Organic cation transport by Malpighian tubules of Drosophila melanogaster: application of two novel electrophysiological methods

Transport of the prototypical organic cation tetraethylammonium (TEA) by the Malpighian tubules, ureters and gut of Drosophila melanogaster was studied using two novel electrophysiological techniques. Both techniques exploited the high selectivity of the cation exchanger potassium tetra-p-chlorophenylborate for tetraalkylammonium compounds relative to inorganic cations such as K(+). In the first technique, TEA fluxes were measured using a …