Ion selectivity of colicin E1: II. Permeability to organic cations

Channels formed by colicin E1 in planar lipid bilayers have large diameters and conduct both cations and anions. The rates at which ions are transported, however, are relatively slow, and the relative anion-to-cation selectivity is modulated over a wide range by the pH of the bathing solutions. We have examined the permeability of these channels to cationic probes having a variety of sizes, shapes, and charge distributions. All of the monovalent probes were found to be permeant, establishing a minimum diameter at the narrowest part of the pore of approximately 9 A. In contrast to this behavior, all of the polyvalent organic cations were shown to be impermeant. This simple exclusionary rule is interpreted as evidence that, when steric restrictions require partial dehydration of an ion, the structure of the channel is able to provide a substitute electrostatic environment for only one charged group at time.