The hydrolysis of ATP was measured in the presence of schistosome homogenates and various cations. The enzyme was stimulated strongly by either Ca2+ or Mg2+. Na+ added to the activation by Ca2+. A minor (17%) component was Na+ + K+ + Mg2+-dependent and ouabain-sensitive. Praziquantel, niridazole, oxamniquine, and hycanthone had no direct effect on the ATPase activity of schistosome homogenates. When schistosomes were pretreated with these drugs in vitro, washed thoroughly, and then homogenized, hycanthone, praziquantel, and oxamniquine caused a reduction in ATPase content of the worms. Niridazole did not share this effect. These results suggest that antischistosomal drugs did not directly inhibit ATPase, but did reduce ATPase in whole worms, possibly by removing or damaging the tegument, which is thought to contain most of the ATPase activity. In vitro ATPase measurements may be a useful indicator of pharmacologic activity of some types of drugs.
Inhibition of adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) by chlorauric acid (Au3+) and gold sodium thiomalate (Au+) was studied in dog brain and kidney and in human kidney enzyme preparations. Au3+ indiscriminately affected ouabain‐sensitive (Na+ + K+‐dependent) ATPase and ouabain‐insensitive (Mg2+‐dependent) ATPase with concentrations for 50% inhibition (I50) approximately 10‐6 M. The I50 of Au3+ for Na+ + K+ ATPase was several‐fold higher in homogenates than in microsomal fractions. The enzyme was protected by bovine serum albumin. Although Au3+ and Au+ were equipotent against Mg2+ ATPase, Au+ inhibited Na+ + K+ ATPase 2 to 3 times more effectively than did Au3+. The inhibitory action of Au3+ (but not Au+) was potentiated by ascorbic acid, suggesting reduction of Au3+ to Au+ by ascorbic acid. The fractional inhibition of Na+ + K+ ATPase by Au3+ or Au+ was not affected by changing concentrations of NaCl, KCl, MgCl2, ATP, and MgATP. Decreasing pH from 8.0 to 6.8 enhanced both Au+ and Au3+ inhibition. We conclude that gold is one of the most potent nonspecific of Na+ + K+ ATPase, with characteristics differing from other metallic inhibitors of this enzyme system.
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