Biomedical Engineering Reference
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3 Na
3 Na
3 Na
E 1 -ATP
E 1 -ATP
E 1 P-ADP
+
2K
+
Na
ADP
+
3Na
2 K
2 Na
E 1 -ATP
+
2K
ATP
+
2Na
H 2 O
P 1
2 K
2 K
2 K
E 2 .P 1
E 2
E 2 P
The reaction cycle of the Na + ,K + -ATPase [ 23 , 40 ]
Fig. 4.13
[ 22 , 32 ]. A FXYD family member protein often associates itself with the αβ -complex
as a third subunit, and regulates the pumping activity in a tissue- and isoform-specific
way [ 20 , 51 ].
A recent study of the crystal structure on the sodium-potassium pump [ 36 ] has
described clearly how the membrane component is relevant to the activity of the
pump. In light of the sensitivity of the Na + ,K + -pump activity to the membrane
potential, it is notable that arginines make the area around the C-terminus in the mem-
brane edge region highly electropositive. In various types of voltage-dependent ion
channels, arginine clusters act as voltage sensors that move in response to membrane
depolarization, and in the Na + ,K + -ATPase the arginine cluster associated with the
C-terminus could function similarly as a control point for a voltage-sensitive switch
that alters the relations of the C-terminus in its binding pocket during depolariza-
tion/repolarization, with consequences for the Na + affinity. The hypothesis involving
a direct structural and functional relation between the C-terminus and the third Na +
site is in accordance with the high voltage-sensitivity of the binding and release of
one of the three Na + ions [ 4 , 19 ].
References
1. Andersen, O.S., Sawyer, D.B., and Koeppe II, R.E.: Bio membrane structure and Function.
edited by K. R. K. Easwaran and B. Gaber (Schenectady, New York: Adenine), 227-244
(1992)
 
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