J. Matskevitch et al., EFFECT OF EXTRACELLULAR PH ON THE MYOINOSITOL TRANSPORTER SMIT EXPRESSED IN XENOPUS OOCYTES, Pflugers Archiv, 436(6), 1998, pp. 854-857
The myo-inositol transporter SMIT is expressed particularly at high ex
tracellular osmolarity and serves to accumulate the osmolyte myo-inosi
tol. Transport of myo-inositol is coupled to the cotransport of Na+ an
d is electrogenic. In Xenopus oocytes injected with mRNA encoding SMIT
but not in water-injected oocytes, myo-inositol creates an inward cur
rent that is dependent on the ambient Na+ concentration. The present s
tudy has been performed to elucidate the pH dependence of myo-inositol
-induced currents. Therefore, Xenopus oocytes were injected with mRNA
encoding SMIT and two-electrode voltage-clamp studies were performed.
The myo-inositol-induced currents in oocytes expressing SMIT were foun
d to have a sigmoidal dependence on the ambient pH between pH 5.5 and
8.5 with an apparent K-i of 0.21+/-001 mu M H+ and a Hill coefficient
of 1.80+/-0.16. Kinetic analysis of the myo-inositol-induced currents
at pH 8.0 and -90 mV holding potential revealed a Hill coefficient of
0.93+/0.07 and an apparent K-m, for myo-inositol of 0.031+/-0.003 mM a
s well as a Hill coefficient of 1.64+/-0.24 and an apparent K-m of 38.
8+/-4.1 mM for Na+. A decrease of the Na+ concentration from 150 mM to
50 mM significantly altered the maximal observed current and increase
d the apparent K-m for myo-inositol. Acidification to pH 6.5 significa
ntly increased the apparent K-m for myo-inositol and for Na+ to 0.057/-0.005 mM and 73.9+/-4.8 mM, respectively. The Hill coefficients for
myo-inositol and Na+ were not affected and remained close to 1 for myo
-inositol and 2 for Na+. In summary, acidification impedes SMIT-mediat
ed myo-inositol transport at least partially by decreasing the affinit
y of the carrier for Na+. The impaired Na+ binding subsequently decrea
ses binding and transport of myo-inositol.