John L. Rubinstein

Adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the chemical energy currency of biology, is synthesized in eukaryotic cells primarily by the mitochondrial ATP synthase. ATP synthases operate by a rotary catalytic mechanism where proton translocation through the membrane-inserted FO region is coupled to ATP synthesis in the catalytic F1 region via rotation of a central rotor subcomplex. We report here single particle electron cryomicroscopy (cryo-EM) analysis of the bovine mitochondrial ATP synthase. Combining cryo-EM data with bioinformatic analysis allowed us to determine the fold of the a subunit, suggesting a proton translocation path through the FO region that involves both the a and b subunits. 3D classification of images revealed seven distinct states of the enzyme that show different modes of bending and twisting in the intact ATP synthase. Rotational fluctuations of the c8-ring within the FO region support a Brownian ratchet mechanism for proton-translocation-driven rotation in ATP synthases.

Snapshots of a rotary pump Vesicular- or vacuolar-type adenosine triphosphatases (V-ATPases) are ATP-hydrolysis–driven proton pumps. In neurons, V-ATPase activity generates a proton gradient across the membrane of synaptic vesicles so that neurotransmitters can be loaded into the vesicles. Abbas et al. developed a method to purify V-ATPase from rat brain and determined the structure of the entire complex by cryo–electron microscopy. Native mass spectrometry showed that the preparation was homogeneous and complemented structural studies by confirming the subunit composition. Three rotational states were resolved at better than 4-angstrom resolution, providing insight into the conformational changes that couple ATP hydrolysis to proton pumping. Science , this issue p. 1240