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First published online January 16, 2009
Journal of Experimental Biology 212, 373-377 (2009)
Published by The Company of Biologists 2009
doi: 10.1242/jeb.023580
Review |
Revisiting the cellular mechanisms of strong luminal alkalinization in the anterior midgut of larval mosquitoes
1 Department of Biological Sciences, Wagner College, Staten Island, NY 10301,
USA
2 School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164,
USA
* Author for correspondence (e-mail: horst.onken{at}wagner.edu)
Accepted 3 November 2008
| Summary |
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Key words: larval mosquito, midgut alkalinization, H+ V-ATPase, proton electrochemical gradient, anion exchanger, Na+/H+ exchanger, H+ channel, DIDS, amiloride, ouabain, zinc
| Introduction |
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| Methodological approaches |
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For the experiments described herein, the hemolymph-side superfusate was
Aedes saline (Clark et al.,
1999
) and the luminal perfusate was 100 mmol l–1
NaCl, unless otherwise noted. In most experiments, the luminal perfusate was
not buffered and contained the pH-sensitive dye m-cresol purple
(0.04%). A visual indication of alkali secretion can be obtained at any point
in the experiment by stopping perfusion and watching for the orange-to-purple
color transition of the m-cresol purple that occurs at a pH of
approximately 8.3. This method was verified with luminal pH-sensitive
microelectrodes. Typically, the rate of alkali secretion is sufficiently
vigorous that only a few minutes are required for this transition.
Three types of experiments using the perfused preparation are presented here: inhibitor studies, in which the inhibitor is applied in luminal or hemolymph-side perfusate and changes in the transepithelial potential and the capability to secrete alkali are measured; optical measurements of intracellular pH (pHi) using the H+-sensitive dye BCECF; and microelectrode experiments in which the tissue is penetrated with intracellular glass microelectrodes for measurement of the transbasal electrical potential (Vbl).
Optical measurements of pHi with BCECF were performed using a
method modified from that of Parks and colleagues
(Parks et al., 2007
). In
brief, the BCECF trapped in the tissue was excited at its absorption peak of
495 nm; 440 nm was used as an isobestic wavelength. Images at these
wavelengths were captured digitally. The 495-to-440 nm ratios were compiled as
an indication of the pHi. At the beginning of each experiment,
areas of interest were established on the CCD image of the gut. At the end of
each experiment, fluorescence ratios recorded during the experiment were
calibrated by superfusing the tissue successively with high-K+
solutions containing 5 µmol l–1 nigericin, adjusted to
cover the range of pH values 6.6–8.4.
In the microelectrode experiments, the tissue was penetrated across the
hemolymph-side surface with KCl-filled microelectrodes, as in previous studies
(Clark et al., 2000
). From
simultaneous measurements of Vbl and the transepithelial
potential Vte, the transapical electrical potential
(Vapi) can be calculated. These measurements were combined
with measurements of pHi under similar experimental conditions to
yield estimations of the electrochemical forces acting on H+ as it
passes through the cells.
| Results |
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When the pH of the luminal perfusate of a serotonin-stimulated tissue was
raised from 7 to 10, pHi rose substantially to
8.6 (H.O., S.
K. Parks, G. G. Goss and D.F.M., unpublished observations). This change
dramatically increased the transbasal proton electrochemical gradient to
approximately –190 mV. This value approximates the maximal pump
electromotive force predicted for the V-ATPase
(Moffett, 1980
;
Grabe et al., 2000
;
Luo et al., 2004
). At the same
time, the H+ electrochemical gradient across the apical membrane
was essentially abolished, so that, at a luminal pH of 10, cytoplasmic
H+ is close to electrochemical equilibrium with luminal
H+ (Fig. 1C).
When micromolar Zn2+, a blocker of H+ channels
(DeCoursey, 2003
), was included
in the luminal perfusate, neither the magnitude nor the rate of the change in
pHi in response to alkaline luminal perfusate was affected (H.O.,
S. K. Parks, G. G. Goss and D.F.M., unpublished observations). This result
argues against participation of apical H+ channels in the mechanism
of luminal alkalinization.
The transbasal processes
Transbasal processes parallel to the V-ATPase are potentially important in
alkali secretion, particularly if the hemolymph is a source for bicarbonate.
The presence of the V-ATPase alone cannot result in mass absorption of protons
without the support of an anion transport pathway. Boudko and colleagues
(Boudko et al., 2001
) detected
a DIDS-sensitive transbasal Cl– efflux in a semi-intact
preparation. We reported effects of hemolymph-side DIDS (0.1 mmol
l–1) as well as DPC (0.5 mmol l–1) on
Vte (Onken et al.,
2004
). The effects of hemolymph-side application of these two
relatively nonspecific inhibitors of anion exchangers and anion channels on
alkalinization has not yet been evaluated. If, in addition to
Cl– channels, there were a basal anion exchanger, it might
provide HCO –3 for alkali secretion. Addition of
Ba2+ (5 mmol l–1), an inhibitor of K+
channels (Nagel, 1979
), to the
hemolymph-side superfusate, reduces Vte by
26%
(Onken et al., 2004
). In the
presence of basal K+ channels, the V-ATPase could serve a
housekeeping role by driving the accumulation of K+ in the cells,
thus substituting for the conventional role of the basal
Na+/K+ pump, which is absent in these cells
(Patrick et al., 2006
). For
values of Vbl of the order of those reported here,
intracellular [K+] would be approximately 70–90 mmol
l–1, a value not unusual for insect cells.
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Okech–Patrick hypothesis
The key features of this cation-dominated model
(Fig. 4) are the presence of
apical Na+/2H+ exchanger, Na+-coupled amino
acid transporter and apical Na+/K+-ATPase
(Okech et al., 2008
;
Patrick et al., 2006
). The
postulated existence of an apical Na+/2H+ exchanger is
logical as such an exchanger could exploit the large transapical proton motive
force (Fig. 1B). If the luminal
pH is 7, a transapical H+ gradient favorable for H+
absorption exists under the conditions of our experiments (see above); this
could drive Na+/2H+ exchange, as long as the cytoplasmic
[Na+] is low. If the gut becomes alkaline, this gradient ultimately
disappears as the luminal pH approaches 10
(Fig. 1C). However, luminal
amiloride (200 µmol l–1), a general inhibitor of such
exchangers, did not affect alkalinization
(Fig. 5)
(Onken et al., 2008
). A
K+/2H+ exchanger is postulated in the lepidopteran
midgut, another insect tissue that also develops strong alkalinization
(Azuma et al., 1995
). If such
an exchanger were present in the mosquito, the gradient would be even more
favorable. However, increased luminal K+ did not affect luminal
alkalinization in the perfused preparations
(Onken et al., 2008
).
|
|
Okech and colleagues (Okech et al.,
2008
) found amino acid transporters in the anterior midgut by
using immunohistochemistry. The presence of such transporters is indeed
confirmed by electrophysiological measurements in which a significant increase
in Vte is observed when individual amino acids are added
to the luminal perfusate (S. Izeirovski, S. B. Moffett, D.F.M. and H.O.,
personal communication). The effect of glutamine, which gives the largest
response of the amino acids present in the Aedes saline, is shown in
Fig. 6. Interestingly, amino
acid transport, as indicated by changes of Vte, is
stimulated by serotonin. In our recent experiments, the luminal perfusate did
not include amino acids, but alkalinization was nevertheless observed.
Therefore, the presence of luminal nutrients might facilitate alkali secretion
but is not a requirement for it. By contrast, if amino acids are eliminated
from the hemolymph-side superfusate, the Vte drops
significantly and alkali secretion is retarded (S. Izeirovski, S. B. Moffett,
D.F.M. and H.O., personal communication).
|
| Conclusions |
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It would be facile to say that the studies presented here add to our understanding of how the V-ATPase functions in a system in which it energizes absorption of acid equivalents and secretion of alkali equivalents. Unfortunately, much of the impact of these studies was simply to reveal the extent of what we don't know. We are now in a position to rule out, or at least cast in serious doubt, most elements of the current reasonable hypotheses about the apical membrane transport processes in this system. We cannot rule out uptake of H+ by a charge-carrying process (i.e. either through proton channels or by an electrogenic exchanger), but we can say that any such process is insensitive to both Zn2+ and amiloride at a concentration that could be expected to bring about at least substantial inhibition of most of the known exchangers of this type. We cannot entirely rule out secretion of bicarbonate or carbonate, but we can stipulate that it occurs by a process that is Cl– independent and DIDS insensitive. Although there is a very substantial interaction of amino acid transport with acid–base transport, we have also shown that amino acids do not need to be present in the lumen in order for luminal alkalinization to occur. There is a potential interaction of amino acid metabolism with alkali secretion, in that amino acids are a source of both HCO –3 and NH +4. Both of these become strong bases if H+ is removed. The process of strong luminal alkalinization almost certainly rests on as-yet-unknown mechanisms that deliver one or both of these to the lumen, either in their protonated or nonprotonated forms, combined with the known ability of the V-ATPase to remove protons from the cytoplasm and some unknown mechanism that transports protons from the gut lumen to the cytoplasm.
Finally, it is important to note that the studies reviewed here mingle results from both Anopheles gambiae and Aedes aegypti. Major differences between the two species could well exist, presenting complications that need to be addressed with parallel studies in both species. Moreover, we compare results obtained with very different experimental approaches (in vitro, in situ, in vivo), and our interpretations rely to some degree on the effectiveness of drugs known to impact certain transporters in certain tissues. Nevertheless, we believe that the work with isolated and perfused midgut segments is very productive in relation to uncovering the mechanisms of strong alkalinization in larval mosquitoes, especially because the tissue actually maintains its alkalinizing activity in vitro. Based on the present findings, future work with isolated anterior midguts should be directed to more in vivo-like conditions.
List of abbreviations
| Footnotes |
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