Role of sodium and potassium ions in regulation of glucose metabolism in cultured astroglia.

Many viruses induce oxidative stress and cause S-glutathionylation of Cys residues of the host and viral proteins. Changes in cell functioning during viral infection may be associated with glutathionylation of a number of key proteins including Na,K-ATPase which creates a gradient of sodium and potassium ions. It was found that Na,K-ATPaseα-subunit has a basal glutathionylation which is not abrogated by reducing agent. We have shown that acute hypoxia leads to increase of total glutathionylation level of Na,K-ATPaseα-subunit; however, basal glutathionylation ofα-subunit increases under prolonged hypoxia only. The role of basal glutathionylation in Na,K-ATPase function remains unclear. Understanding significance of basal glutathionylation is complicated by the fact that there are no X-ray structures of Na,K-ATPase with the identified glutathione molecules. We have analyzed all X-ray structures of the Na,K-ATPaseα-subunit from pig kidney and found that there are a number of isolated cavities with unresolved electron density close to the relevant cysteine residues. Analysis of the structures showed that this unresolved density in the structure can be occupied by glutathione associated with cysteine residues. Here, we discuss the role of basal glutathionylation of Na,K-ATPaseα-subunit and provide evidence supporting the view that this modification is cotranslational.

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The Roles of Sodium and Potassium Ions in the Generation of the Electro-Olfactogram

The Journal of General Physiology ◽

10.1085/jgp.51.4.552 ◽

1968 ◽

Vol 51 (4) ◽

pp. 552-578 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

Sadayuki F. Takagi ◽

Gordon A. Wyse ◽

Harunobu Kitamura ◽

Katsuhiro Ito

Keyword(s):

Essential Role ◽

Ringer Solution ◽

The Other ◽

Potassium Ions ◽

Ionic Mechanism ◽

Ringer’S Solution ◽

Sodium And Potassium

In order to clarify whether or not the electronegative olfactory mucosal potentials (EOG) are generator potentials, the effects of changed ionic enviroment were studied. The EOG decreased in amplitude and in some cases nearly or completely disappeared, when Na+ in the bathing Ringer solution was replaced by sucrose, Li+, choline+, tetraethylammonium+ (TEA), or hydrazine. In the K+-free Ringer solution, the negative EOG's initially increased and then decreased in amplitude. In Ringer's solution with increased K+, the negative EOG's increased in amplitude. When K+ was increased in exchange for Na+ in Ringer's solution, the negative EOG's decreased, disappeared, and then reversed their polarity (Fig. 6). Next, when the K+ was replaced by equimolar sucrose, Li+, choline+, TEA+, hydrazine, or Na+, the reversed potentials recovered completely only in Na+-Ringer's solution, but never in the other solutions. Thus, the essential role of Na+ and K+ in the negative EOG's was demonstrated. Ba++ was found to depress selectively the electropositive EOG, but it hardly decreased and never increased the negative EOG. Hence, it is concluded that Ba++ interferes only with Cl- influx, and that the negative EOG's are elicited by an increase in permeability of the olfactory receptive membrane to Na+ and K+, but not to Cl-. From the ionic mechanism it is inferred that the negative EOG's are in most cases composites of generator and positive potentials.

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