In Amphiuma red blood cells, the Na/H exchanger has been shown to play a central role in the regulation of cell volume following cell shrinkage (Cala, P. M. 1980. Journal of General Physiology. 76:683-708.) The present study was designed to evaluate the existence of pH regulatory Na/H exchange in the Amphiuma red blood cell. The data illustrate that when the intracellular pHi was decreased below the normal value of 7.00, Na/H exchange was activated in proportion to the degree of acidification. Once activated, net Na/H exchange flux persisted until normal intracellular pH (6.9-7.0) was restored, with a half time of approximately 5 min. These observations established a pHi set point of 7.00 for the pH-activated Na/H exchange of Amphiuma red blood cell. This is in contrast to the behavior of osmotically shrunken Amphiuma red blood cells in which no pHi set point could be demonstrated. That is, when activated by cell shrinkage the Na/H exchange mediated net Na flux persisted until normal volume was restored regardless of pHi. In contrast, when activated by cell acidification, the Na/H exchanger functioned until pHi was restored to normal and cell volume appeared to have no effect on pH-activated Na/H exchange. Studies evaluating the kinetic and inferentially, the molecular equivalence of the volume and pHi-induced Amphiuma erythrocyte Na/H exchanger(s), indicated that the apparent Na affinity of the pH activated cells is four times greater than that of shrunken cells. The apparent Vmax is also higher (two times) in the pH activated cells, suggesting the involvement of two distinct populations of the transporter in pH and volume regulation. However, when analyzed in terms of a bisubstrate model, the same data are consistent with the conclusion that both pH and volume regulatory functions are mediated by the same transport protein. Taken together, these data support the conclusion that volume and pH are regulated by the same effector (Na/H exchanger) under the control of as yet unidentified, distinct and cross inhibitory volume and pH sensing mechanisms
