One way for the gastric proton pump

Abstract

We are occasionally reminded of the gastric proton pump (H+,K+-ATPase) acidifying the gastric juice as an unpleasant symptom of heartburn. A paper by Abe et al in this issue of the EMBO Journal (Abe et al (2009)) provides new structural insight into this important ion pump and drug target. Combining a docking model obtained from electron microscopy with mutational studies, the paper addresses the underlying mechanism of resistance of H,K-ATPase to a million-fold pH gradient. © 2009 European Molecular Biology Organization.