Effects of probucol on lipid metabolism and secretion in long-term cultures of adult rat hepatocytes

To study the effects of probucol on hepatic lipid metabolism, we used adult rat hepatocytes cultured on a feeder layer of 3T3 cells lethally treated with mitomycin C. These cultures synthesize and secrete for at least 2 weeks various lipids from [14C]acetate and [14C]oleate precursors. Treatment with 20 micrograms/ml of probucol for 7 and 14 days decreased the secretion of various radiolabeled lipid species to the culture medium and produced an intracytoplasmic accumulation of triacylglycerol droplets. The lipids whose secretion was most decreased were free and esterified cholesterol (50-70% reduction). Secretion of triacylglycerols and phospholipids was also reduced but to a lower extent. Intracytoplasmic triacylglycerols accumulated and the activity of glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase, a marker enzyme of glycerolipid synthesis, also increased (35-56%). The total incorporation of both radioactive precursors into free and esterified cholesterol and phospholipids was reduced 20-60%. Our data show that 2-week treatment of 3T3-hepatocyte cultures with pharmacological concentrations of probucol reduces significantly lipid secretion and suggest that at least part of the in vivo hypolipidemic effect of probucol could be attributed to a decrease in the secretion of lipids (i.e., lipoproteins) by hepatocytes.     

Fatty acid incorporation by Rhodnius prolixus midgut

[(14)C]Oleic acid injected into the hemocoel of Rhodnius prolixus females was shown to rapidly associate with lipophorin particles. Half of the lipophorin-associated [(14)C]oleic acid was transferred in about 5 min to different organs, but the midgut was the main organ to take it up on day 10 after a blood meal. The rate of [(14)C]oleic acid incorporation by the midgut was high up to 15 min after injection and then declined. The [(14)C]oleic acid incorporated by the midgut was found in phospholipids (58.6%) and neutral lipids (37.4%). The midgut capacity to incorporate [(14)C]oleic acid varied on different days after a meal: it increased up to day 10 and then decreased. The fate of the [(14)C]lipids synthesized by the midgut was followed and it was observed that 10 days after feeding diacylglycerol was the main lipid released to hemolymph and that most of phospholipids and triacylglycerols remained associated with the midgut. The metabolism of free fatty acids in Rhodnius prolixus females is discussed in the context of major biological events that follow a blood meal such as digestion and oogenesis.     

Differences in glycerolipid synthesis and insulin regulation in rat hepatocytes and adipocytes

Glycerolipid synthesis was studied by determining radioactive incorporation from either [1-14C] acetate or [U-14C] palmitate. Glycerolipid synthesis in adipocytes, mainly from exogenous palmitate, was preferentially directed to the formation of triacylglycerols, whereas in hepatocytes triacylglycerols and phospholipids were synthesized at similar rates. Insulin stimulated glycerolipid synthesis from acetate in both types of cells, being triacylglycerols more significantly increased than phospholipids. The most relevant difference was the finding that in adipocytes insulin strongly stimulated the formation of diglycerides, apparently from phosphatidate, whereas in hepatocytes insulin only slightly increased diglyceride levels. A possible role of diacylglycerol in insulin action in adipocytes, but not in hepatocytes, is also discussed.     

Dimethyl sulfoxide enhances lipid synthesis and secretion by long-term cultures of adult rat hepatocytes.

Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) was tested for its effects on lipid metabolism of long-term cultures of adult rat hepatocytes. The addition of 1% DMSO to 3T3-hepatocyte cultures was not toxic to cells and in fact treated cultures maintained better their characteristic morphology for up to 14 days of exposure. DMSO treatment increased 2-3 fold the de novo synthesis of total lipids from[14C]acetate. The analysis by thin layer chromatography of cellular and secreted lipids revealed that DMSO increased the levels of cellular triglycerides, phospholipides and free and sterified cholesterol at 7 days of exposure while at 14 days there was also a 2-3-fold increase in medium secreted lipids. Additionally, DMSO increased the activity of glycerol-phosphate dehydrogenase, a marker enzyme of glycerolipid synthesis, by greater than 50% at either 7 or 14 days of exposure. These results show that 1% DMSO not only is not detrimental to cultured hepatocytes but also enhances lipid synthesis and secretion, both hepatic-differentiated functions.     

Comparison of triglyceride and phospholipid synthesis in isolated Wistar rat liver perfused with high quantities of oleic acid and glycerol

In a recirculating system, [9,10(-3)H2] oleic acid (346 mumol) and [1-14C] glycerol (115 mumol) are perfused into livers of 18-h fasting Wistar rats. These precursors are incorporated in same amounts into triacylglycerols, and in amounts growing up with the duration of the experiment (5 to 120 min). Their incorporation is slight into phospholipids. However, during the experiment, the increase of 3H/14C ratio of every acylglycerols shows that more lipids are synthetized in the acylation way than in the de novo way. The only synthesis of phospholipids, studied in the two ways, seems to be regulated, unlike the one of triacylglycerols in those experimental conditions.     

Suitability of primary monolayer cultures of adult rat hepatocytes for studies of cholesterol and bile acid metabolism

Monolayer cultures of hepatocytes isolated from cholestyramine-fed rats and incubated in serum-free medium converted exogenous [4-14C]cholesterol into bile acids at a 3-fold greater rate than did cultures of hepatocytes prepared from untreated rats. Cholic acid and beta-muricholic acid identified and quantitated by gas-liquid chromatography and thin-layer chromatography were synthesized by cultured cells for at least 96 h following plating. The calculated synthesis rate of total bile acids by hepatocytes prepared from cholestyramine-fed animals was approximately 0.058 micrograms/mg protein/h. beta-Muricholic acid was synthesized at approximately a 3-fold greater rate than cholic acid in these cultures. Cultured hepatocytes rapidly converted the following intermediates of the bile acid pathway; 7 alpha-hydroxy[7 beta-3H]cholesterol, 7 alpha-hydroxy-4-[6 beta-3H] cholesten-3-one, and 5 beta-[7 beta-3H]cholestane-3 alpha, 7 alpha, 12 alpha-triol into bile acids. [24-14C]Chenodeoxycholic acid and [3H]ursodeoxycholic acid were rapidly biotransformed to beta-muricholic acid. 3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase activity measured in microsomes of cultured hepatocytes decreased during the initial 48 h following plating, but remained relatively constant for the next 72 h. In contrast, cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase activity appeared to decrease during the first 48 h, followed by an increase over the next 48 h. Despite the apparent changes in enzyme activity in vitro, the rate of bile acid synthesis by whole cells during this time period remained constant. It is concluded that primary monolayer cultures of rat hepatocytes can serve as a useful model for studying the interrelationship between cholesterol and bile acid metabolism.     

Secretion of the newly synthesized cholesterol by rat hepatocytes in primary culture

We used monolayer cultured rat hepatocytes as an experimental model to study the secretion of the newly synthesized cholesterol by the liver. Cellular cholesterol was labeled by exposing cultured hepatocytes to [14C]acetate prior to the study of secretion. Secretion of the newly synthesized cholesterol was measured by extracting cholesterol in the culture medium and assaying for the radioactivity of [14C]cholesterol. We found that: (a) cultured hepatocytes could secrete newly synthesized cholesterol in serum-free medium; (b) secreted [14C]cholesterol was bound to macromolecule(s) and the secretion rate was not affected by cycloheximide for up to 5 h; (c) serum added to the culture medium greatly enhanced hepatic cholesterol secretion; (d) serum high-density lipoproteins were most effective, lipoprotein-deficient serum (d greater than 1.21) less effective in stimulating cholesterol secretion, whereas low-density and very-low-density lipoproteins had little effect; (e) when the serum-free culture medium was fractionated by ultracentrifugation, a major portion of the secreted [14C]cholesterol was found in the high-density lipoprotein fraction; (f) part of the medium [14C]cholesterol also turned up in the high-density lipoprotein fraction when lipoprotein-deficient serum was added as the acceptor; (g) secreted [14C]cholesterol was found only in free form, although some of the cellular [14C]cholesterol was found as esters.     

Lipogenesis and cholesterogenesis in the liver of rats after cholesterol loading

Intensity of fatty acids and separate classes of lipids synthesis was studied in vitro in the liver of white rats at loading by cholesterol in the dose of 300 mg/kg once a day during 30 days by incubation of organ homogenate with [6-(14)C] glucose, [2-(14)C] lysine, [1-(14)C] palmitic acid with following determination of radioactivity of fatty acids, phospholipids, cholesterol, acylglycerols radioactivity was investigated. The inhibition of fatty acids and separate classes of lipids synthesis in vitro in the liver of white rats at loading by cholesterol at the use of [6-(14)C] of glucose and [2-(14)C] lysine, as predecessors of fatty acids and lipids and stimulation of lipids synthesis at the use of [1-(14)C] palmitic acid as the predecessor was established. The loading of white rats by cholesterol results in its synthesis inhibition in the liver during incubation of its homogenates with [6-(14)C] glucose and does not influence the cholesterol synthesis during incubation of homogenates with [2-(14)C] lysine and [1-(14)C] palmitic acid. Thus synthesis of fatty acids and their use in the phospholipids and acylglycerols synthesis in the liver of white rats with hypercholesterolemia sharply decreases during incubation of their homogenates with [6-(14)C] glucose and [2-(14)C] lysine, and the synthesis of cholesterol, phospholipids and acylglycerols - increases during incubation with [1-(14)C] palmitic acid.     

ABHD5/CGI-58 facilitates the assembly and secretion of apolipoprotein B lipoproteins by McA RH7777 rat hepatoma cells

Lipolysis of stored triacylglycerols provides lipid precursors for the assembly of apolipoprotein B (apoB) lipoproteins in hepatocytes. Abhydrolase domain containing 5 (ABHD5) is expressed in liver and facilitates the lipolysis of triacylglycerols. To study the function of ABHD5 in lipoprotein secretion, we silenced the expression of ABHD5 in McA RH7777 cells using RNA interference and studied the metabolism of lipids and secretion of apoB lipoproteins. McA RH7777 cells deficient in ABHD5 secreted reduced amounts of apoB, triacylglycerols, and cholesterol esters. Detailed analysis of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry data for the molecular species of secreted triacylglycerols revealed that deficiency of ABHD5 significantly reduced secretion of triacylglycerols containing oleate, even when oleate was supplied in the culture medium; the ABHD5-deficient cells partially compensated by secreting higher levels of triacylglycerols containing saturated fatty acids. In experiments tracking the metabolism of [¹⁴C]oleate, silencing of ABHD5 reduced lipolysis of cellular triacylglycerols and incorporation of intermediates derived from stored lipids into secreted triacylglycerols and cholesterol esters. In contrast, the incorporation of exogenous oleate into secreted triacylglycerols and cholesterol esters was unaffected by deficiency of ABHD5. These findings suggest that ABHD5 facilitates the use of lipid intermediates derived from lipolysis of stored triacylglycerols for the assembly of lipoproteins.     

Evidence for the synthesis and secretion of APF--a bile lipid associated protein--by isolated rat hepatocytes

Bile lipids are thought to be secreted in a lipoprotein complex in which they are associated with cholesterol and a protein called the anionic polypeptidic fraction (APF). APF is present in both bile and serum HDL. The association of APF with both bile and lipoprotein strongly suggests that hepatocytes may be responsible for the synthesis and secretion of this protein. In the present work we attempted to verify this by studying the incorporation of [14C]leucine into APF in isolated rat hepatocytes and by immunolocalization in cell cultures. Results obtained showed that synthesis of APF by cells follows the same kinetic pattern as albumin and that it was the third most abundant protein in the bile secretion. Immunolocalization confirmed that APF is synthesized in the endoplasmic reticulum of hepatocytes. This protein which appears to be rapidly secreted could be of great value for the specific detection of the lipids destined for bile secretion.     

Effect of eicosapentaenoic acid on triacylglycerol transport in CaCo-2 cells

The human intestinal cell line, CaCo-2, was used to study the effect of the n-3 fatty acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, on triacylglycerol secretion. In cells incubated with 250 microM eicosapentaenoic acid, the incorporation of [3H]glycerol into triacylglycerols secreted into the medium was decreased by 58% compared to cells incubated with 250 microM oleic acid. The incorporation of [3H]glycerol into cellular triacylglycerols was decreased 32% in cells incubated with eicosapentaenoic acid. In cells preincubated with [3H]glycerol to label existing triacylglycerols, the rates of secretion of preformed triacylglycerols were similar in response to the addition of either fatty acid. Initial uptake rates of the n-3 fatty acid were higher than for oleic acid. Both eicosapentaenoic acid and oleic acid were minimally oxidized to CO2. Oleic acid was predominantly incorporated into cellular triacylglycerols (62% vs. 47%), whereas more eicosapentaenoic acid was incorporated into cellular phospholipids (46% vs. 30%). Phospholipids of microsomes prepared from cells incubated with eicosapentaenoic acid were enriched in this fatty acid. The rate of synthesis of triacylglycerol and diacylglycerol acyltransferase activities were significantly less in microsomes prepared from cells incubated with eicosapentaenoic acid. Triacylglycerol mass secreted by CaCo-2 cells incubated with either fatty acid was similar. In CaCo-2 cells, eicosapentaenoic acid decreases the synthesis and secretion of newly synthesized triacylglycerol without decreasing the secretion of triacylglycerol mass. Modification of microsomal membrane phospholipid fatty acid composition is associated with a decrease in microsomal triacylglycerol synthesis and diacylglycerol acyltransferase activities.     

INCORPORATION OF [1-14C]OLEIC ACID AND [1-14C]ARACHIDONIC ACID INTO LIPIDS IN THE SUBCELLULAR FRACTIONS OF MOUSE BRAIN

Abstract— The distribution of radioactivity among lipids of subcellular membrane fractions was examined after intracerebral injections of [1-¹⁴C]oleic and [1-¹⁴C]arachidonic acids. Labelled free fatty acids were distributed among the synaptosomal-rich, microsomal, myelin and cytosol fractions at 1 min after injection. However, incorporation of the fatty acids into phospholipids and trïacylglycerols after pulse labelling occurred mainly in the microsomal and synaptosomal-rich fractions. With both types of labelled precursors, there was a higher percentage of radioactivity of diacyl-glycerophosphoryl-inositols in the synaptosomal-rich fraction as compared to the microsomal fraction. Radioactivity of [1-¹⁴C]oleic acid was effectively incorporated into the triacylglycerols in the microsomal fraction whereas radioactivity of the [1-¹⁴C]arachidonic acid was preferentially incorporated into the diacyl-glycerophosphorylinositols in the synaptosomal-rich fraction. Result of the study indicates that synaptosomal-rich fraction in brain is able to metabolize long chain free fatty acids in vivo and to incorporate these precursors into the membrane phosphoglycerides.     

Defects in triacylglycerol lipolysis affect synthesis of triacylglycerols and steryl esters in the yeast

Tgl3p, Tgl4p and Tgl5p are the major triacylglycerol lipases of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae catalyzing degradation of triacylglycerols stored in lipid droplets. Previous results from our laboratory (Athenstaedt and Daum, 2005, J. Biol. Chem. 280, 37301–37309) demonstrated that a yeast strain lacking all three triacylglycerol lipases accumulates not only triacylglycerols at high amount, but also steryl esters. Here we show a metabolic link between synthesis and mobilization of non-polar lipids. In particular, we demonstrate that a block in tri-acylglycerol degradation in a tgl3?tgl4?tgl5? triple mutant lacking all major triacylglycerol lipases causes marked changes in non-polar lipid synthesis. Under these conditions formation of triacylglycerols is reduced, whereas steryl ester synthesis is enhanced as shown by quantification of non-polar lipids, in vivo labeling of lipids using [¹⁴C]oleic acid and [¹⁴C]acetic acid as precursors, and enzyme analyses in vitro. In summary, this study demonstrates that triacylglycerol metabolism and steryl ester metabolism are linked processes. The importance of balanced storage and degradation of these components for lipid homeostasis in the yeast is highlighted.     

A rapid effect of thyroxine on accumulation of diacylglycerols and on activation of protein kinase C in liver cells

L-Thyroxine rapidly stimulated the accumulation of diacylglycerols in isolated hepatocytes and in liver when lipids were prelabeled with [14C]oleic acid or with [14C]CH3COONa. Perfusion of the liver of hypothyroid animals with L-thyroxine-containing solution or incubation of liver fragments with the hormone increased the content of diacylglycerols in the liver cells. The increase in [14C]diacylglycerol level in the liver cells was accompanied by a decrease in the level of [14C]phosphatidylcholine, whereas contents of other 14C-labeled phospholipids, such as phosphatidylethanolamine, sphingomyelin, lysophosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns), phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate (PtdIns4P), and phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bis-phosphate (PtdIns(4,5)P2), and of 14C-labeled fatty acids were the same as in the control. The L-thyroxine-induced accumulation of diacylglycerols in hepatocytes was not affected by neomycin but was inhibited by propranolol. Incubation of hepatocytes prelabeled with [14C]oleic acid with L-thyroxine and ethanol (300 mM) was accompanied by generation and accumulation of [14C]phosphatidylethanol that was partially suppressed by 1-(5-isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-methylpiperazine (H7). L-Thyroxine was responsible for the translocation of protein kinase C from the cytosol into the membrane fraction and for a many-fold activation of the membrane-bound enzyme. D-Thyroxine failed to affect the generation of diacylglycerols in hepatocytes and the activity of protein kinase C.     

Lipid biosynthesis and composition in oil bodies and microsomes of olive fruit

Both lipid synthesis and composition in oil bodies and microsomes of olive fruit at the first stage of development have been studied. The rate of fatty-acid synthesis in isolated oil bodies was saturated by 4.0 microM [2-14C]-malonyl-CoA. The fatty-acids synthesized of phospholipids and neutral lipids were saturated and monounsaturated. Neutral lipids, galactolipids and, above all, phospholipids were the major acyl-lipid components of microsomal fraction, oleic and palmitic being their principal fatty-acids. When the lipids of microsomes were labelled in vivo with [1-14C]-acetate, phospholipids and neutral lipids exhibited a higher biosynthesis rate relative to the galactolipids. The increase in saturated and monounsaturated fatty-acid synthesis in microsomes, was also accompanied by an important [1-14C]-acetate incorporation into polyunsaturated acids. The data presented here, in conjunction with our previous morphological results, suggest the possibility that olive fruit oil bodies could contain the necessary enzymes for the reserve lipid biosynthesis.     

Metabolism of fatty acids and their incorporation into phospholipids of the mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum in isolated hepatocytes determined by isolation of fluorescence derivatives

Isolated hepatocytes were incubated in the presence of [14C]palmitic, [14C]linoleic or [14C]linolenic acid and the time-courses of incorporation of radioactivity into phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine of microsomes and mitochondria were followed. For this purpose a procedure was developed for HPLC separation of 9-diazomethylanthracene (ADAM) derivatives of fatty acids. When [14C]palmitic acid was used, the major product of elongation and desaturation was octadecadienoic acid, which accounted for 35-65% of the total radioactivity. Labeled palmitoleic, stearic and oleic acids could also be isolated. In fatty acids which do not participate to any large extent in deacylation-reacylation reactions, the pattern of incorporation was characteristic: a high rate of incorporation into microsomal and a low rate of incorporation into mitochondrial phospholipids during the first 40 min, followed by a decrease in the former and an increase in mitochondrial labeling. This pattern is consistent with the fact that de novo synthesis of these two phospholipids occurs in the endoplasmic reticulum in vivo. When cells were incubated in the presence of [14C]linoleic acid, 70-90% of the radioactivity recovered in phospholipids was in this same form, whereas the remaining label was mainly in arachidonic acid and, to some extent, in eicosatrienoic acid. When hepatocytes were incubated in the presence of [14C]linolenic acid, 70-85% of the radioactivity in isolated phospholipids was associated with linolenic acid. As much as 20% of the label was recovered in docosahexanoic acid and 5-10% in arachidonic acid. In the case of the two latter labeled substrates the exchange reactions seem to dominate over de novo synthesis. For phospholipids synthesized de novo the transfer from the endoplasmic reticulum to mitochondria requires about 3 h.     

Effects of ursodeoxycholic acid, analogues of ursodeoxycholic acid and combination of bile acids on bile acid synthesis in cultured rat hepatocytes

The effect of individual 7 beta-hydroxy bile acids (ursodeoxycholic and ursocholic acid), bile acid analogues of ursodeoxycholic acid, combination of bile acids (taurochenodeoxycholate and taurocholate), and mixtures of bile acids, phospholipids and cholesterol in proportions found in rat bile, on bile acids synthesis was studied in cultured rat hepatocytes. Individual steroids tested included ursodeoxycholate (UDCA), ursocholate (UCA), glycoursodeoxycholate (GUDCA) and tauroursodeoxycholate (TUDCA). Analogues of UDCA (7-methylursodeoxycholate, sarcosylursodeoxycholate and ursooxazoline) and allochenodeoxycholate, a representative of 5 alpha-cholanoic bile acid were also tested in order to determine the specificity of the bile acid biofeedback. Each individual steroid was added to the culture media at concentrations ranging from 10 to 200 microM. Mixtures of taurochenodeoxycholate (TDCA) and taurocholate in concentrations ranging from 150 to 600 microM alone and in combination with phosphatidylcholine (10-125 microM) and cholesterol (3-13 microM) were also tested for their effects on bile acid synthesis. Rates of bile acid synthesis were determined as the conversion of added lipoprotein [4-14C]cholesterol or [2-14C]mevalonate into 14C-labeled bile acids and by GLC quantitation of bile acids secreted into the culture media. Individual bile acids, bile acid analogues, combination of bile acids and mixture of bile acids with phosphatidylcholine and cholesterol failed to inhibit bile acid synthesis in cultured hepatocytes. The addition of UDCA or UCA to the culture medium resulted in a marked increase in the intracellular level of both bile acids, and in the case of UDCA there was a 4-fold increase in beta-muricholate. These results demonstrate effective uptake and metabolism of these bile acids by the rat hepatocytes. UDCA, UCA, TUDCA and GUDCA also failed to inhibit cholesterol-7 alpha-hydroxylase activity in microsomes prepared from cholestyramine-fed rats. The current data confirm and extend our previous observations that, under conditions employed, neither single bile acid nor a mixture of bile acids with or without phosphatidylcholine and cholesterol inhibits bile acid synthesis in primary rat hepatocyte cultures. We postulate that mechanisms other than a direct effect of bile acids on cholesterol-7 alpha-hydroxylase might play a role in the regulation of bile acid synthesis.     

Role of peroxisomal fatty acyl-CoA beta-oxidation in phospholipid biosynthesis

We have already reported that peroxisomal beta-oxidation has an anabolic function, supplying acetyl-CoA for bile acid biosynthesis [H. Hayashi and A. Miwa, 1989, Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 274, 582-589]. The anabolic significance of peroxisomal beta-oxidation was further investigated in the present study by using clofibrate, a peroxisome proliferator, as an experimental tool. Clofibrate suppressed 3-hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA reductase activity (the key enzyme of cholesterol synthesis) and enhanced fatty acyl-CoA oxidase activity (the rate-limiting enzyme of beta-oxidation). Rats were fed a chow containing 0.25% clofibrate for 2 weeks, and then a bile duct fistula was implanted. [1-14C]lignoceric acid, which is degraded exclusively by peroxisomal FAOS, was injected into the rats 24 h after the operation. By this time, the secondary bile acids and pooled cholesterol which would normally be secreted into the bile are considered to have been exhausted from the liver. Clofibrate significantly decreased the incorporations of radioactivity into biliary bile acid (40% of the control) and cholesterol (50%), but did not affect biliary lipid contents. [14C]Acetyl-CoA formed by peroxisomal beta-oxidation of [1-14C]lignoceric acid was preferentially utilized for syntheses of long-chain fatty acids and phospholipids rather than synthesis of cholesterol or triglyceride. The radioactivities incorporated into the former two lipids were increased 2-fold over the control by administration of clofibrate, while the incorporation into triglyceride was decreased to approximately half. In particular, the incorporation into phosphatidylethanolamine was increased as much as 3.5-fold over the control. The contents of these lipids in the liver were not affected by clofibrate. The results suggest that peroxisomal beta-oxidation plays an important role in the biosynthesis of functional lipids such as phospholipids (this work), in addition to bile acids and cholesterol (previous report) by supplying acetyl-CoA.     

Lipid and lipoprotein metabolism in Hep G2 cells

Lipid composition, lipid synthesis and lipoprotein secretion by the Hep G2 cell line have been studied with substrate and insulin supplied under different conditions. The lipid composition of Hep G2 cells was close to that of normal human liver, except for a higher content in sphingomyelin (P less than 0.005) and a lower phosphatidylcholine/sphingomyelin ratio. Most of the [14C]triacylglycerols secreted into the medium were recovered by ultracentrifugation at densities of 1.006 to 1.020 g/ml. The main apolipoproteins secreted were apo B-100 and apo A-I. Hep G2 mRNA synthesized in vitro the pro-apolipoproteins A-I and E. Triacylglycerol secretion was 7.38 +/- 1.04 micrograms/mg cell protein per 20 h with 5.5 mM glucose in the medium and increased linearly with glucose concentration. Oleic acid (1 mM) increased the incorporation of [3H]glycerol into the medium and cell triacylglycerols by 251 and 899%, with a concomitant increment in cell triacylglycerols and cholesterol ester. Insulin (1 mU or 7 pmol/ml) inhibited triacylglycerol secretion and [35S]methionine incorporation into secreted protein by 47 and 28%, respectively, with a corresponding increase in the cells. Preincubation of cells with 2.5-10 mM mevalonolactone decreased the incorporation of [14C]acetate into cholesterol 6.2-fold, indicating an inhibitory effect on HMG-CoA reductase. It is concluded that in spite of some differences between Hep G2 and normal human hepatocytes, this line offers an alternative and reliable model for studies on liver lipid metabolism.