# TRANSPORT AND METABOLISM OF INORGANIC ELECTROLYTES

> **NIH NIH R01** · NATIONAL JEWISH HEALTH · 1988 · $133,417

## Abstract

The objective of this program is to explore the molecular basis
and physiological functions of ion transport in eukaryotic
microorganisms, fungi in particular.

The water mold Blastocladiella emersonii, well known to
developmental biologists for its remarkable life cycle, is also a
favorable organism for electrophysiological research.  Earlier
work from this laboratory has suggested that the organism drives
a combined circulation of potassium ions and protons with the aid
of a potassium-translocating ATPase.  We shall continue ongoing
efforts to isolate the plasma membrane and to characterize its
ion-transport ATPases.  The findings will serve as the basis for
examining the movements of K+, M+, Na+ and Ca2+ ions in the
context of the cell's growth and development.

Circumstantial evidence from several laboratories implicated
protons and calcium ions in apical extension and the control of
branching.  Experiments with Neurospora and Achlya will explore
the effects of ionophores on growth and cytoplasmic calcium
levels.  We shall seek to discover whether changes in the calcium
level serve as regulatory signals; whether colonial growth in
certain mutants reflects altered ion fluxes; whether there is a
gradient of Ca2+ ions within hyphae and what this has to do with
polarized growth; and how ionic signals interact with other signals
to create the integrated process that we call growth.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 3124136
- **Project number:** 5R01AI003568-25
- **Recipient organization:** NATIONAL JEWISH HEALTH
- **SAM.gov UEI:** VLQKFEEJ3NE9
- **Principal Investigator:** FRANKLIN M HAROLD
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 1988
- **Award amount:** $133,417
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1978-12-01 → 1990-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/3124136

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 3124136, TRANSPORT AND METABOLISM OF INORGANIC ELECTROLYTES (5R01AI003568-25). Retrieved via MORVS 2026-10-24 from https://api.morvs.ai/grant/nih/3124136. Licensed CC0.

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