Bacterial membrane vesicles retain the same sidedness as the membrane in the intact cell and catalyze active transport of many solutes by a respiration-dependent mechanism that does not involve the generation of utilization of ATP or other high-energy phosphate compounds. In E. coli vesicles, most of these transport systems are coupled to an electrochemical gradient of protons (deltamuH+, interior negative and alkaline) generated primarily by the oxidation of D-lactate or reduced phenazine methosulfate via a membrane-bound respiratory chain. Oxygen or, under appropriate conditions, fumarate or nitrate can function as terminal electron acceptors, and the site at which deltamuH+ is generated is located before cytochrome b1 in the respiratory chain. Certain (N-dansyl)aminoalkyl-beta-D-galactopyranosides (Dns-gal) and N(2-nitro-4-azidophenyl)aminoalkyl 1-thio-beta-D-galactopyranosides (APG) are competitive inhibitors of lactose transport but are not transported themselves. Various fluorescence techniques, direct binding assays, and photoinactivation studies demonstrate that the great bulk of the lac carrier protein (ca. 95%) does not bind ligand in the absence of energy-coupling. Upon generation of a deltamuH+ (interior negative and alkaline), binding of Dns-gal and APG-dependent photoinactivation are observed. The data indicate that energy is coupled to the initial step in the transport process, and suggest that the lac carrier protein may be negatively charged.