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. 1989 Sep;91(1):387–394. doi: 10.1104/pp.91.1.387

Selective and Reversible Inhibition of Active CO2 Transport by Hydrogen Sulfide in a Cyanobacterium 1

George S Espie 1,2, Anthony G Miller 1, David T Canvin 1
PMCID: PMC1062004  PMID: 16667030

Abstract

The active transport of CO2 in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus UTEX 625 was inhibited by H2S. Treatment of the cells with up to 150 micromolar H2S + HS− at pH 8.0 had little effect on Na+-dependent HCO3− transport or photosynthetic O2 evolution, but CO2 transport was inhibited by more than 90%. CO2 transport was restored when H2S was removed by flushing with N2. At constant total H2S + HS− concentrations, inhibition of CO2 transport increased as the ratio of H2S to HS− increased, suggesting a direct role for H2S in the inhibitory process. Hydrogen sulfide does not appear to serve as a substrate for transport. In the presence of H2S and Na+ -dependent HCO3− transport, the extracellular CO2 concentration rose considerably above its equilibrium level, but was maintained far below its equilibrium level in the absence of H2S. The inhibition of CO2 transport, therefore, revealed an ongoing leakage from the cells of CO2 which was derived from the intracellular dehydration of HCO3− which itself had been recently transported into the cells. Normally, leaked CO2 is efficiently transported back into the cell by the CO2 transport system, thus maintaining the extracellular CO2 concentration near zero. It is suggested that CO2 transport not only serves as a primary means of inorganic carbon acquisition for photosynthesis but also serves as a means of recovering CO2 lost from the cell. A schematic model describing the relationship between the CO2 and HCO3− transport systems is presented.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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