pHi determines rate of sodium transport in frog skin: results of a new method to determine pHi

The pH of the isolated frog skin epithelium was determined on a cellular and subcellular level based on the distribution of a weak organic acid, 4-bromobenzoic acid. The indicator is detectable by X-ray microanalysis due to the presence of an element label. The results show that the pH of principal cells, but not the Na concentration, is closely correlated with the rate of transepithelial Na transport. Acidification leads to an inhibition of Na transport, regardless of whether the change was spontaneous or experimentally induced. Under the conditions of this study, the pH of principal cells was not well regulated. At a bath pH of 7.0, large pH differences between the cell layers were detectable. In mitochondria-rich cells, the pH was a function of the intracellular Cl concentration but not the Na transport rate. The cytoplasmic pH consistently exceeded the nuclear pH. The nuclear-cytoplasmic pH differential in principal cells amounted to 0.3 pH units, which is equivalent to a nuclear potential of -17 mV. The results support the view that the intracellular pH (pHi) is an important regulator of transepithelial Na transport. Regulation is primarily achieved at the level of the apical Na channel, making the Na influx the rate-limiting step in Na reabsorption.