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Effect of alloxan and insulin on carbohydrate metabolism in rat brain.

8 and 24 hours after alloxan administration, diabetic rat brain shows decreased glycogen content, significantly increased FDP, triose phosphates, pyruvate and lactate levels, a large rise in glucose and a 27% activation of anaerobic lactate production from glycogen. 48 hours after alloxan administration there is a recovery of glycogen and a fall in lactate levels. ATP and AMP levels are unchanged 8 and 24 hours after alloxan administration but the former is increased and the latter decreased 48 hours posttreatment. Insulin given to rats 8 hours after alloxan treatment reverses glycogen, FDP, triose phosphates, pyruvate and lactate levels seen in the diabetic rat brain. In addition the increament in glucose is reduced by half and the rate of anaerobic lactate formation from glycogen is restored to control values. G-6-P levels, unaffected by alloxan or insulin alone, are significantly lowered in animals which received insulin after alloxan. Phosphorylase, HK, PFK, ALD, GAPDH, PK, LDH and Glycogen synthetase activities are not modified in rat brain by administration of alloxan or insulin or both.

Adenine Nucleotides↗

Pyridine nucleotides in glucose metabolism and diabetes: a review.

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) and its derivatives NADH, NADP and NADPH have regulatory functions in the generation of triose phosphates and pyruvate from glucose. In many studies of the influence of the diabetic state on relationships between pyridine nucleotide and glucose metabolism, the focus has been on the sorbitol pathway. Less attention has been paid to other aspects of the role of pyridine nucleotides in pyruvate formation from glucose, in particular the effects of the NAD precursors nicotinamide and nicotinic acid on glucose metabolism. This paper reviews current knowledge of the involvement of pyridine nucleotides and their precursors in glucose catabolism in the normal and diabetic state. Reference is also made to the following three current hypotheses for mechanisms underlying diabetic microangiopathy: 1. Chronic glucose overutilization, caused by hyperglycemia, in tissues which lack insulin receptors and therefore are freely permeable to glucose. 2. Enhancement of sorbitol pathway activity with an ensuing decrease in the ratio of NAD/NADH. 3. Enhanced utilization of both glucose and pyridine nucleotides in formation of triose phosphates and pyruvate. Therapy with NAD precursors like nicotinamide might have corrective effects on these proposed biochemical aberrations, thereby retarding progression of microangiopathy.

Animals↗

Glyceraldehyde metabolism in human erythrocytes in comparison with that of glucose and dihydroxyacetone.

Metabolism of D-glyceraldehyde in human erythrocytes in comparison with that of glucose and dihydroxyacetone was studied. Both trioses were metabolized to produce L-lactate at rates comparable to that of L-lactate formation from glucose. Almost complete inactivation of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase by treatment of cells with iodoacetate resulted in a 95% decrease in L-lactate formation from the ketotriose as well as from glucose, whereas L-lactate formation from the aldotriose was only partially reduced (60%). D-Lactate was produced faster from either the aldotriose or the ketotriose than from glucose, but the ability of the two trioses to produce D-lactate was far lower than that to produce L-lactate. Almost complete inhibition of aldehyde dehydrogenase by disulfiram and of both aldose reductase and aldehyde reductase II by sorbinil, had no effect on L-lactate formation from D-glyceraldehyde. The present study suggests that D-glyceraldehyde is metabolized via two or more pathways including the glycolytic pathway after its phosphorylation by triokinase, and that neither oxidation to D-glyceric acid nor reduction to glycerol is a prerequisite for D-glyceraldehyde metabolism.

Carbohydrate Metabolism↗

Three dimensional structure of porcine pancreatic alpha-amylase at 2.9 A resolution. Role of calcium in structure and activity.

The crystal structure of porcine pancreatic alpha-amylase (PPA) has been solved at 2.9 A resolution by X-ray crystallographic methods. The enzyme contains three domains. The larger, in the N-terminal part, consists of 330 amino acid residues. This central domain has the typical parallel-stranded alpha-beta barrel structure (alpha beta)8, already found in a number of other enzymes like triose phosphate isomerase and pyruvate kinase. The C-terminal domain forms a distinct globular unit where the chain folds into an eight-stranded antiparallel beta-barrel. The third domain lies between a beta-strand and a alpha-helix of the central domain, in a position similar to those found for domain B in triose phosphate isomerase and pyruvate kinase. It is essentially composed of antiparallel beta-sheets. The active site is located in a cleft within the N-terminal central domain, at the carboxy-end of the beta-strands of the (alpha beta)8 barrel. Binding of various substrate analogues to the enzyme suggests that the amino acid residues involved in the catalytic reaction are a pair of aspartic acids. A number of other residues surround the substrate and seem to participate in its binding via hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions. The 'essential' calcium ion has been located near the active site region and between two domains, each of them providing two calcium ligands. On the basis of sequence comparisons this calcium binding site is suggested to be a common structural feature of all alpha-amylases. It represents a new type of calcium-protein interaction pattern.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

Novel expression of liver FBPase in Langerhans islets of human and rat pancreas.

Several reports have indicated the absence of gluconeogenic enzymes in pancreatic islet cells. In contrast, here we demonstrate that liver fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase) is highly expressed both in human and rat pancreas. Interestingly, pancreatic FBPase is active and functional, and is inhibited by AMP and fructose-2,6-bisphosphate (Fru-2,6-P2). These results suggest that FBPase may participate as a component of a metabolic sensing mechanism present in the pancreas. Immunolocalization analysis showed that FBPase is expressed both in human and rat Langerhans islets, specifically in beta cells. In humans, FBPase was also located in the canaliculus and acinar cells. These results indicate that FBPase coupled with phosphofructokinase (PFK) plays a crucial role in the metabolism of pancreatic islet cells. The demonstration of gluconeogenic recycling of trioses as a new metabolic signaling pathway may contribute to our understanding of the differences between the insulin secretagogues trioses, fructose, and glucose in pancreas.

Animals↗

Mouse lacking NAD+-linked glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase has normal pancreatic beta cell function but abnormal metabolite pattern in skeletal muscle.

We surveyed the BALB/cHeA mouse, which lacks cytosolic glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase an enzyme that catalyzes a reaction in the glycerol phosphate shuttle. The other enzyme of this shuttle, mitochondrial glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase, is abundant in skeletal muscle and pancreatic islets suggesting that the shuttle's activity is high in these tissues. Levels of glycerol phosphate (low) and dihydroxyacetone phosphate (high) were very abnormal in nonislet tissue, especially in skeletal muscle. Intermediates situated before the triose phosphates in the glycolysis pathway were increased and those after the triose phosphates were generally low, depending on the tissue. The lactate/pyruvate ratio in muscle was low signifying a low cytosolic NAD/NADH ratio. This suggests that a nonfunctional glycerol phosphate shuttle caused a block in glycolysis at the step catalyzed by glyceraldehyde phosphate dehydrogenase. When exercised, mice were unable to maintain normal ATP levels in skeletal muscle. Blood glucose, serum insulin levels, and pancreatic islet mass were normal. In isolated pancreatic islets insulin release, glucose metabolism and ATP levels were normal, but lactate levels and lactate/pyruvate ratios with a glucose load were slightly abnormal. The BALB/cHeA mouse can maintain NAD/ NADH ratios sufficient to function normally under most conditions, but the redox state is not normal. Glycerol phosphate is apparently formed at a slow rate. Skeletal muscle is severely affected probably because it is dependent on the glycerol phosphate shuttle more than other tissues. It most likely utilizes glycerol phosphate rapidly and, due to the absence of glycerol kinase in muscle, is unable to rapidly form glycerol phosphate from glycerol. Glycerol kinase is also absent in the pancreatic insulin cell, but this cell's function is essentially normal probably because of redundancy of NAD(H) shuttles.

Animals↗

Regulation of photosynthetic carbon assimilation.

It may be concluded that the conversion of PGA to DPGA plays a key role in induction and in the regulation of cycle activity. The high concentrations of PGA in actively photosynthesizing chloroplasts reflect this role and the control exerted by adenylate ratios. Thus the cycle can operate at its maximum rate only in the presence of high PGA and low ribulose 5-phosphate concentrations. Once induction is complete, the reductive pentose phosphate pathway will continue to function at its maximum rate if sink activity within the cytoplasm makes available sufficient Pi to support rapid export of triose phosphate. If triose phosphate tends to build up in the straoma, it will favor pentose monophosphate accumulation. A relative excess of ribulose 5-phosphate would, in turn, inhibit PGA reduction (and hence its own formation) by drawing too heavily on the available ATP.

Adenosine Diphosphate↗

Carbon assimilation and metabolism in potato leaves deficient in plastidial phosphoglucomutase.

We have previously described the generation of transgenic potato ( Solanum tuberosum L. cv. Desiree) lines expressing the S. tuberosum plastidial phosphoglucomutase ( StpPGM) gene in the antisense orientation under the control of the 35S promoter and characterised heterotrophic metabolism in these lines [E. Tauberger et al. (2000) Plant J 23:43-53]. The aim of the current work was to examine the role of plastidial phosphoglucomutase (pPGM, EC 5.4.2.2) in photosynthetic carbon partitioning. Here we characterise the metabolism of leaves of the same lines and show that reducing the activity of this enzyme has profound effects on carbon partitioning, characterised by a strong (up to 50%) reduction in the rate of starch accumulation accompanied by a minor reduction in the rate of sucrose accumulation. Gas-exchange and (14)CO(2)-feeding experiments revealed that the transgenic lines exhibited a decreased rate of photosynthesis and a corresponding reduced assimilation of radiolabel into starch, even in lines exhibiting only a minor decrease in pPGM activity. In illuminated leaves, decreasing the amount of pPGM resulted in decreased amounts of triose-phosphates, hexose-phosphates and inorganic phosphate without changes in the level of 3-phosphoglycerate. Most importantly, the deduced ratio of phosphoesters to inorganic phosphate increased, indicating the likelihood that photosynthesis was phosphate-limited in these lines. Determination of a more complete metabolic profile of leaf material from these lines revealed a large number of changes in the levels of amino and organic acids, consistent with an inhibition of triose-phosphate export from the chloroplast, but little change in the energy status of the transformants. We discuss the implications of these changes with respect to both consequences of inhibiting starch synthesis and of inhibiting photosynthesis, and conclude that a high activity of pPGM is required both to prevent phosphate limitation of photosynthesis and for co-ordination of plastidially and cytosolically compartmented photosynthetic metabolism.

Adenine Nucleotides↗

NADPH/NADP+ ratios in photosynthesizing reconstituted chloroplasts.

Levels of reduced and oxidized triphosphopyridine nucleotides have been determined in reconstituted spinach chloroplasts and compared with levels in whole isolated chloroplasts during photosynthesis and darkness. The ratio of NADPH/NADP+ reaches values slightly above 1.0 at the beginning of photosynthesis, less than half the ratio attained with whole chloroplasts. Nonetheless these lower ratios are sufficient to maintain high rates of photosynthetic carbon dioxide fixation and reduction, which are comparable in the reconstituted chloroplasts to the rates found with whole chloroplasts. As with whole chloroplasts there is a decline in the ration of NADPH/NADP+ as a function of time of photosynthesis. The effect of addition of bicarbonate (6 mM) in causing a transient drop in the ratio of NADPH/NADP/ is described and discussed in terms of the reversibility of the reduction of 3-phosphoglycerate to triose phosphate. The ratio NADPH/NADP+ can be improved by the addition of more lamellae either before or during the course of photosynthesis, and this improvement in ratio is accompanied by an improved rate of CO2 fixation or a more sustained rate of CO2 fixation with time of photosynthesis. The importance of NADPH/NADP+ ratio not only to the reduction of 3-phosphoglycerate to triose phosphate but also to the activation of the ribulose-1,5-diphosphate carboxylasemediated step is discussed.

Chloroplasts↗

Pancreatic islets synthesize phospholipids de novo from glucose via acyl-dihydroxyacetone phosphate.

There is considerable evidence that an increased turnover of phosphoinositides and phosphatidic acid accompanies stimulus-induced insulin release. As glucose metabolism via glycolysis produces precursors for phospholipid synthesis, the time course of incorporation of [U14C] labelled glucose was measured to determine the pathways of triose carbon incorporation into phospholipids in the islet. Cultured islets were stimulated with glucose 2.7 or 33 mM. The labelled phospholipids present after stimulation were acyldihydroxyacetone phosphate, lysophosphatidic acid, phosphatidic acid and phosphatidylinositol. Acyl-dihydroxyacetone phosphate rose promptly within 1 minute of raising the glucose concentration and was the primary acylated triose labelled during the first 15 minutes. It was possible to show in vitro conversion of [U14C] glucose-derived acyl-dihydroxyacetone phosphate to lysophosphatidic acid and phosphatidic acid in the presence of NADPH (100 microM), indicating the presence in the islet of acyl-dihydroxyacetone phosphate: NADP oxidoreductase and acyl CoA:1 acylglycerol-3-phosphate acyl transferase, respectively. This study suggests that de novo synthesis of phosphatidic acid provides a link between glucose metabolism and the release of insulin.

Animals↗

Glycerogenic pathway in the rat mammary gland.

The conversions of the isotope from [1-14C]acetate, [1-14C]glucose and [6-14C]glucose to CO2 and fatty acids in acini isolated from the mammary gland at the peak of lactation were studied. The incorporation of [9,10-3H]oleate into triacylglycerol synthesis as single substrate or in combination with substrates that potentially may supply trioses-phosphate was also determined. The rate of fatty acid synthesis paralleled the activity of the hexose monophosphate shunt and the data obtained reveal that little carbon from triose stage enters the phosphohexose pool via reversal of glycolytic pathway. The results are interpreted in terms of the NADPH producing systems and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase activities as well as the possible implications in lipogenic and glyceroneogenic pathways.

Acetates↗

Quantitation of the pathways followed in the conversion of fructose to glucose in liver.

Recently, only about 50% of the conversion of fructose to glucose was reported to be via fructose-1-P aldolase catalysis in children. This was also suggested to be the case in adults. That possibility has been tested using a method that quantifies the pathways of fructose conversion to glucose via the fate of 14C from specifically labeled fructose. Trace [6-14C] fructose or its immediate precursor [6-14C]sorbitol with unlabeled fructose (0.3 mg/kg body weight/min) was given intravenously or intragastrically with trace [1-14C]lactate to six normal adults fasted overnight. The distributions of 14C in glucose from blood samples were determined. The ratios of 14C in C1 to C6 of the glucose were equal to or only slightly less than the ratios of 14C in C3 to C4. Since incorporation into C3 and C4 of glucose must have arisen via the conversion of [1-14C]lactate to [1-14C]triose phosphates, fructose conversion to glucose must also have arisen predominantly via the triose phosphates. From the ratios, 85.1% to 100%, a mean of 94.9% of the fructose converted to glucose is calculated to have been converted to glucose with cleavage of the carbon skeleton of the fructose. These findings contrast with the report that in children under similar conditions only about 50% of the conversion of fructose to glucose is with cleavage. The findings agree with previous results in which fructose was administered to normal adults as a bolus at a dose of 60 mg/kg body weight. The possible reasons that the findings in children are different from those in adults are considered.

Adult↗

Activation of in situ glycolytic flux by bisphosphorylated compounds: studies in porous rat adipocytes.

By carefully permeabilizing eukaryotic cells such that intracellular enzymes are largely retained, an opportunity is created to explore the regulation of in situ flux. This is particularly important since the latter may not be accurately represented by kinetic measurements of isolated, solubilized enzymes from disrupted cells. In this study the action of fructose 2,6-diphosphate (F2,6DP) and other bisphosphorylated sugars which purportedly activate phosphofructokinase-1 (PFK-1; EC 2.7.1.11) were studied. Using porous adipocytcs and initiating flux with radiolabeled glucose 6-phosphate, the regulation of lactate production under both 0.1 and 1.0 mM ATP conditions by F2,6DP, glucose 1,6-diphosphate (G1,6DP), ribulose 1,5-diphosphate (R1,5DP), 2,3 diphosphoglycerate (2,3DPG), and mannose 6-phosphate (M6P) was examined. Studied at 1, 5, and 25 microM concentrations, F2,6DP and 2,3DPG significantly (and to the same extent) augmented glycolysis compared to control (at 0.1 mM ATP, the respective glycolytic rates--as % above control--at these three above-mentioned concentrations for F2,6DP were 60, 84, and 77%, whereas for 2,3DPG they were 84, 105, and 179%; at 1 mM ATP, the F2,6DP effect was 88, 99, and 121%, and for 2,3DPG it was 52, 89, and 96%). Stimulation by these compounds was less obvious at higher glycolytic flux rates (saturating amounts of G6P). Amongst this group, and only at 1.0 mM ATP, the sole other positive effector was 25 microM R1,5DP. The measured fat cell content of G1,6DP was 24 +/- 4 microM (n = 3); at this concentration no significant effect on glycolysis was observed. Examining the effects of 2,3DPG (25 microM) on proximal glycolysis (to triose phosphates) revealed there was a modest, but significant, 41% increase over basal; in contrast, under the exact same conditions, F2,6DP caused a 123% increase. Separate experiments also examined the effect of F2,6DP, 2,3DPG, and G1,6DP on glycolysis at 5 and 25 microM in the presence of a physiologic cytosolic ATP/ADP ratio and free cation concentrations. Under these conditions, F2,6DP and 2,3DPG remained pre-eminent in their stimulatory prowess, inducing 27-71% increases over control, while G1,6DP remained ineffectual. These studies support a locus of action of 2,3DPG on overall glycolysis which is distal to the triose phosphates. M6P was ineffective at all concentrations. In conclusion, F2,6DP is the pre-eminent in situ regulator of in situ adipocyte glycolysis, especially at higher ATP levels, although other sugars containing two phosphoryl groups may under certain conditions cause activation.

2,3-Diphosphoglycerate↗

Carbohydrate breakdown by chloroplasts of Pisum sativum.

1. The aims of this work were to discover the pathways of starch breakdown and carbohydrate metabolism in intact isolated chloroplasts from shoots of Pisum sativum. 2. 14C from starch, labelled by supplying [14C]glucose to chloroplasts, appeared, during starch breakdown, in CO2, maltose and the fraction of the acidic compounds that contained 3-phosphoglycerate and sugar phosphates. 3. When intact chloroplasts were incubated in the dark, 3-phosphoglycerate, triose phosphates and, to a lesser extent, hexose 6-phosphates accumulated in the medium at rates comparable to those of starch breakdown in leaves. This accumulation was dependent upon orthophosphate. 4. The patterns of 14CO2 production from specifically labelled [14C]glucose supplied to isolated chloroplasts were those expected of the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway with extensive recycling, and glycolysis. The respone of this pattern to lack of orthophosphate, addition of unlabelled intermediates, and 2-phosphoglycollate confirmed this view. 5. Starch breakdown in pea chloroplasts is held to be dominantly phosphorolytic with the products being metabolized via the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway and glycolysis to 3-phosphoglycerate, triose phosphates and CO2 that are exported to the cytoplasm.

Carbon Dioxide↗

The characterization of a UDP-N-acetylglucosamine: Gal beta 1-4Glc(NAc) beta 1-3 N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase in fluids from rat rete testis.

Using Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc or Gal beta 1-4Glc as substrates, the UDP-N-acetylglucosamine: Gal beta 1-4Glc(NAc) beta 1-3-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase (GlcNAcTase) activity of rat rete testicular fluid was investigated with respect to the effects of pH and of divalent metal ions, apparent Km value, acceptor specificity and identity of products. The enzyme, whose activity was dependent absolutely on the presence of Mn2+, had an optimum pH of 7.5. It was completely inhibited by EDTA, Zn2+ and gossypol, and partially by Co2+ and Ca2+. Triton X-100 (1%) had no effect. When several oligosaccharides were tested as acceptors, the highest affinity was found with Gal beta 1-3[Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc beta 1-6]Gal beta 1-4Glc. With Gal beta 1-4Glc as acceptor, the product was identified from its 1H-NMR spectrum as GlcNAc beta 1-3Gal beta 1-4Glc (lacto-N-triose II) by reference to the spectrum of authentic lacto-N-triose II. Both testicular and epididymal fluids showed GlcNAcTase activity. In epididymis the specific activity increased gradually from the proximal caput to the proximal cauda.

Animals↗

Substrate specificity and transglucosylation catalyzed by cycad beta-glucosidase.

Initial rates of transglucosylation with diglucosides and diglucose-azoxyglycosides as acceptor by cycad beta-glucosidase were tentatively obtained. The formation of beta-1,3 glucosidic linkage was predominant, except for neocycasin A (beta-laminaribioside of methylazoxymethanol, MAM) as an acceptor. With neocycasin A as an acceptor, beta-1,4 and beta-1,6 glucosidic linkages were formed but beta-1,3 linkage was not. Whereas with laminaribiose as acceptor, laminaritriose and triose with beta-1,6 linkage were formed, but triose with beta-1,4 linkage was not. On the other hand, with other diglucoses and neocycasin B (beta-gentiobioside of MAM) as acceptor, all the linkages formed were beta-1,3 glucosidic. The aglycone of azoxyglycosides, MAM, affected the kind of linkages formed in the trisaccharides. When initial rates of the linkage formation of the transglucosylation at 100 mM acceptor were compared with the hydrolysis rates obtained by Lineweaver-Burk plot, the order of formation rates of the di- and tri-glucosides by transglucosylation was the same as obtained for the hydrolysis parameter, kcat/Km. Km values for various substrates could be grouped according to the kind of the linkages (beta-1,3, beta-1,4, and beta-1,6) first split by the enzyme.

Carbohydrate Conformation↗

Dietary fat mediates hyperglycemia and the glucogenic response to increased protein consumption in an insect, Manduca sexta L.

Many insects display non-homeostatic regulation over blood sugar level. The concentration of trehalose varies dramatically depending on physiological and nutritional state. In the absence of dietary carbohydrate, blood trehalose in larvae of the lepidopteran insect Manduca sexta is maintained by gluconeogenesis and is dependent on dietary protein consumption. In the present study, the effect of dietary fat on the glucogenic response of insects to increased dietary protein was examined by NMR analysis of (2-13C)pyruvate metabolism. Last instar larvae were maintained on a carbohydrate-free chemically defined artificial diet having variable levels of casein with and without corn oil. Gluconeogenic flux, the ratio of the rate of gluconeogenesis to the rate of glycolysis, was estimated from the 13C distribution in trehalose arising by gluconeogenesis and the 13C enrichment of alanine due to pyruvate cycling. Insects grew well on carbohydrate-free diets and growth increased with increasing dietary protein level. At all dietary protein levels, larvae grew better on diets with fat. Without dietary fat, larvae were glucogenic but displayed low blood trehalose concentrations, <30 mM, regardless of protein consumption. When fat was included in the diet, however, gluconeogenic flux and blood trehalose level increased sharply in response to increased dietary protein level, with trehalose concentrations >50 mM at higher levels of protein consumption. When offered a choice of a high carbohydrate and a high protein diet, larvae maintained on diets with fat displayed a food preference related to blood sugar level. Those with low blood sugar fed on carbohydrate, while those with high blood sugar preferred protein. Trehalose synthesized from (2-13C)pyruvate exhibited asymmetry in the 13C distribution in individual glucose molecules, indicating a disequilibrium at the triose phosphate isomerase-catalyzed step of the gluconeogenic pathway. In trehalose from larvae on diets with fat, the asymmetric 13C distribution was higher than in trehalose from insects on diets lacking fat. This may partially result from isotopic disequilibrium when unenriched glycerol is metabolized to dihydroxyacetone phosphate following fat hydrolysis. The asymmetry in 13C distribution, however, also occurred in insects on diets without fat and decreased with increased gluconeogenic flux suggesting that true disequilibrium between the triose phosphates is the principal reason for the asymmetry.

Animals↗

Metabolic alterations associated with proliferation of mitogen-activated lymphocytes and of lymphoblastoid cell lines: evaluation of glucose and glutamine metabolism.

In vitro resting, short-term mitogen stimulated, and proliferating rat thymocytes as well as established human T and B lymphoblastoid cell lines were compared in their capacity to metabolize glucose and glutamine as energy source. Furthermore, the pathways of glutamine metabolism in these cells were studied. Compared with resting thymocytes, glucose metabolism of proliferating thymocytes was 36-fold increased during the incubation; 92% of the amount of glucose utilized was converted into trioses mainly lactate, whereas resting cells metabolized only 38% to trioses. However, the latter oxidized 19% of glucose to CO2, as opposed to 1.1% by the proliferating cells. Rates of glucose uptake and degradation to products by the malignant T lymphoblastoid cell line (Jurkat) were nearly identical with those observed with proliferating rat thymocytes, whereas the benign B lymphoblastoid cell lines (DHg-B-1 and LV-B-1) showed significantly higher rates of glucose metabolism. All three transformed lymphoblastoid cell lines, however, metabolized glucose almost completely to lactate as did the proliferating rat thymocytes. Lymphocytes are able to utilize glutamine with glutamate, aspartate and ammonia being the major end-products. A complete recovery of glutamine carbon in the products was obtained with all cells. Glutamine utilization by incubated proliferating rat thymocytes was 8-fold increased as compared to the resting cells. Again the human T lymphoblastoid cell line showed the same rates of glutamine uptake and conversion into products as did the proliferating rat thymocytes, whereas both B lymphoblastoid cell lines had about 2.5-fold enhanced rates as compared to the T cell line. The results indicate that during lymphocyte proliferation caused by mitogen stimulation as well as by permanent transformation into lymphoblastoid cell lines glucose metabolism is altered not only quantitatively but also qualitatively by changing from partly aerobic to almost complete anaerobic glucose breakdown. Glutamine has been found to be a suitable energy source for lymphocytes. About 75% of the amount of glutamate derived from glutamine entered into the citric acid cycle via the aspartate aminotransferase, and the remaining 25% via the glutamate dehydrogenase reaction. The changes in metabolic rates observed in proliferating as well as in transformed or leukemic lymphocytes appear to be reliable parameters to characterize the state of lymphocyte activation or to evaluate the efficacy of lymphokines.

Animals↗