The influence of some cations on an adenosine triphosphatase from peripheral nerves

Leg nerves from the shore crab (Carcinus maenas) contain an adenosine triphosphatase which is located in the submicroscopic particles. The influence of sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium ions on this enzyme has been investigated. The presence of magnesium ions is an obligatory requirement for the activity of the enzyme. Sodium ions increase the activity when magnesium ions are present. Potassium ions increase the activity when the system contains both magnesium and sodium ions. Potassium ions in high concentration inhibit that part of the activity which is due to Na+, while the activity due to Mg++ is not affected. Calcium ions inhibit the enzyme under all conditions. When Mg++ or Mg++ + Na+ are present in the system, the optimum magnesium concentration is equal to the concentration of ATP. If potassium ions are added, the optimum magnesium concentration is doubled. If calcium ions are also added, the optimum magnesium concentration becomes still higher, and it increases with the calcium concentration. A majority of these observations may be explained by assuming (a) that the substrate most readily attacked by the enzyme is sodium-magnesium-ATP, (b) that potassium ions stimulate the enzyme directly, and (c) that an increase in the concentration of potassium ions leads to a displacement of sodium ions from the substrate and accordingly to an inhibition of the reaction. If the system contains the four cations in concentrations roughly equal to those in the crab-nerve axoplasm, an increase in the sodium concentration as well as a decrease in the potassium concentration will lead to an intensification of the enzyme activity. This observation, as well as some other characteristics of the system, suggest that the adenosine triphosphatase studied here may be involved in the active extrusion of sodium from the nerve fibre.