The stimulation of hepatic gluconeogenesis by acetoacetate precursors. A role for the monocarboxylate translocator

The regulation of the gluconeogenic pathway from the 3-carbon precursors pyruvate, lactate, and alanine was investigated in the isolated perfused rat liver. Using pyruvate (less than 1 mM), lactate, or alanine as the gluconeogenic precursor, infusion of the acetoacetate precursors oleate, acetate, or beta-hydroxybutyrate stimulated the rate of glucose production and, in the case of pyruvate (less than 1 mM), the rate of pyruvate decarboxylation. alpha-Cyanocinnamate, an inhibitor of the monocarboxylate transporter, prevented the stimulation of pyruvate decarboxylation and glucose production due to acetate infusion. With lactate as the gluconeogenic precursor, acetate infusion in the presence of L-carnitine stimulated the rate of gluconeogenesis (100%) and ketogenesis (60%) without altering the tissue acetyl-CoA level usually considered a requisite for the stimulation of gluconeogenesis by fatty acids. Hence, our studies suggest that gluconeogenesis from pyruvate or other substrates which are converted to pyruvate prior to glucose synthesis may be limited or controlled by the rate of entry of pyruvate into the mitochondrial compartment on the monocarboxylate translocator.     

Metabolic fluxes in the liver of rats bearing the Walker-256 tumour: influence of the circulating levels of substrates and fatty acids

Studies on fatty acid and amino acid metabolism in the liver of Walker-256 tumour-bearing rats have revealed several changes. Comparisons, however, have been based on experiments performed with non-physiological, frequently unrealistic, substrate concentrations. The aim of the present work was to examine the influence of physiological substrate concentrations on gluconeogenesis, ketogenesis and related parameters. Isolated livers were perfused and substrates were infused at concentrations that were reported to occur in healthy and tumour-bearing rats. Ketogenesis and the mitochondrial NADH/NAD+ ratio were smaller in the tumour-bearing condition at low (0.2 mM) and high (0.8 mM) oleate concentrations. In the absence of oleate, gluconeogenesis from alanine (0.7 mM) and gluconeogenesis plus the associated changes in oxygen uptake due to lactate/pyruvate (2/0.2 and 6/0.3 mM) were smaller in livers of tumour-bearing rats. However, the response of gluconeogenesis from lactate/pyruvate in livers of tumour-bearing rats to 0.8 mM oleate was more pronounced so that a trend towards normalization was apparent at high substrate and oleate concentrations. Gluconeogenesis from 0.7 mM alanine was not significantly changed by oleate in the tumour-bearing state; in the control condition, stimulation occurred at 0.2 mM oleate and inhibition at 0.8 mM oleate. This diminution almost equalized the hepatic alanine-dependent gluconeogenesis of both control and tumour-bearing rats. Ureogenesis was smaller in the tumour-bearing state and was not affected by oleate. It was concluded that the high concentrations of fatty acids and lactate/pyruvate, which predominate in rats bearing the Walker-256 tumour, could be effective in normalizing the gluconeogenic response of livers from tumour-bearing rats.     

The effects of cyclopropane carboxylate on hepatic pyruvate metabolism

The effects of cyclopropane carboxylate on gluconeogenesis and pyruvate decarboxylation from [1-14C]-labeled pyruvate and lactate were investigated in perfused livers from fasted rats. With high concentrations of pyruvate (greater than or equal to 0.5 mM) in the perfusion medium, infusion of cyclopropane carboxylate inhibited pyruvate decarboxylation and gluconeogenesis by 30 and 40%, respectively. With low, more physiological concentrations of pyruvate (50 microM) or with lactate (1 mM), cyclopropane carboxylate, at a concentration which elicits maximal inhibition of pyruvate decarboxylation from pyruvate (greater than or equal to 0.5 mM), did not affect either pyruvate decarboxylation or gluconeogenesis. Evidence is presented for the rapid formation of the coenzyme-A ester of cyclopropane carboxylate in perfused livers. Infusion of l-(-)carnitine (20 mM) prevented the inhibitory effects of cyclopropane carboxylate on pyruvate decarboxylation and gluconeogenesis from pyruvate (greater than or equal to 0.5 mM). Interestingly, no decrease in the tissue level of cyclopropanecarboxyl-CoA occurs under these conditions. The present study suggests that cyclopropane carboxylate, through a presently ill-defined mediator, inhibits pyruvate decarboxylation and gluconeogenesis by interfering with the pyruvate----oxalacetate----phosphoenolpyruvate----pyruvate cycle when pyruvate (greater than or equal to 0.5mM) supports gluconeogenesis.     

The effects of alpha-adrenergic stimulation on the regulation of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex in the perfused rat liver

The regulation of the pyruvate dehydrogenase multienzyme complex was investigated during alpha-adrenergic stimulation with phenylephrine in the isolated perfused rat liver. The metabolic flux through the pyruvate dehydrogenase reaction was monitored by measuring the production of 14CO2 from infused [1-14C] pyruvate. In livers from fed animals perfused with a low concentration of pyruvate (0.05 mM), phenylephrine infusion significantly inhibited the rate of pyruvate decarboxylation without affecting the amount of pyruvate dehydrogenase in its active form. Also, phenylephrine caused no significant effect on tissue NADH/NAD+ and acetyl-CoA/CoASH ratios or on the kinetics of pyruvate decarboxylation in 14CO2 washout experiments. Phenylephrine inhibition of [1-14C]pyruvate decarboxylation was, however, closely associated with a decrease in the specific radioactivity of perfusate lactate, suggesting that the pyruvate decarboxylation response simply reflected dilution of the labeled pyruvate pool due to phenylephrine-stimulated glycogenolysis. This suggestion was confirmed in additional experiments which showed that the alpha-adrenergic-mediated inhibitory effect on pyruvate decarboxylation was reduced in livers perfused with a high concentration of pyruvate (1 mM) and was absent in livers from starved rats. Thus, alpha-adrenergic agonists do not exert short term regulatory effects on pyruvate dehydrogenase in the liver. Furthermore, the results suggest either that the rat liver pyruvate dehydrogenase complex is insensitive to changes in mitochondrial calcium or that changes in intramitochondrial calcium levels as a result of alpha-adrenergic stimulation are considerably less than suggested by others.     

alpha-Ketobutyrate metabolism in perfused rat liver: regulation of alpha-ketobutyrate decarboxylation and effects of alpha-ketobutyrate on pyruvate dehydrogenase

The oxidative decarboxylation and subsequent production of glucose from alpha-ketobutyrate were studied using perfused livers from fasted rats. The production of 14CO2 from alpha-keto-[1-14C]butyrate increased monotonically while the production of glucose from alpha-ketobutyrate was biphasic as the perfusate concentration of alpha-ketobutyrate was increased. The biphasic gluconeogenic response using alpha-ketobutyrate as the gluconeogenic precursor was similar to that observed with propionate. The decarboxylation of alpha-ketobutyrate was found to be exquisitely sensitive to the effects of the monocarboxylate transport inhibitor, alpha-cyanocinnamate. Infusion of beta-hydroxybutyrate caused a substantial inhibition of alpha-ketobutyrate decarboxylation while dichloroacetate, a pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase inhibitor, did not stimulate the metabolism of alpha-ketobutyrate but was inhibitory. The effects of alpha-ketobutyrate infusion on pyruvate decarboxylation were tested and it was found that at low perfusate pyruvate concentrations (ca. 0.25 mM) increasing alpha-ketobutyrate led to increasing inhibition of pyruvate decarboxylation, while at high perfusate pyruvate concentrations (ca. 2.5 mM) an initial inhibition was apparent which did not increase substantially with increasing alpha-ketobutyrate concentrations. The results obtained indicate that the regulation of alpha-ketobutyrate metabolism by oxidative decarboxylation differs significantly from that of pyruvate. In addition, while the rate of gluconeogenesis using alpha-ketobutyrate as a precursor was remarkably similar to that using propionate as a gluconeogenic precursor, the effects of alpha-ketobutyrate on the oxidative decarboxylation of pyruvate were qualitatively different from the effects of propionate on pyruvate metabolism.     

The effect of acetate on the regulation of the branched chain α-keto acid and the pyruvate dehydrogenase complexes in the perfused rat liver

The regulatory consequences of acetate infusion on the pyruvate and the branched chain α-keto acid dehydrogenase reactions in the isolated, perfused rat liver were investigated. Metabolic flux through these two decarboxylation reactions was monitored by measuring the rate of ¹⁴CO₂ production from infused 1-¹⁴C-labeled substrates. When acetate was presented to the liver as the sole substrate the rate of ketogenesis which resulted was maximal at concentrations of acetate in excess of 10 mm. The increase in hepatic ketogenesis during acetate infusion was not accompanied by an alteration of the mitochondrial oxidation-reduction state as measured by the ratio of β-hydroxybutyrate/ acetoacetate in the effluent perfusate. While acetate infusion did not affect the rate of α-keto[1-¹⁴C]isocaproate decarboxylation, the rate of α-keto[1-¹⁴C]isovalerate decarboxylation was stimulated appreciably upon acetate addition. No change was observed in the amount of extractable branched chain α-keto acid dehydrogenase during acetate infusion. The rate of [1-¹⁴C]pyruvate decarboxylation was stimulated in the presence of acetate at low (<1 mm) but not at high (>1 mm) perfusate pyruvate concentrations. The stimulation of the metabolic flux through the pyruvate dehydrogenase reaction upon acetate infusion was accompanied by an increase in the activation state of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex from 25.7 to 35.6% in the active form. In a liver perfused in the presence of the pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase inhibitor, dichloroacetate, at a low concentration of pyruvate (0.05 mm) the infusion of acetate did not affect the rate of pyruvate decarboxylation. As the rate of mitochondrial acetoacetate efflux is increased during acetate infusion the stimulation of pyruvate and α-ketoisovalerate decarboxylation is attributed to an accelerated rate of exchange of mitochondrial acetoacetate for cytosolic pyruvate or α-ketoisovalerate on the monocarboxylate transporter.     

Impaired sensitivity to insulin of rat livers perfused with blood of diminished haematocrit.

1. In livers from fed rats perfused with homologous whole blood of a haematocrit value of 37%, insulin decreased the perfusate concentrations of glucose and amino acids, production of ketone bodies (3-hydroxybutyrate + acetoacetate) and increased bile flow. 2. Perfusion with blood diluted with buffer to a haematocrit value of 17% decreased hepatic O2 consumption by 40-50%. Perfusate concentrations of glucose and lactate, the rate of ketogenesis and the ratios [lactate]/[pyruvate] and [3-hydroxybutyrate]/[acetoacetate] were all increased. 3. In livers perfused with blood of diminished haematocrit, effects of insulin on perfusate glucose an amino acids, ketogenesis and bile flow were abolished.     

Metabolic compartmentation of pyruvate in the isolated perfused rat heart.

1. Prompted by the finding of markedly differing specific radioactivities of tissue alanine and lactate in isolated rat hearts perfused with [1-14C]pyruvate, a more detailed study on the cytosolic subcompartmentalization of pyruvate was undertaken. Isolated rat hearts were perfused by the once-through Langendorff technique under metabolic and isotopic steady-state conditions but with various routes of radioactive label influx, and the specific radioactivities of pyruvate, lactate and alanine were determined. An enzymic method was devised to determine the specific radioactivity of C-1 of pyruvate. 2. Label introduction as [1-14C]pyruvate resulted in a higher specific radioactivity of tissue alanine and mitochondrial pyruvate than of lactate, and a higher specific radioactivity of perfusate lactate than of tissue lactate. Label introduction as [1-14C]lactate resulted in a roughly similar isotope dilution into the tissue and perfusate pyruvate and the tissue alanine. Label introduction as [3,4-14C]glucose resulted in the same specific radioactivity of tissue lactate and alanine and a roughly similar specific radioactivity of mitochondrial pyruvate. 3. The results can be reconciled with a metabolic model containing two cytosolic functional pyruvate pools. One pool (I) communicates more closely with the glycolytic system, whereas the other (II) communicates with extracellular pyruvate and intracellular alanine. Pool II is in close connection with intramitochondrial pyruvate. The physical identity of the cytosolic subcompartments of pyruvate is discussed.     

Stimulation of alanine metabolism by ammonia in the perfused rat liver. Quantitative analysis by means of a mathematical model

The effect of ammonia on the catabolism of alanine was studied in the perfused rat liver. Addition of 0.5 mM NH4Cl to the perfusion medium containing 5 mM alanine plus 0.1 mM octanoate produced drastic changes in the metabolite concentrations in the efflux medium. Not only the rate of ureogenesis was activated, but also the formation of glucose, lactate and pyruvate. Additionally, respiration was stimulated, the output of ketone bodies decreased, and the redox ratios lactate/pyruvate as well as 3-hydroxybutyrate/acetoacetate became more oxidized. To interpret the causes of these metabolic changes, a mathematical model was developed. It contains kinetic equations by which fluxes through essential pathways of alanine catabolism, gluconeogenesis and energy metabolism were related to the intracellular concentrations of pyruvate, oxaloacetate and ammonia, as well as to the redox ratios lactate/pyruvate and 3-hydroxybutyrate/acetoacetate. Using a nonlinear regression procedure, the model was suitable to be fitted to the data found in the experiments. The consistency of the model and experiment allowed the changes caused by ammonia to be explained. Primarily, ammonia stimulated ureogenesis hence accelerating the deamination of alanine which led to the increased formation of pyruvate, lactate and glucose. The enhanced energetic load resulting from ureogenesis and gluconeogenesis shifted the mitochondrial and cytosolic NAD systems towards more oxidized states which additionally modified the flux rates. The results demonstrate that there is a high degree of cooperativity between the metabolic pathways.     

Interaction of oxamate with the gluconeogenic pathway in rat liver

Oxamate, a structural analog of pyruvate, known as a potent inhibitor of lactic dehydrogenase, lactic dehydrogenase, produces an inhibition of gluconeogenic flux in isolated perfused rat liver or hepatocyte suspensions from low concentrations of pyruvate (less than 0.5 mM) or substrates yielding pyruvate. The following observations indicate that oxamate inhibits flux through pyruvate carboxylase: accumulation of substrates and decreased concentration of all metabolic intermediates beyond pyruvate; decreased levels of aspartate, glutamate, and alanine; and enhanced ketone body production, which is a sensitive indicator of decreased mitochondrial free oxaloacetate levels. The decreased pyruvate carboxylase flux does not seem to be the result of a direct inhibitory action of oxamate on this enzyme but is secondary to a decreased rate of pyruvate entry into the mitochondria. This assumption is based on the following observations: Above 0.4 mM pyruvate, no significant inhibitory effect of oxamate on gluconeogenesis was observed. The competitive nature of oxamate inhibition is in conflict with its effect on isolated pyruvate carboxylase which is noncompetitive for pyruvate. Fatty acid oxidation was effective in stimulating gluconeogenesis in the presence of oxamate only at concentrations of pyruvate above 0.4 mM. Since only at low pyruvate concentrations its entry into the mitochondria occurs via the monocarboxylate translocator, from these observations it follows that pyruvate transport across the mitochondrial membrane, and not its carboxylation, is the first nonequilibrium step in the gluconeogenic pathway. In the presence of oxamate, fatty acid oxidation inhibited gluconeogenesis from lactate, alanine, and low pyruvate concentrations (less than 0.5 mM), and the rate of transfer of reducing equivalents to the cytosol was significantly decreased. Whether fatty acids stimulate or inhibit gluconeogenesis appears to correlate with the rate of flux through pyruvate carboxylase which ultimately seems to rely on pyruvate availability. Unless adequate rates of oxaloacetate formation are maintained, the shift of the mitochondrial NAD couple to a more reduced state during fatty acid oxidation seems to decrease mitochondrial oxaloacetate resulting in a decreased rate of transfer of carbon and reducing power to the cytosol.     

An increase in the redox state during reperfusion contributes to the cardioprotective effect of GIK solution

This study aimed at determining whether glucose-insulin-potassium (GIK) solutions modify the NADH/NAD(+) ratio during postischemic reperfusion and whether their cardioprotective effect can be attributed to this change in part through reduction of the mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. The hearts of 72 rats were perfused with a buffer containing glucose (5.5 mM) and hexanoate (0.5 mM). They were maintained in normoxia for 30 min and then subjected to low-flow ischemia (0.5% of the preischemic coronary flow for 20 min) followed by reperfusion (45 min). From the beginning of ischemia, the perfusate was subjected to various changes: enrichment with GIK solution, enrichment with lactate (2 mM), enrichment with pyruvate (2 mM), enrichment with pyruvate (2 mM) plus ethanol (2 mM), or no change for the control group. Left ventricular developed pressure, heart rate, coronary flow, and oxygen consumption were monitored throughout. The lactate/pyruvate ratio of the coronary effluent, known to reflect the cytosolic NADH/NAD(+) ratio and the fructose-6-phosphate/dihydroxyacetone-phosphate (F6P/DHAP) ratio of the reperfused myocardium, were evaluated. Mitochondrial ROS production was also estimated. The GIK solution improved the recovery of mechanical function during reperfusion. This was associated with an enhanced cytosolic NADH/NAD(+) ratio and reduced mitochondrial ROS production. The cardioprotection was also observed when the hearts were perfused with fluids known to increase the cytosolic NADH/NAD(+) ratio (lactate, pyruvate plus ethanol) compared with the other fluids (control and pyruvate groups). The hearts with a high mechanical recovery also displayed a low F6P/DHAP ratio, suggesting that an accelerated glycolysis rate may be responsible for increased cytosolic NADH production. In conclusion, the cardioprotection induced by GIK solutions could occur through an increase in the cytosolic NADH/NAD(+) ratio, leading to a decrease in mitochondrial ROS production.     

The specificity and metabolic implications of the inhibition of pyruvate transport in isolated mitochondria and intact tissue preparations by alpha-Cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate and related compounds.

1. Effects of alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate and alpha-cyanocinnamate on a number of enzymes involved in pyruvate metabolism have been investigated. Little or no inhibition was observed of any enzyme at concentrations that inhibit completely mitochondrial pyruvate transport. At much higher concentrations (1 mM) some inhibition of pyruvate carboxylase was apparent. 2. Alpha-Cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate (1-100 muM) specifically inhibited pyruvate oxidation by mitochondria isolated from rat heart, brain, kidney and from blowfly flight muscle; oxidation of other substrates in the presence or absence of ADP was not affected. Similar concentrations of the compound also inhibited the carboxylation of pyruvate by rat liver mitochondria and the activation by pyruvate of pyruvate dehydrogenase in fat-cell mitochondria. These findings imply that pyruvate dehydrogenase, pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase and pyruvate carboxylase are exposed to mitochondrial matrix concentrations of pyruvate rather than to cytoplasmic concentrations. 3. Studies with whole-cell preparations incubated in vitro indicate that alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate or alpha-cyanocinnamate (at concentrations below 200 muM) can be used to specifically inhibit mitochondrial pyruvate transport within cells and thus alter the metabolic emphasis of the preparation. In epididymal fat-pads, fatty acid synthesis from glucose and fructose, but not from acetate, was markedly inhibited. No changes in tissue ATP concentrations were observed. The effects on fatty acid synthesis were reversible. In kidney-cortex slices, gluconeogenesis from pyruvate and lactate but not from succinate was inhibited. In the rat heart perfused with medium containing glucose and insulin, addition of alpha-cyanocinnamate (200 muM) greatly increased the output and tissue concentrations of lactate plus pyruvate but decreased the lactate/pyruvate ratio. 4. The inhibition by cyanocinnamate derivatives of pyruvate transport across the cell membrane of human erythrocytes requires much higher concentrations of the derivatives than the inhibition of transport across the mitochondrial membrane. Alpha-Cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate appears to enter erythrocytes on the cell-membrane pyruvate carrier. Entry is not observed in the presence of albumin, which may explain the small effects when these compounds are injected into whole animals.     

The mechanism of inhibition by acidosis of gluconeogenesis from lactate in rat liver.

1. Gluconeogenesis from lactate or pyruvate was studied in perfused livers from starved rats at perfusate pH7.4 or under conditions simulating uncompensated metabolic acidosis (perfusate pH6.7-6.8). 2. In 'acidotic' perfusions gluconeogenesis and uptake of lactate or pyruvate were decreased. 3. Measurement of hepatic intermediate metabolites suggested that the effect of acidosis was exerted at a stage preceding phosphoenolpyruvate. 4. Total intracellular oxaloacetate concentration was significantly decreased in the acidotic livers perfused with lactate. 5. It is suggested that decreased gluconeogenesis in acidosis is due to substrate limitation of phosphoenolypyruvate carboxykinase. 6. The possible reasons for the fall in oxaloacetate concentration in acidotic livers are discussed; two of the more likely mechanisms are inhibition of the pyruvate carboxylase system and a change in the [malate]/[oxaloacetate] ratio due to the fall in intracellular pH.     

The effects of pyruvate concentration, dichloroacetate and alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate on gluconeogenesis, ketogenesis and [3-hydroxybutyrate]/[3-oxobutyrate] ratios in isolated rat hepatocytes.

1. In isolated rat hepatocytes incubated with pyruvate, ketogenesis increased with increasing pyruvate concentrations and decreased under the influence of 1 mM-alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, a known inhibitor of pyruvate transport. Ketogenesis from pyruvate was higher by 30% in hepatocytes prepared from starved than from fed rats. 2. With pyruvate as substrate, 2 mM-dichloroacetate had no effect on ketogenesis of starved-rat hepatocytes, but increased ketogenesis of fed-rat hepatocytes to the 'starved' value. Gluconeogenesis from pyruvate, lactate and alanine, but not from glycerol, was inhibited by dichloroacetate. Both increased ketogenesis and decreased gluconeogenesis may result from an inhibition of pyruvate carboxylase by dichloroacetate. 3. Mitochondria were rapidly isolated from incubated hepatocytes, and [3-hydroxybutyrate]/[3-oxobutyrate] ratios were measured in the mitochondrial pellet ('mitochondrial' ratios) and in whole-cell suspensions ('total' ratios). Increasing pyruvate concentrations increased mitochondrial and decreased total ratios. In the presence of pyruvate (2 to 10 mM), dichloroacetate decreased mitochondrial and increased total ratios.     

Quantitative analysis of intermediary metabolism in rat hepatocytes incubated in the presence and absence of ethanol with a substrate mixture including ketoleucine.

Hepatocytes isolated from livers of fed rats were incubated with a mixture of glucose (10 mM), ribose (1.0 mM), acetate (1.25 mM), alanine (3.5 mM), glutamate (2.0 mM), aspartate (2.0 mM), 4-methyl-2-oxovaleric acid (ketoleucine) (3.0 mM), and, in paired flasks, 10 mM-ethanol. One substrate was 14C-radiolabelled in any given incubation. Incorporation of 14C into glucose, glycogen, CO2, lactate, alanine, aspartate, glutamate, acetate, urea, lipid glycerol, fatty acids and the 1- and 2,3,4-positions of ketone bodies was measured after 20 and 40 min of incubation under quasi-steady-state conditions. Data were analysed with the aid of a realistic structural metabolic model. In each of the four conditions examined, there were approx. 77 label incorporation measurements and several measurements of changes in metabolite concentrations. The considerable excess of measurements over the 37 independent flux parameters allowed for a stringent test of the model. A satisfactory fit to these data was obtained for each condition. There were large bidirectional fluxes along the gluconeogenic/glycolytic pathways, with net gluconeogenesis. Rates of ureagenesis, oxygen consumption and ketogenesis were high under all four conditions studied. Oxygen utilization was accurately predicted by three of the four models. There was complete equilibration between mitochondrial and cytosolic pools of acetate and of CO2, but for several of the metabolic conditions, two incompletely equilibrated pools of mitochondrial acetyl-CoA and oxaloacetate were required. Ketoleucine was utilized at a rate comparable to that reported by others in perfused liver and entered the mitochondrial pool of acetyl-CoA directly associated with ketone body formation. Ethanol, which was metabolized at rates comparable to those in vivo, caused relatively few changes in overall flux patterns. Several effects related to the increased NADH/NAD+ ratio were observed. Pyruvate dehydrogenase was completely inhibited and the ratio of acetoacetate to 3-hydroxybutyrate was decreased; flux through glutamate dehydrogenase, the citric acid cycle, and ketoleucine dehydrogenase were, however, only slightly inhibited. Net production of ATP occurred in all conditions studied and was increased by ethanol. Futile cycling was quantified at the glucose/glucose 6-phosphate, glycogen/glucose 6-phosphate, fructose 6-phosphate/fructose 1,6-bis-phosphate, and phosphoenolpyruvate/pyruvate/oxaloacetate substrate cycles. Cycling at these four loci consumed about 22% of cellular ATP production in control hepatocytes and 14% in ethanol-treated cells.     

Mitochondrial pyruvate carrier—A possible link between gluconeogenesis and ketogenesis in the liver

Effects of various ketogenic substrates on gluconeogenesis from lactate or alanine were compared. The results suggest that, in intact liver cells, cytoplasmic pyruvate is transported into mitochondria in exchange for intramitochondrially generated acetoacetate. An interrelationship between gluconeogenesis and ketogenesis may thus exist in the liver at the level of mitochondrial pyruvate carrier.     

Regulation of gluconeogenesis from pyruvate and lactate in the isolated perfused rat liver

The effects of glucagon and the alpha-adrenergic agonist, phenylephrine, on the rate of 14CO2 production and gluconeogenesis from [1-14C]lactate and [1-14C]pyruvate were investigated in isolated perfused livers of 24-h-fasted rats. Both glucagon and phenylephrine stimulated the rate of 14CO2 production from [1-14C]lactate but not from [1-14C]pyruvate. Neither glucagon nor phenylephrine affected the activation state of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex in perfused livers derived from 24-h-fasted rats. 3-Mercaptopicolinate, an inhibitor of the phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase reaction, inhibited the rates of 14CO2 production and glucose production from [1-14C]lactate by 50% and 100%, respectively. Furthermore, 3-mercaptopicolinate blocked the glucagon- and phenylephrine-stimulated 14CO2 production from [1-14C]lactate. Additionally, measurements of the specific radioactivity of glucose synthesized from [1-14C]lactate, [1-14C]pyruvate and [2-14C]pyruvate indicated that the 14C-labeled carboxyl groups of oxaloacetate synthesized from 1-14C-labeled precursors were completely randomized and pyruvate----oxaloacetate----pyruvate substrate cycle activity was minimal. The present study also demonstrates that glucagon and phenylephrine stimulation of the rate of 14CO2 production from [1-14C]lactate is a result of increased metabolic flux through the phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase reaction, and phenylephrine-stimulated gluconeogenesis from pyruvate is regulated at step(s) between phosphoenolpyruvate and glucose.     

On the stimulation of respiration by alpha-adrenergic agonists in perfused rat liver

Interactions between phenylephrine-induced oxygen consumption, lactate and pyruvate output, and urea and glucose production were examined in perfused livers from fed or 48-h-fasted rats. Within 2 min of phenylephrine infusion, oxygen consumption in perfused livers was increased by approximately 40%. Increases in oxygen consumption induced by phenylephrine were essentially abolished in the presence of carboxyatractyloside, whereas those induced by dinitrophenol were still evident. Phenylephrine-induced increases in oxygen consumption were accompanied by enhanced rates of gluconeogenesis and ureogenesis in livers from fed or 48-h-fasted animals. These data indicate that phenylephrine-induced increases in respiration in perfused rat liver may result from an enhanced rate of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation in response to an increased cellular energy requirement.     

Stimulation by alpha-adrenergic agonists of Ca2+ fluxes, mitochondrial oxidation and gluconeogenesis in perfused rat liver.

Glucose output from perfused livers of 48 h-starved rats was stimulated by phenylephrine (2 microM) when lactate, pyruvate, alanine, glycerol, sorbitol, dihydroxyacetone or fructose were used as gluconeogenic precursors. Phenylephrine-induced increases in glucose output were immediately preceded by a transient efflux of Ca2+ and a sustained increase in oxygen uptake. Phenylephrine decreased the perfusate [lactate]/[pyruvate] ratio when sorbitol or glycerol was present, but increased the ratio when alanine, dihydroxyacetone or fructose was present. Phenylephrine induced a rapid increase in the perfusate [beta-hydroxybutyrate]/[acetoacetate] ratio and increased total ketone-body output by 40-50% with all substrates. The oxidation of [1-14C]octanoate or 2-oxo[1-14C]glutarate to 14CO2 was increased by up to 200% by phenylephrine. All responses to phenylephrine infusion were diminished after depletion of the hepatic alpha-agonist-sensitive pool of Ca2+ and returned toward maximal responses after Ca2+ re-addition. Phenylephrine-induced increases in glucose output from lactate, sorbitol and glycerol were inhibited by the transaminase inhibitor amino-oxyacetate by 95%, 75% and 66% respectively. Data presented suggest that the mobilization of an intracellular pool of Ca2+ is involved in the activation of gluconeogenesis by alpha-adrenergic agonists in perfused rat liver. alpha-Adrenergic activation of gluconeogenesis is apparently accompanied by increases in fatty acid oxidation and tricarboxylic acid-cycle flux. An enhanced transfer of reducing equivalents from the cytoplasmic to the mitochondrial compartment may also be involved in the stimulation of glucose output from the relatively reduced substrates glycerol and sorbitol and may arise principally from an increased flux through the malate-aspartate shuttle.