Activation of ferret erythrocyte Na+–K+–2Cl− cotransport by deoxygenation

Deoxygenation of ferret erythrocytes stimulates Na⁺–K⁺–2Cl⁻ cotransport by 111% ( s.d. , 46) compared to controls in air. Half-maximal activation occurs at a P _O2 of 24 mmHg ( s.d. , 2) indicating that physiological changes in oxygen tension can influence cotransport function. Approximately 25–35% of this stimulation can be attributed to the rise of intracellular free magnesium concentration that occurs on deoxygenation (from 0.82 ( s.d. , 0.07) to 1.40 m m ( s.d. , 0.17)). Most of the stimulation is probably caused by activation of a kinase which can be prevented or reversed by treating cells with the kinase inhibitors PP1 or staurosporine, or by reducing cell magnesium content to submicromolar levels. Stimulation by deoxygenation is comparable with that caused by calyculin A or sodium arsenite, compounds that cause a 2- to 3-fold increase in threonine phosphorylation of the cotransporter which can be detected with phospho-specific antibodies. However, the same approach failed to detect significant changes in threonine phosphorylation following deoxygenation. The results suggest that deoxygenation causes activation of a kinase that either phosphorylates the transporter, but probably not on threonine, or phosphorylates another protein that in turn influences cotransporter behaviour. They also indicate that more than one kinase and phosphatase are involved in cotransporter phosphorylation.