In situ measurements of the pH of mammalian peroxisomes using the fluorescent protein pHluorin

J Biol Chem. 2001 Dec 28;276(52):48748-53. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M109003200. Epub 2001 Oct 18.

Abstract

Peroxisomes are metabolically active organelles that participate in the oxidation of long-chain fatty acids and in the biosynthesis of bile acids, cholesterol, and ether phospholipids. Even though maintenance of a stable acid-base milieu is essential for proper peroxisomal function, the determination of the peroxisomal pH (pH(p)) remains inconclusive, and little is known about its regulation. To measure the pH of intact peroxisomes in situ, we used the peroxisome-specific carboxyl-terminal targeting sequence, SKL, to deliver a pH-sensitive mutant of the green fluorescent protein (pHluorin-SKL) selectively into peroxisomes. Proper targeting was verified by colocalization with the peroxisomal marker catalase. Peroxisomes were visualized by imaging fluorescence microscopy, and ratiometric measurements were combined with calibration using ionophores or a null-point method to estimate pH(p). The pH(p) was between 6.9 and 7.1, resembling the cytosolic pH. Manipulation of the cytosolic pH in intact cells or after permeabilization of the plasmalemma with streptolysin O revealed that pH(p) changed in parallel, suggesting that the peroxisomal membrane is highly permeable to H(+) (equivalents). We conclude that peroxisomes do not regulate their pH independently, but instead their large H(+) permeability effectively connects them with the buffer reservoir of the cytoplasm and with the homeostatic mechanisms that control cytosolic pH.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology
  • Bicarbonates / metabolism
  • CHO Cells
  • Carbon Dioxide / metabolism
  • Carbonyl Cyanide m-Chlorophenyl Hydrazone / pharmacology
  • Cells, Cultured
  • Cricetinae
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / pharmacology
  • Fibroblasts / cytology
  • Fibroblasts / metabolism
  • Fluorescent Dyes / metabolism*
  • Green Fluorescent Proteins
  • Humans
  • Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
  • Immunohistochemistry
  • Ionophores / pharmacology
  • Luminescent Proteins / chemistry
  • Luminescent Proteins / genetics
  • Luminescent Proteins / metabolism*
  • Macrolides*
  • Microscopy, Fluorescence
  • Nigericin / pharmacology
  • Peroxisomes / chemistry
  • Peroxisomes / metabolism*
  • Protein Sorting Signals
  • Protein Transport / physiology*
  • Transfection

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Bicarbonates
  • Enzyme Inhibitors
  • Fluorescent Dyes
  • Ionophores
  • Luminescent Proteins
  • Macrolides
  • Protein Sorting Signals
  • Carbon Dioxide
  • Green Fluorescent Proteins
  • Carbonyl Cyanide m-Chlorophenyl Hydrazone
  • concanamycin A
  • Nigericin