Ultrastructure of reconstituted rat liver microsomal membranes and cytochromeb5- orP-450-containing proteoliposomes

Thin sectioning and freeze-fracture electron microscopy have been used to show that it is possible to obtain topologically closed vesicles by means of reconstitution of rat liver microsomal membrane “ghosts.” The reconstitution by 15 hr dialysis resulted in the formation of vesicles with intra-membrane particles (IMP) while after 40 hr dialysis no IMP were observed in the membranes. The protein/lipid ratio and functional activity of NADPH- and NADH-linked enzyme systems were similar in both cases. CytochromeP-450 (LM₂) was incorporated into liposomes of different composition (protein : lipid ratio — 1:200). IMP were observed only when the incorporation of cytochrome P-450 was performed in the presence of detergent Emulgen 913 as specific additive to the initial protein-lipid-sodium cholate mixture or in the course of incubation of proteoliposomal suspensions at 37°C. After the incorporation of cytochromeb₅ into azolectin liposomes vesicular membranes contain IMP if the incorporated membrane protein: lipid ratio is at least 1:50. Pronase-induced splitting off of a 11 kDa heme-containing fragment of cytochromeb₅ did not affect IMP content. The conditions of IMP formation in reconstituted membranes and in microsomal ghosts are discussed.