Modeling the biochemical differences between rabbit muscle and human liver phosphorylase

Glycogen phosphorylases catalyze the regulated breakdown of glycogen to glucose-1-phosphate. In mammals, glycogen phosphorylase occurs in three different isozymes called liver, muscle, and brain after the tissues in which they are preferentially expressed. The muscle isozyme binds and is activated cooperatively by AMP. In contrast, the liver enzyme binds AMP noncooperatively and is poorly activated. The amino acid sequence of human liver phosphorylase is 80% identical with rabbit muscle phosphorylase, and those residues which contact AMP are conserved. Using computer graphics software, we replaced side chains of the known rabbit muscle structure with those of human liver phosphorylase and interpreted the effects of these changes in order to account for the biochemical differences between them. We have identified two substitutions in liver phosphorylase potentially important in altering the cooperative binding and activation of this isozyme by AMP.     

An engineered liver glycogen phosphorylase with AMP allosteric activation

Liver and muscle glycogen phosphorylases, which are products of distinct genes, are both activated by covalent phosphorylation, but in the unphosphorylated (b) state, only the muscle isozyme is efficiently activated by the allosteric activator AMP. The different responsiveness of the phosphorylase isozymes to allosteric ligands is important for the maintenance of tissue and whole body glucose homeostasis. In an attempt to understand the structural determinants of differential sensitivity of the muscle and liver isozymes to AMP, we have developed a bacterial expression system for the liver enzyme, allowing native and engineered proteins to be expressed and characterized. Engineering of the single amino acid substitutions Thr48Pro, Met197Thr and the double mutant Thr48Pro, Met197Thr in liver phosphorylase, and Pro48Thr in muscle phosphorylase, did not qualitatively change the response of the two isozymes to AMP. These sites had previously been implicated in the configuration of the AMP binding site. However, when nine amino acids among the first 48 in liver phosphorylase were replaced with the corresponding muscle phosphorylase residues (L1M2-48L49-846), the engineered liver enzyme was activated by AMP to a higher maximal activity than native liver phosphorylase. Interestingly, the homotropic cooperativity of AMP binding was unchanged in the engineered phosphorylase b protein, and heterotropic cooperativity between the glucose-1-phosphate and AMP sites was only slightly enhanced. The native liver, native muscle and L1M2-48L49-846 phosphorylases were converted to the a form by treatment with purified phosphorylase kinase; the maximal activity of the chimeric a enzyme was greater than the native liver a enzyme and approached that of muscle phosphorylase a. From these results we suggest that tissue-specific phosphorylase isozymes have evolved a complex mechanism in which the N-terminal 48 amino acids modulate intrinsic activity (Vmax), probably by affecting subunit interactions, and other, as yet undefined regions specify the allosteric interactions with ligands and substrates.     

Adenovirus-mediated transfer of the muscle glycogen phosphorylase gene into hepatocytes confers altered regulation of glycogen metabolism.

The muscle isozyme of glycogen phosphorylase is potently activated by the allosteric ligand AMP, whereas the liver isozyme is not. In this study we have investigated the metabolic impact of expression of muscle phosphorylase in liver cells. To this end, we constructed a replication-defective, recombinant adenovirus containing the muscle glycogen phosphorylase cDNA (termed AdCMV-MGP) and used this system to infect hepatocytes in culture. AMP-activatable glycogen phosphorylase activity was increased 46-fold 6 days after infection of primary liver cells with AdCMV-MGP. Despite large increases in phosphorylase activity, glycogen levels were only slightly reduced in AdCMV-MGP-infected liver cells compared to uninfected cells or cells infected with wild-type adenovirus. The lack of correlation of phosphorylase activity and glycogen content suggests that the liver cell environment can inhibit the muscle phosphorylase isozyme. This inhibition can be overcome, however, by addition of carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP), which increases AMP levels by 30-fold and causes a much larger decrease in glycogen levels in AdCMV-MGP-infected cells than in uninfected or wild-type adenovirus-infected controls. CCCP treatment also caused a preferential decrease in glycogen content relative to glucagon treatment in AdCMV-MGP-infected hepatocytes (74% versus 11%, respectively), even though the two drugs caused equal increases in phosphorylase a activity. Introduction of muscle phosphorylase into hepatocytes therefore confers a capacity for glycogenolytic response to effectors that is not provided by the endogenous liver phosphorylase isozyme. The remarkable efficiency of adenovirus-mediated gene transfer into primary hepatocytes and the demonstration of altered regulation of glycogen metabolism as a consequence of expression of a non-cognate phosphorylase isozyme may have implications for gene therapy of glycogen storage diseases.     

Purification and characterization of the Novikoff hepatoma glycogen phosphorylase and its relations to a fetal form

The Novikoff hepatoma glycogen phosphorylase b has been purified over 300-fold, free of glycogen synthetase, some of its properties have been studied, and its relationship to fetal forms of rat muscle and liver phosphorylase has been established immunochemically. Its molecular weight is approximately 200,000, and, like the liver but unlike the muscle isozyme, it does not dimerize on conversion to the a form. However, it differs from the liver isozyme in being activated by AMP (K_a = 0.2 mM) and in not being activated by sulfate ion. Antibody to the adult rat muscle phosphorylase did not inhibit the activity of the tumor or liver isozyme. Although antibody to liver or hepatoma phosphorylase had no effect on adult muscle phosphorylase, each of these antibodies partially inhibited the other enzyme. These findings indicate the presence of some liver isozyme in the tumor, and this was confirmed by isoelectric focusing. Rat liver and muscle phosphorylase (and synthetase) were low during embryonal development but rose rapidly at or shortly after birth. Immunochemical studies revealed that both fetal liver and fetal muscle phosphorylases are immunologically identifiable with the tumor enzyme; and the fetal form is also present as a major form in rat kidney and brain.     

Effect of sodium cholate on the catalytic and structural properties of phosphorylase b

Sodium cholate at millimolar concentration is able to induce activity in rabbit muscle phosphorylase b in the absence of AMP. The maximum activation of the enzyme in presence of 7 mM sodium cholate was 24% of that achieved by 1 mM AMP. Other bile salts tested showed a negligible activating effect. The Ka for AMP was lowered fivefold by 5 mM of the steroid detergent, while the cooperative binding of the nucleotide was abolished. Phosphorylase b', a modified form of phosphorylase in which the phosphorylation site has been removed by limited tryptic attack, presented an activation profile similar to that of phosphorylase b. In contrast, phosphorylase a was inhibited by the bile salt, while the activity of liver phosphorylase b was not significantly affected. Modification of the AMP site of the enzyme with 2,3-butanedione could not inhibit sodium-cholate-induced activity. tert-Butanol, an organic solvent activator of phosphorylase b, was found to enhance the activity induced by sodium cholate. The interaction of sodium cholate and phosphorylase b was also followed by difference spectroscopy using a fluorescein isothiocyanate--phosphorylase b conjugate. Furthermore, measurements of electron spin resonance demonstrated that the mobility of a spin-label bound at buried--NH2 groups of phosphorylase b decreases cooperatively with increasing bile salt concentration.     

Changes in the activity of enzymes,participating in glycogen metabolism of alloxan diabetic rats

Summary Alloxan diabetes induced in white rats by intraperitoneal injection of Aloxan-monohydrate (15 mg/100 g body weight) was used to study changes in the glycogen phosphorylase a and b, phosphoprotein phosphatases and hexokinase activities under insulin deficiency conditions. Among the enzymes studied, an increase in muscle phosphorylase a activity as well as the a/b ratio have been obtained. In diabetic muscle phosphoprotein phosphatases and hexokinase activities were diminished.AMP increased the liver glycogen phosphorylase activity twice in diabetic rats whereas in normal animals the enzyme was less sensitive to this effector. The changes in liver hexokinase activity at diabetes were not connected and correlated with the altered phosphorylase and protein phosphatase activities.The logical chain of probable molecular events taking place in muscle glycogen metabolism under the conditions of insulin deficiency is offered.     

Phosphorylase b covalently bound to glycogen: properties of the complex

Rabbit skeletal muscle glycogen phosphorylase b was covalently bound to oyster glycogen by means of cyanogen bromide. Removal of the unbound enzyme was achieved, using DEAE-Sephadex A-50 chromatography. Glycogen-bound phosphorylase b showed a higher affinity toward glucose 1-phosphate but a lower homotropic cooperativity, with respect to AMP activation, than the native enzyme. However, at low AMP concentrations conjugated phosphorylase b was as efficient as the free enzyme. It is of interest that glycogen-bound phosphorylase b exhibited catalytic activity upon its polysaccharide carrier. Kinetics of heat and cold inactivation indicated that the bound enzyme was considerably more resistant toward heat inactivation but less stable upon exposure to cold. It was shown also that both conjugated and native enzymes had identical pH optima, similar activity/temperature dependencies and the same resistance against trypsin inactivation.     

Electrophoretic analysis of liver glycogen phosphorylase activation in the freeze-tolerant wood frog

As an adaptation for overwinter survival, the wood frog, Rana sylvatica is able to tolerate the freezing of extracellular body fluids. Tolerance is made possible by the production of very high amounts of glucose in liver which is then sent to other organs where it acts as a cryoprotectant. Cryoprotectant synthesis is under the control of glycogen phosphorylase which in turn is activated in response to ice formation. To determine the mechanism of phosphorylase activation, a quantitative analysis of phosphorylase protein concentration and enzymatic activity in liver was carried out following separation of the phosphorylated a and nonphosphorylated b forms of the enzyme on native polyacrylamide gels. The results suggest that in gels, the b form is completely inactive, even in the presence of AMP and sodium sulfate, whereas the a form is active and stimulated 3-fold by these substances. Further, phosphorylase activation appears to arise solely from conversion of the b to a form of the enzyme without an increase in phosphorylase concentration or activation of a second isozyme. The quantitative analysis presented here should prove generally useful as a simple and rapid method for examining the physiological and genetic regulation of phosphorylase in animal cells.     

Studies on the role of adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate in the activation of liver phosphorylase.

Crude extracts of rabbit liver, preincubated to promote the dephosphorylation of enzymes or other regulatory proteins, were used to study the role of cyclic AMP in the activation of glycogen phosphorylase. Inasmuch as endogenous liver phosphorylase was irreversibly altered by the preincubation procedure, crystalline skeletal muscle phosphorylase was used as the substrate in these studies. In the presence of magnesium ions and ATP, phosphorylase b was converted to phosphorylase a, and in an apparent biphasic process the phosphorylase a formed was subsequently converted to phosphorylase b. In the presence of adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate the rate of phosphorylase a formation and the maximal amount of phosphorylase a formed were increased. The cyclic AMP effect was enhanced by glucose-6-P and required the presence of glycogen. The catalytic subunit of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase could replace cyclic AMP in the stimulation of phosphorylase a formation. The effects of cyclic AMP or the catalytic subunit were shown to be due to stimulation of phosphorylase kinase rather than to inhibition of phosphorylase phosphatase. Preliminary fractionation experiments showed that it is possible to separate phosphorylase kinase catalytic activity from a factor or factors required for stimulation of its activation by the catalytic subunit.     

Kinetic Mechanism of Allosteric Regulation of Muscle Glycogen Phosphorylase b by Adenosine 5"-Monophosphate

Kinetic analysis of the glycogen chain growth reaction catalyzed by glycogen phosphorylase b from rabbit skeletal muscle has been carried out over a wide range of AMP concentration under the saturation of the enzyme by glycogen. Applicability of some variants of the kinetic model involving the interaction of AMP- and glucose 1-phosphate-binding sites in the dimeric enzyme molecule is considered. A kinetic model of the enzymatic reaction describing adequately the activation of the enzyme by AMP and inhibition at sufficiently high concentrations of AMP is proposed.     

Liver isozyme of rabbit glycogen synthase. Amino acid sequences surrounding phosphorylation sites recognized by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase

Glycogen synthase, the rate-limiting enzyme in glycogen biosynthesis, has been postulated to exist as isozymes in rabbit liver and muscle (Camici, M., Ahmad, Z., DePaoli-Roach, A. A., and Roach, P. J. (1984) J. Biol. Chem. 259, 2466-2473). Both isozymes share a number of properties including multiple phosphorylation of the enzyme subunit. In the present study, we determined the amino acid sequences surrounding phosphorylation sites in the rabbit liver isozyme recognized by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase. Two dominant phosphopeptides (P-1 and P-2) were generated from tryptic digestion. Amino acid sequences of the purified peptides were determined by automated Edman degradation using a gas-phase sequenator. The locations of phosphorylated residues were identified by measuring 32Pi release during Edman degradation cycles. The NH2-terminal sequence of peptide P-1 is S-L-S(P)-V-T-S-L-G-G-L-P-Q-W-E-V-E-E-L-P-V-D-D-L-L-L-P-E-V. This sequence exhibits a strong homology to the site 2 region in the NH2 terminus of the muscle isozyme. The NH2-terminal sequence of peptide P-2 is M-Y-P-R-P-S(P)-S(P)-V-P-P-S-P-L-G-S-Q-A. This sequence shows strong homology to the site 3 region in the COOH terminus of the muscle isozyme. However, some interesting sequence differences were revealed in this region. For example, substitution of serine for alanine at position 6 of peptide P-2 created a new phosphorylation site for cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase. Phosphorylation of the proline/serine-rich site 3 region correlated with inactivation of the liver isozyme and suggests an important role for this segment of the molecule in the regulation of glycogen synthase. No phosphorylation sites corresponding to sites 1a and 1b of the muscle isozyme were detected. In addition, the results provide definitive chemical proof that glycogen synthase from rabbit liver and muscle are isozymes encoded by distinct messages.     

Glycogen and glycogen enzymes in the liver and striated muscle of rats under altered thyroid states

Changes induced in liver and striated muscle glycogen and glycogen enzymes (glycogen synthetase, glycogen phosphorylase and alpha-amylase) by hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism in rats have been determined. There were no changes in liver glycogen synthetase, phosphorylase and amylase activities in the hypothyroid group. Hyperthyroid rats showed lower liver glycogen synthetase, phosphorylase a and amylase activities. In muscle, hypothyroid rats had lower phosphorylase activity. In the hyperthyroid group glycogen synthetase was increased.--The results presented do not completely agree with the glycogen levels found in both tissues studied, and they are obviously more related to other factors such as glucose availability. It can be concluded that under the conditions studied, the glycogen enzyme levels could not alone explain the variations of glycogen levels.     

Characteristics of the dephosphorylated form of phosphorylase purified from rat liver and measurement of its activity in crude liver preparations.

The phosphorylated form of liver glycogen phosphorylase (alpha-1,4-glucan : orthophosphate alpha-glucosyl-transferase, EC 2.4.1.1) (phosphorylase a) is active and easily measured while the dephosphorylated form (phosphorylase b), in contrast to the muscle enzyme, has been reported to be essentially inactive even in the presence of AMP. We have purified both forms of phosphorylase from rat liver and studied the characteristics of each. Phosphorylase b activity can be measured with our assay conditions. The phosphorylase b we obtained was stimulated by high concentrations of sulfate, and was a substrate for muscle phosphorylase kinase whereas phosphorylase a was inhibited by sulfate, and was a substrate for liver phosphorylase phosphatase. Substrate binding to phosphorylase b was poor (KM glycogen = 2.5 mM, glucose-1-P = 250 mM) compared to phosphorylase a (KM glycogen = 1.8 mM, KM glucose-1-P = 0.7 mM). Liver phosphorylase b was active in the absence of AMP. However, AMP lowered the KM for glucose-1-P to 80 mM for purified phosphorylase b and to 60 mM for the enzyme in crude extract (Ka = 0.5 mM). Using appropriate substrate, buffer and AMP concentrations, assay conditions have been developed which allow determination of phosphorylase a and 90% of the phosphorylase b activity in liver extracts. Interconversion of the two forms can be demonstrated in vivo (under acute stimulation) and in vitro with little change in total activity. A decrease in total phosphorylase activity has been observed after prolonged starvation and in diabetes.     

The effect of solvents on nucleotide regulation of glycogen phosphorylase.

The activity of glycogen phosphorylase is controlled by two nucleotide sites. We have found that organic solvents affect the regulatory properties of phosphorylase by altering the binding at these two sites. At the activator site, the Ka for AMP is lowered 10-fold in the presence of 10% 1,2-dimethoxyethane while, at the inhibitor site, the Ki for caffeine is increased 6-fold. The stimulation of activity by organic solvents is highly dependent on the enzyme's activity state. Phosphorylase b, which has a requirement for a nucleotide activator, loses this requirement in the presence of organic solvents, while the active form of the enzyme, phosphorylase a, is only slightly stimulated by organic solvents. The activation profile obtained with rabbit liver phosphorylase suggests that differences in the properties of this enzyme from rabbit muscle phosphorylase might be explained by a change in the relative affinity for AMP at the two nucleotide sites. The results also suggest that 1,2-dimethoxyethane may be useful to determine accurately the activities of different forms of liver phosphorylase.     

Activation of phosphoprotein phosphatases by growth hormone sequences with insulin-like activity

The N-terminal part sequences of pituitary growth hormone, N-acetyl-hGH 7–13 and hGH 6–13, promoted conversion of glycogen synthase b to glycogen synthase a in skeletal muscle and adipose tissue when injected intravenously. The peptides also caused conversion of phosphorylase a to phosphorylase b in liver and adipose tissue, but not in muscle, where the peptides antagonised activation of phosphorylase. Synthase phosphatase activity in muscle and phosphorylase phosphatase activity in liver increased after injection of peptide, with time courses of change similar to those seen for muscle synthase and liver phosphorylase activities. Injection of peptide also decreased both the cyclic AMP dependent and independent synthase kinase activities in muscle. These results show that the insulin-like activities of these peptides on glycogen synthase and phosphorylase involve both increases in protein phosphatase activities and inhibition of protein kinase activities. These results are discussed in relation to the insulin-like activities of growth hormone.     

Time course for cryoprotectant synthesis in the freeze-tolerant chorus frog, Pseudacris triseriata

Increases in liver glycogen phosphorylase activity, along with inhibition of glycogen synthetase and phosphofructokinase-1, are associated with elevated cryoprotectant (glucose) levels during freezing in some freeze-tolerant anurans. In contrast, freeze-tolerant chorus frogs, Pseudacris triseriata, accumulate glucose during freezing but exhibit no increase in phosphorylase activity following 24-h freezing bouts. In the present study, chorus frogs were frozen for 5- and 30-min and 2- and 24-h durations. After freezing, glucose, glycogen, and glycogen phosphorylase and synthetase activities were measured in leg muscle and liver to determine if enzyme activities varied over shorter freezing durations, along with glucose accumulation. Liver and muscle glucose levels rose significantly (5-12-fold) during freezing. Glycogen showed no significant temporal variation in liver, but in muscle, glycogen was significantly elevated after 24 h of freezing relative to 5 and 30 min-frozen treatments. Hepatic phosphorylase a and total phosphorylase activities, as well as the percent of the enzyme in the active form, showed no significant temporal variation following freezing. Muscle phosphorylase a activity and percent active form increased significantly after 24 h of freezing, suggesting some enhancement of enzyme function following freezing in muscle. However, the significance of this enhanced activity is uncertain because of the concurrent increase in muscle glycogen with freezing. Neither glucose 6-phosphate independent (I) nor total glycogen synthetase activities were reduced in liver or muscle during freezing. Thus, chorus frogs displayed typical cryoprotectant accumulation compared with other freeze-tolerant anurans, but freezing did not significantly alter activities of hepatic enzymes associated with glycogen metabolism.     

Activation of human liver glycogen phosphorylase by alteration of the secondary structure and packing of the catalytic core

Glycogen phosphorylases catalyze the breakdown of glycogen to glucose-1-phosphate, which enters glycolysis to fulfill the energetic requirements of the organism. Maintaining control of blood glucose levels is critical in minimizing the debilitating effects of diabetes, making liver glycogen phosphorylase a potential therapeutic target. To support inhibitor design, we determined the crystal structures of the active and inactive forms of human liver glycogen phosphorylase a. During activation, forty residues of the catalytic site undergo order/disorder transitions, changes in secondary structure, or packing to reorganize the catalytic site for substrate binding and catalysis. Knowing the inactive and active conformations of the liver enzyme and how each differs from its counterpart in muscle phosphorylase provides the basis for designing inhibitors that bind preferentially to the inactive conformation of the liver isozyme.     

Role of AMP on the activation of glycogen synthase and phosphorylase by adenosine, fructose, and glutamine in rat hepatocytes

The mechanism for glycogen synthesis stimulation produced by adenosine, fructose, and glutamine has been investigated. We have analyzed the relationship between adenine nucleotides and glycogen metabolism rate-limiting enzymes upon hepatocyte incubation with these three compounds. In isolated hepatocytes, inhibition of AMP deaminase with erythro-9-(2-hydroxyl-3nonyl)adenine further increases the accumulation of AMP and the activation of glycogen synthase and phosphorylase by fructose. This ketose does not increase cyclic AMP or the activity of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase. Adenosine raises AMP and ATP concentration. This nucleotide also activates glycogen synthase and phosphorylase by covalent modification. The correlation coefficient between AMP and glycogen synthase activity is 0.974. Nitrobenzylthioinosine, a transport inhibitor of adenosine, blocks (by 50%) the effect of the nucleoside on AMP formation and glycogen synthase but not on phosphorylase. 2-Chloroadenosine and N6-phenylisopropyladenosine, nonmetabolizable analogues of adenosine, activate phosphorylase (6-fold) without increasing the concentration of adenine nucleotides or the activity of glycogen synthase. Cyclic AMP is not increased by adenosine in hepatocytes from starved rats but is in cells from fed animals. [Ethylenebis (oxyethylenenitrilo)]tetraacetic acid (EGTA) blocks by 60% the activation of phosphorylase by adenosine but not that of glycogen synthase. Glutamine also increases AMP concentration and glycogen synthase and phosphorylase activities, and these effects are blocked by 6-mercaptopurine, a purine synthesis inhibitor. Neither adenosine nor glutamine increases glucose 6-phosphate. It is proposed that the observed efficient glycogen synthesis from fructose, adenosine, and glutamine is due to the generation of AMP that activates glycogen synthase probably through increases in synthase phosphatase activity. It is also concluded that the activation of phosphorylase by the above-mentioned compounds can be triggered by metabolic changes.     

Association of gylcogenolysis with cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum.

Sarcoplasmic reticulum fragments isolated from dog cardiac muscle possess a calcium-accumulating system associated with a series of enzymes linked to glycogenolysis. These enzymes include: adenylate cyclase, cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase, phosphorylase b kinase, phosphorylase (b/a, 30/1),"debrancher" enzyme, and glycogen (0.3 to 0.7 mg/mg of protein). The sarcoplasmic reticulum preparation produced glucose 1-phosphate and glucose from either endogenous or exogenous glycogen. Both the calcium-accumulating and glycogenolytic enzymes sediment in a single peak at 33% sucrose on a linear continous sucrose density gradient, and the complex remains intact throughout repeated washing. Glycogen particles appear to be associated with the sarcoplasmic reticulum in situ as well as in the isolated microsomal fraction. The sarcoplasmic reticulum-glycogenolytic complex, monitored by a linked enzyme spectrophotometric assay, shows several features: (a) activation of phosphorylase activity to peak rate occurs over a very rapid time course which cannot be duplicated using combinations of purified enzymes; (b) activation is inhibited by protein kinase inhibitor; (c) phosphorylase b functions as in the purified form with respect to AMP (Km, 0.3 mM); (d) in the presence of limiting amounts of glycogen, optimal phosphorylase b activity in the sarcoplasmic reticulum requires the presence of debrancher, and the activity is sensitive to inhibitors of that enzyme such as Tris, which suggests the possiblity that the enzymes bear a specific structual relationship to the glycogen present. Phosphorylase b leads to a activation in the sarcoplasmic reticulum was completely resistant to ethylene glycol bis(beta-aminoethyl either)-N,N'-tetraacetic acid (EGTA). Inhibition of calcium accumulation by or release of bound calcium from sarcoplasmic reticulum by X537A (RO 2-2985) did not alter the EGTA resistance. These results suggest that cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum is a complex organelle containing functions that may be related to excitation-contraction coupling and intermediary metabolism.     

Enzymes regulating glycogen metabolism in swine subcutaneous adipose tissue. I. Phosphorylase and phosphorylase phosphatase.

Glycogen phosphorylase from swine adipose tissue was purified nearly 700-fold using ethanol precipitation, DEAE-cellulose adsorption, AMP-agarose affinity chromatography, and agarose gel filtration. The purified enzyme migrated as one major and several minor components during polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Activity was associated with the major component and at least one of the minor components. The molecular weight of the disaggregated, reduced, and alkylated enzyme, estimated by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis performed in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate, was 90,000. Stability of the purified enzyme was considerably increased in the presence of AMP. The isoelectric pH of the enzyme in crude homogenates was 6.3. The sedimentation coefficient of the purified enzyme (7.9 S) and that in crude homogenates (7.3 S) was determined by sucrose density gradient sedimentation. Optimal pH for activity was between pH 6.5 and 7.1. Apparent Km values for glycogen and inorganic phosphate were 0.9 mg/ml and 6.6 mM, respectively. The Ka for AMP was 0.21 mM. Enzyme activity was increased by K2SO4, KF, KCl, and MgCl2 and decreased by NaCl, Na2SO4, D-glucose, and ATP. Inhibition by glucose was noncompetitive with the activator AMP; inhibition by ATP was partially competitive with AMP. The purified enzyme was activated by incubation with skeletal muscle phosphorylase kinase. Enzyme in crude homogenates was activated by the addition of MgCl2 and ATP; activation was not blocked by addition of protein kinase inhibitor, suggesting that phosphorylase kinase in homogenates of swine adipose tissue is present largely in an activated form. Deactivation of phosphorylase a by phosphorylase phosphatase was studied using enzyme purified approximately 200-fold from swine adipose tissue by ethanol precipitation, DEAE-cellulose chromatography, and gel filtration. The Km of the adipose tissue phosphatase for skeletal muscle phosphorylase a was 6 muM. The purified swine adipose tissue phosphorylase, labeled with 32-P, was inactivated and dephosphorylated by the adipose tissue phosphatase. Dephosphorylation of both skeletal muscle and adipose tissue substrates was inhibited by AMP and glucose reversed this inhibition. Several lines of evidence suggest that AMP inhibition was due to an action on the substrate rather than on the enzyme. We have previously reported that the system for phosphorylase activation in rat fat cells differs in some important characteristics from that in skeletal muscle. However, both swine fat phosphorylase and phosphorylase phosphatase have major properties very similar to those described for the enzymes from skeletal muscle.