ATP synthase turns one way to make ATP and the other to break it down.

Börsch

Like a revolving door, bacterial ATP synthase turns two ways, according to Manuel Diez, Michael Börsch (Universität Stuttgart, Germany), and colleagues. One direction makes ATP, whereas the other breaks it down.

ATP synthase is a two-component nanomotor. One part of the enzyme (F0) lies within the lipid bilayer and translocates protons across the membrane, whereas the other (F1) makes or breaks ATP. Recent studies have shown that each portion contains a subunit that turns within the rest of the protein framework, thus giving ATP synthase a reputation as a rotor. F1 rotation had been best shown during ATP hydrolysis, because the microscopy methods used needed soluble protein, but the enzyme requires a proton gradient across a membrane to make ATP.

To solve this problem,...

The Rockefeller University Press
2004
The Rockefeller University Press
2004
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