmotic hypothesis. 6. The addition of 2,4-dinitrophenol (or carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone) at normal uncoupling concentrations causes a large increase in the effective proton conductance of the M phase of the cristae membrane. 7. The increase of the effective proton conductance of the M phase by 2,4-dinitrophenol (or carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone) will account quantitatively for the short-circuiting effect of the uncoupling agent on the proton current and for the observed rise of the rate of respiration to that characteristic of state 3 or higher.

Animals↗

PubMed1967

Respiration-driven proton translocation in rat liver mitochondria.

1. Pulses of acidity of the outer aqueous phase of rat liver mitochondrial suspensions induced by pulses of respiration are due to the translocation of H(+) (or OH(-)) ions across the osmotic barrier (M phase) of the cristae membrane and cannot be attributed to the formation (with acid production) of a chemical intermediate that subsequently decomposes. 2. The effective quantity of protons translocated per bivalent reducing equivalent passing through the succinate-oxidizing and beta-hydroxybutyrate-oxidizing spans of the respiratory chain are very close to 4 and 6 respectively. These quotients are constant between pH5.5 and 8.5 and are independent of changes in the ionic composition of the mitochondrial suspension medium provided that the conditions permit the accurate experimental measurement of the proton translocation. 3. Apparent changes in the -->H(+)/O quotients may be induced by conditions preventing the occurrence of the usual backlash; these apparent changes of -->H(+)/O are attributable to a very fast electrically driven component of the decay of the acid pulses that is not included in the experimental extrapolations. 4. Apparent changes in the -->H(+)/O quotients may also be induced by the presence of anions, such as succinate, malonate and phosphate, or by cations such as Na(+). These apparent changes of -->H(+)/O are due to an increase in the rate of the pH-driven decay of the acid pulses. 5. The uncoupling agents, 2,4-dinitrophenol, carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone and gramicidin increase the effective proton conductance of the M phase and thus increase the rate of decay of the respiration-driven acid pulses, but do not change the initial -->H(+)/O quotients. The increase in effective proton conductance of the M phase caused by these uncouplers accounts quantitatively for their uncoupling action; and the fact that the initial -->H(+)/O quotients are unchanged shows that uncoupler-sensitive chemical intermediates do not exist between the respiratory-chain system and the effective proton-translocating mechanism. 6. Stoicheiometric acid-base changes associated with the activity of the regions of the respiratory chain on the oxygen side of the rotenone- and antimycin A-sensitive sites gives experimental support for a suggested configuration of loop 3.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1967