Metabolic investigations of fibroblasts from horses, Equus caballus, with hereditary severe combined immunodeficiency

In an attempt to determine the metabolic defect causing severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) in horses in which altered purine metabolism has been observed, various parameters of purine and pyrimidine metabolism were evaluated. The activities of nine purine enzymes (adenosine kinase, purine nucleoside phosphorylase, deoxyadenosine kinase, deoxycytidine kinase, 5'-nucleotidase, AMP deaminase, hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyl transferase, and adenine phosphoribosyl transferase were measured in fibroblasts. All activities determined for SCID horses were normal. Uptake of 10 microM adenosine or 2'-deoxyadenosine (a growth inhibitory concentration for SCID fibroblasts) by SCID fibroblasts was identical to that found for normal fibroblasts in the presence of both 1 and 50 microM phosphate. The Km determined for the transport of both adenosine and 2'-deoxyadenosine was 35 microM. In the presence of p-nitrobenzylthioguanosine (a nucleoside transport inhibitor), 2'-deoxyadenosine uptake was inhibited to the same extent in all fibroblast lines tested. To determine if the last step in pyrimidine biosynthesis might be altered in SCID fibroblasts, UMP synthase activities were evaluated but found to be normal (0.5 nmol UMP formed/min/mg protein).     

Uptake and metabolism of adenosine by pig aortic endothelial and smooth-muscle cells in culture.

1. Adenosine, a potent vasodilator, is transported very efficiently by pig aortic endothelium in monolayer culture (approx. 50pmol/min per 10(6) cells at 2 micrometer). Uptake proceeds by diffusion at high (millimolar) substrate concentrations, and by two discrete transport processes (Km approx. 3 micrometer and 250 micrometer) at lower concentrations. Over 90% of the adenosine taken up at 10 micrometer or 100 micrometer is rapidly converted into adenine nucleotides (mainly ATP). 2. The high-affinity process is selectively inhibited by dipyridamole and by nitrobenzylthioinosine. Adenine preferentially inhibits the lower-affinity process, papapaverine inhibits both transport processes, and inosine has no significant effect. 3. Pig aortic smooth-muscle cells in culture show no high-affinity transport system for adenosine; uptake is much slower at low concentrations than that by endothelium (approx. 5pmol/min per 10(6) cells at 2 micrometer). Over 80% of the incorporated adenosine at 10 micrometer or 100 micrometer is rapidly converted into adenine nucleotides. 4. The uptake of adenosine by smooth-muscle cells is powerfully inhibited by adenine, but dipyridamole is much less potent than in endothelium. 5. We conclude that endothelial cells are mainly responsible for the removal of circulating adenosine.     

Inward fluxes of adenosine in erythrocytes and cultured cells measured by a quenched-flow method.

Dilazep, a vasodilator previously recognized as an inhibitor of adenosine permeation, very rapidly blocked the uptake of adenosine by cultured L5178Y cells, and accordingly was used as a quencher in a simple quenched-flow system for measuring cellular uptake of nucleosides during very short intervals. Time courses of cellular uptake of adenosine, assayed during intervals between 0.05 and 0.5s with the quenched-flow system, were linear and defined initial rates of adenosine uptake. The latter are rates of inward transport of adenosine. Kinetic constants for that process in cultured S49 cells determined with the quenched-flow procedure were similar to those determined with an assay dependent on manual timing. In studies of adenosine uptake kinetics in human erythrocytes at 22 degrees C and 37 degrees C in which the quenched-flow procedure was used, time courses of adenosine uptake were linear at both temperatures and defined initial uptake rates; kinetic constants (means +/- S.E.M.) at 22 degrees C (n = 8) were Km 25 +/- 14 microM and Vmax. 15 +/- 5 pmol/s per microliter of cell water and at 37 degrees C (n = 3) were Km 98 +/- 17 microM and Vmax. 80 +/- 9 pmol/s per microliter of cell water.     

Substrate specificity, kinetics, and stoichiometry of sodium-dependent adenosine transport in L1210/AM mouse leukemia cells

Two equilibrative (facilitated diffusion) nucleoside transport processes and a concentrative Na(+)-dependent co-transport process contribute to zero-trans inward fluxes of nucleosides in L1210 mouse leukemia cells. Na(+)-linked inward adenosine fluxes in L1210/AM cells (a clone deficient in adenosine, deoxyadenosine, and deoxycytidine kinase activities) were measured as initial rates of [3H]adenosine influx in medium containing Na+ salts and 10 microM dipyridamole. The Na(+)-linked transporter distinguished between the D- and L-enantiomers of adenosine, the latter being a virtual nonpermeant in the initial-rate assay. Adenine arabinoside, inosine, 2'-deoxyadenosine and 2'-deoxyadenosine derivatives with halogen atoms at the purine C-2 position were recognized as substrates of the Na(+)-linked system because of their inhibition of adenosine (10 microM) fluxes under the condition of Na(+)-dependence with IC50 values ranging between 25 and 183 microM; uridine, deoxycytidine, and cytosine arabinoside (each at 400 microM) inhibited adenosine fluxes by 10-40%. Inward Na(+)-linked adenosine fluxes were saturable with respect to extracellular adenosine and Na+ concentrations [( Na+]o); Km and Vmax values for adenosine influx were 9.4 +/- 2.6 microM and 1.67 +/- 0.2 pmol/microliter cell water/s when [Na+]o was 100 mM. The stoichiometry of Na+:adenosine co-transport, determined by Hill analysis of the dependence of adenosine fluxes on [Na+]o, was 1:1. The thiol-reactive agents, N-ethylmaleimide (NEM), showdomycin and p-chloromercuriphenylsulphonate (pCMPS), inhibited Na(+)-linked adenosine fluxes with IC50 values of 40, 10, and 2 microM, respectively. This inhibition was partially reversed by the presence of adenosine in incubation media containing pCMPS, but not NEM. Thiol groups accessible to pCMPS may be involved in substrate recognition by the transporter and in the permeation step.     

Adenosine deaminase activity of chicken erythrocyte and heart cytosols

1. The adenosine deaminase (ADA) activities of chicken erythrocyte and heart cytosols had pH optima of 6.5. The temperature optima for erythrocyte and heart ADA were 30 and 35 degrees C, respectively. 2. The deoxyadenosine/adenosine deamination ratios ranged from 0.75 to 0.84 for both ADA activities. 3. For erythrocyte ADA, Km values were 8.9-12.9 microM adenosine (range) and 8.3 microM 2'-deoxyadenosine. For heart ADA, Km values were 6.7-12.0 microM adenosine (range) and 5.3 microM 2'-deoxyadenosine. 4. Inosine was a competitive inhibitor of both erythrocyte (Ki = 73 microM) and heart (Ki = 109 microM) ADA.     

Characterization of a novel variant of amino acid transport system asc in erythrocytes from Przewalski's horse (Equus przewalskii).

In thoroughbred horses, red blood cell amino acid transport activity is Na(+)-independent and controlled by three codominant genetic alleles (h, l, s), coding for high-affinity system asc1 (L-alanine apparent Km for influx at 37 degrees C congruent to 0.35 mM), low-affinity system asc2 (L-alanine Km congruent to 14 mM), and transport deficiency, respectively. The present study investigated amino acid transport mechanisms in red cells from four wild species: Przewalski's horse (Equus przewalskii), Hartmann's zebra (Zebra hartmannae), Grevy's zebra (Zebra grevyi), and onager (Equus hemonius). Red blood cell samples from different Przewalski's horses exhibited uniformly high rates of L-alanine uptake, mediated by a high-affinity asc1-type transport system. Mean apparent Km and Vmax values (+/- SE) for L-alanine influx at 37 degrees C in red cells from 10 individual animals were 0.373 +/- 0.068 mM and 2.27 +/- 0.11 mmol (L cells.h), respectively. As in thoroughbreds, the Przewalski's horse transporter interacted with dibasic as well as neutral amino acids. However, the Przewalski asc1 isoform transported L-lysine with a substantially (6.4-fold) higher apparent affinity than its thoroughbred counterpart (Km for influx 1.4 mM at 37 degrees C) and was also less prone to trans-stimulation effects. The novel high apparent affinity of the Przewalski's horse transporter for L-lysine provides additional key evidence of functional and possible structural similarities between asc and the classical Na(+)-dependent system ASC and between these systems and the Na(+)-independent dibasic amino acid transport system y+. Unlike Przewalski's horse, zebra red cells were polymorphic with respect to L-alanine transport activity, showing high-affinity or low-affinity saturable mechanisms of L-alanine uptake. Onager red cells transported this amino acid with intermediate affinity (apparent Km for influx 3.0 mM at 37 degrees C). Radiation inactivation analysis was used to estimate the target size of system asc in red cells from Przewalski's horse. The transporter's in situ apparent molecular weight was 158,000 +/- 2500 (SE).     

Effects of temperature on the transport of nucleosides in guinea pig erythrocytes

The initial rate of [14C]uridine transport by guinea pig erythrocytes was investigated at different temperatures. At 37, 22, and 10 degrees C the concentration dependence of uridine zero-trans influx and equilibrium exchange influx was resolved into two components; (a) a saturable component which followed simple Michaelis-Menten kinetics and which was inhibited by nitrobenzylthioinosine, and (b) a linear component of low magnitude and insensitive to nitrobenzylthioinosine inhibition. The maximum velocity, Vmax, of zero-trans uridine influx for the saturable transport system was 70-fold higher at 37 than 10 degrees C (1.24, 0.20, and 0.018 mmol/L of cells per hour at 37, 22, and 10 degrees C, respectively). Similarly, the apparent affinity, Km, for zero-trans influx decreased as the temperature was lowered (0.27, 0.066, and 0.038 mM at 37, 22, and 10 degrees C, respectively). In contrast, uridine equilibrium exchange influx was less temperature dependent (Vmax, 2.80, 0.89, and 0.14 mmol/L of cells per hour; apparent Km 0.61, 0.36, and 0.24 mM at 37, 22, and 10 degrees C, respectively). These results demonstrate that the mobility of the empty carrier is impaired to a greater extent than the mobility of the loaded carrier temperature decreased. However, the kinetic constants for zero-trans uridine influx and efflux at 37 degrees C were similar, indicating that the nucleoside transporter exhibited directional symmetry at 37 degrees C. Arrhenius plots of the maximum velocity for equilibrium exchange and zero-trans uridine influx were discontinuous above 25 degrees C, but between 20 and 5 degrees C the plots were linear (Ea = 22 and 30 kcal/mol for equilibrium exchange and zero-trans influx, respectively.     

Modulation of basal glucose transporter Km in the adipocyte by insulin and other factors

We have previously described experimental conditions where basal methylglucose transport in adipocytes exhibited an apparent Km of approximately 35 mM. Under those conditions insulin stimulated transport predominantly by decreasing the transport Km (Whitesell, R. R., and Abumrad, N. A. (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 2894-2899). Our findings were in contrast with earlier reports that the Km of basal glucose transport was low (3-5 mM) and similar to that of transport in insulin-treated cells. In this study we have investigated the effect of different experimental conditions on the kinetics of basal glucose transport in adipocytes. When transport was assayed at 37 degrees C, cell agitation for 10 min prior to the transport assay decreased the basal Km from 35 to 12 mM. Deprivation of metabolic substrate produced a further reduction down to 2 mM. Refeeding starved cells with 1 mM glucose returned the Km back up to 12 mM in agitated cells and to 40 mM in stabilized cells. The effects of agitation to lower and of glucose to raise the basal Km were prevented by preincubating cells with dinitrophenol. Cell agitation or substrate lack did not alter the Vmax of basal transport and were without effect on both Km and Vmax in insulin-treated cells. The temperature dependencies of the kinetics of basal and stimulated transport were studied. A decrease in the assay temperature from 37 to 23 degrees C caused both basal Km and Vmax to drop proportionately from 25 to 5 mM, and 13 to 3.6 nmol/(microliter X min), respectively. In insulin-stimulated cells, only the Vmax was decreased (Km went from 3.5 to 3 mM, Vmax from 45 to 17 nmol/(microliter X min]. The results support the concept that experimental conditions can produce large changes in the Km of basal glucose transporters. Furthermore they explain why, under certain assay conditions (with temperatures around 23 degrees C or with deprivation of metabolic substrate), the effect of insulin on transport Km is not observed. Our data also suggest that basal transport characteristics do not persist in insulin-treated cells. We would propose that one of the actions of insulin (in addition to raising Vmax) is to change the characteristics of basal transporters by overriding metabolic factors which keep the Km high. Alternatively, insulin could cause the disappearance of basal transporters as new and different ones are recruited from intracellular stores.     

Adenosine uptake, transport, and metabolism in human erythrocytes

Using rapid kinetic techniques, we have determined the kinetics of zero-trans influx and equilibrium exchange of adenosine, and its uptake and in situ phosphorylation at 25 degrees C in human erythrocytes which were pretreated with 2'-deoxycoformycin to inhibit deamination of adenosine. Both the Km and Vmax for adenosine transport were about 300 times higher than those for the in situ phosphorylation of adenosine (Km about 0.2 microM), so that the first order rate constants for both processes were about the same. In contrast, the first order rate constant for adenosine deamination by untreated, intact cells was about 20% of that of adenosine transport or phosphorylation. These kinetic properties of the various steps, in combination with substrate inhibition of adenosine phosphorylation above 1 microM adenosine, assure that, at extracellular concentrations of physiological relevance (less than 1 microM), adenosine is very rapidly and efficiently salvaged by the erythrocytes and converted to ATP, whereas at extracellular concentrations of 10 microM or higher, practically all adenosine transported into the cells is deaminated. When the concentration of adenosine was 0.1 microM, a 10% (v/v) suspension of erythrocytes depleted the extracellular fluid of adenosine within 1 min of incubation at 25 degrees C.     

Human placental deoxyadenosine and deoxyguanosine phosphorylating activity

We studied deoxyadenosine and deoxyguanosine phosphorylating activities in human placental cytosol. The specific activities of nucleoside kinase enzymes in nanomoles per h per mg +/- SD were as follows: adenosine kinase, 30 +/- 14; deoxyadenosine kinase, 12 +/- 2; deoxycytidine kinase, 0.30 +/- 0.04; and deoxyguanosine kinase, 27 +/- 16. Three major activities were resolved by ion exchange and affinity chromatography: deoxyguanosine-deoxycytidine kinase, deoxycytidine-deoxyadenosine kinase, and adenosine-deoxyadenosine kinase. Two other activities contained significant quantities of deoxyadenosine kinase. Deoxyguanosine-phosphorylating activity eluted as a single peak in association with deoxycytidine kinase. This deoxyguanosine-deoxycytidine kinase had an apparent molecular weight of 54,000, a Stokes radius of 31 A, and apparent Km values of 10, 130, and 14 microM for deoxyguanosine, deoxycytidine, and ATP, respectively. Four peaks of deoxyadenosine phosphorylating activity were resolved by affinity chromatography with AMP-Sepharose 4B. Adenosine-deoxyadenosine kinase had an apparent molecular weight of 38,000, a Stokes radius of 27.4 A, and apparent Km values of 0.4, 510, and 75 microM for adenosine, deoxyadenosine, and ATP, respectively. Attempts to distinguish whether adenosine-deoxyadenosine kinase was one enzyme with these two activities or two separate enzymes suggested that the former was the case. Deoxycytidine-deoxyadenosine kinase had apparent Km values of 0.7, 670, and 12 microM for deoxycytidine, deoxyadenosine, and ATP, respectively. Its apparent molecular weight was estimated to be 49,000 and its Stokes radius 30 A. Two other minor peaks of deoxyadenosine-phosphorylating activity had characteristics different from either deoxycytidine kinase or adenosine kinase-associated deoxyadenosine kinase. Our studies indicate that human placental cytosol contains a complex mixture of nucleoside kinase enzymes.     

Adenosine deaminase in the adductor muscle of the scallop, Patinopecten yessoensis

1. The scallop enzyme was separated by DE52 ion-exchange chromatography into two forms with the same mol. wt of 38,000 and similar characteristics. 2. The enzyme was inactivated in the absence of dithiothreitol and complete reactivation was achieved by adding the agent within a critical storage period. 3. The apparent values of pKm and Vmax sensitively increased as ionic strength was raised to 250 mM and phosphate and sodium ions elevated the former value with a further increase of the ionic strength. 4. The apparent activation energies for the alpha (Vmax/Km) and beta (Vmax) parameters of both the forms were approximately 5 and 8 kcal/mol, respectively. 5. The enzyme deaminated 2'-, 3'-deoxyadenosine and 2',3'-isopropylidene adenosine but did not deaminate 5'-deoxyadenosine, alpha-adenosine and adenine nucleotides. 6. The affinity for inosine was much lowered with a high Ki value. Adenine and purine riboside inhibited the enzyme completely, and coformycin was a tight, slow binding inhibitor.     

Adenosine transport by a variant of C1300 murine neuroblastoma cells deficient in adenosine kinase

The uptake of adenosine by an adenosine kinase deficient variant of C1300 murine neuroblastoma cells has been studied in the absence and in the presence of erythro-9-(2-hydroxy-3-nonyl)adenine, a potent adenine deaminase inhibitor. Although 100 micro M inhibitor completely blocks the metabolism of adenosine under the conditions studied, the uptake of adenosine is concentrative, i.e., the intracellular adenosine concentration exceeds the extracellular concentration. This concentrative effect decreases as the concentration of adenosine increases and is hypothesized to be due to the binding of adenosine to an intracellular component. Despite this concentrative effect, we believe that the kinetics of uptake, as determined in experiments with short (10-20 s) uptake periods, reflect the kinetics of adenosine transport by a facilitated diffusion process. This nucleoside transport system appears to be nonspecific in that the transport of adenosine is competitively antagonized by thymidine. It does not appear to be necessary to inhibit adenosine deaminase in order to study transport in these cells as the Km for transport is not affected by the presence of erythro-9-(2-hydroxy-3-nonyl)adenine. However, erythro-9-(2-hydroxy-3-nonyl)adenine does depress the V for transport. This effect of the inhibitor is probably not due to the inhibition of adenosine deaminase as the transport of thymidine is similarly affected.     

Infinite-cis kinetics support the carrier model for erythrocyte glucose transport

It has been claimed that the Km for infinite-cis uptake of glucose in human erythrocytes is so low that the carrier model for transport must be rejected. We redetermined this parameter for three experimental conditions and found instead that the Km values were in good agreement with the model. For each of a variety of cis glucose concentrations, cells were preequilibrated with various concentrations of glucose, and the apparent Km was determined as the intracellular concentration reducing the initial rate of net uptake by half. The dependence of the apparent Km values on the cis glucose was as predicted by the carrier model; the infinite-cis Km was determined from both this concentration dependence and the extrapolated value at infinite cis glucose. The resulting values were 15 mM for fresh blood at 0 degrees C, 39 mM for outdated blood at 0 degrees C, and 11 mM for outdated blood at 25 degrees C. Previous measurements of the Km at room temperature yielded values of 2-3 mM. These earlier studies used a time course procedure that indicated rapid changes in rates during the initial 10 s of uptake but did not directly measure such changes. We examined the uptake of 60 mM glucose at 20 degrees C into cells containing 0 and 5 mM glucose; rapid changes in rates were not observed in the first few seconds, and the time courses were more consistent with our higher Km values. Our new values, together with other initial rate measurements in the literature, support the adequacy of the carrier model to account for the kinetics of glucose transport in human erythrocytes.     

Adenine nucleotides in cholinergic transmission: presynaptic aspects.

1. Isolated nerve terminals (T-sacs and synaptosomes) prepared from the purely cholinergic Torpedo electric organ have been studied for their ability to incorporate and metabolise [2-3H] adenosine and to degrade 5'-AMP to adenosine. 2. A temperature-dependent, saturable uptake system for adenosine was found with kinetic properties similar to nucleoside transport systems in other cells. The uptake system in Torpedo nerve terminals was inhibited by 2'-deoxyadenosine, a known inhibitor of adenosine transport. 3. Intraterminal adenosine is rapidly metabolised to a number of products including AMP, ADP and ATP. 4. Isolated nerve terminals contain considerable 5'-nucleotidase activity, most of which resides on the outer face of the external membrane. The Km of the enzyme is congruent to 5 micron and it is inhibited by a phosphonate analogue of ADP, alpha-beta-methylene-ADP. It is suggested that this 5'-nucleotidase plays an important role in the production of adenosine from a nucleotide pool in the synaptic cleft.     

Adenosine and deoxyadenosine induces apoptosis in oestrogen receptor-positive and -negative human breast cancer cells via the intrinsic pathway

In this study we have examined the cytotoxic effects of different concentrations of adenosine (Ado) and deoxyadenosine (dAdo) on human breast cancer cell lines. Ado and dAdo alone had little effect on cell cytotoxicity. However, in the presence of adenosine deaminase (ADA) inhibitor, EHNA, adenosine and deoxyadenosine led to significant growth inhibition of cells of the lines tested. Ado/EHNA and dAdo/EHNA-induced cell death was significantly inhibited by NBTI, an inhibitor of nucleoside transport, and 5'-amino-5'-deoxyadenosine, an inhibitor of adenosine kinase, but the effects were not affected by 8-phenyltheophylline, a broad inhibitor of adenosine receptors. The Ado/EHNA combination brought about morphological changes consistent with apoptosis. Caspase-9 activation was observed in MCF-7 and MDA-MB468 human breast cancer cell lines on treatment with Ado/EHNA or dAdo/EHNA, but, as expected, caspase-3 activation was only observed in MDA-MB468 cells. The results of the study, thus, suggest that extracellular adenosine and deoxyadenosine induce apoptosis in both oestrogen receptor-positive (MCF-7) and also oestrogen receptor-negative (MDA-MB468) human breast cancer cells by its uptake into the cells and conversion to AMP (dAMP) followed by activation of nucleoside kinase, and finally by the activation of the mitochondrial/intrinsic apoptotic pathway.     

Adenosine deaminase from bovine brain: purification and partial characterization.

Bovine brain adenosine deaminase cytoplasmatic form was purified about 450 fold by salt fractionation, column chromatography on DEAE-cellulose, octyl-sepharose 4B and affinity chromatography on CH-sepharose 4B 9-(p-aminobenzyl)adenine. The purified enzyme was homogeneous on disc gel electrophoresis; the enzyme had a molecular mass of about 65 kDa with an isoelectric point at pH 4.87. The Km values for adenosine and 2'-deoxyadenosine were 4 x 10(-5) and 5.2 x 10(-5) M, respectively. The enzyme showed a great stability to temperature with a half life of 15 hours at 53 degrees C significantly different compared to that known for other mammalian forms of this enzyme. Aza and deaza analogs of adenosine and erythro-9-(2-hydroxy-3-nonyl) adenine were good inhibitors of the bovine brain enzyme with little difference with respect to those reported for the adenosine deaminases purified from other sources. Kinetic constants for the association and dissociation of coformycin and 2'-deoxycoformycin with the bovine brain adenosine deaminase are reported.     

Nucleoside uptake by red blood cells from a primitive vertebrate, the Pacific hagfish (Eptatretus stouti), is mediated by a nitrobenzylthioinosine-insensitive transport system

Red blood cells from the Pacific hagfish (Eptatretus stouti) were found to possess a facilitated diffusion nucleoside transport system insensitive to inhibition by the nucleoside transport inhibitor nitrobenzylthioinosine (NBMPR). Uridine uptake by this route was saturable (apparent Km 0.14 mM; Vmax 2 mmol/l cells per h at 10 degrees C), inhibited by inosine and adenosine, and blocked both by the vasodilator dipyridamole and by the thiol-reactive agent p-chloromercuriphenylsulphonate. The properties of this carrier resemble closely those of NBMPR-insensitive nucleoside transport systems in some mammalian neoplastic cell lines and in rat red cells. The presence of this type of carrier in a primitive vertebrate suggests that such transporters have a broad biological distribution and that they pre-date or arose at an early stage of vertebrate evolution.     

Reassessment of the translocation hypothesis by kinetic studies on hexose transport in isolated rat adipocytes

The effect of insulin and factors which have insulin-like activity on the kinetic parameters of 3-O-methyl-D-glucose (MeGlc) transport in rat adipocytes were assessed. Carrier-mediated uptake of MeGlc was estimated by the difference in the amounts of [14C]MeGlc and L-[3H]glucose taken up in cells under equilibrium exchange conditions at 37 degrees C. The Km and Vmax values in basal cells were 17.4 mM and 0.24 nmol/10(6) cells/s, respectively. Removal of endogenous adenosine by adenosine deaminase resulted in a 26% decrease in the basal rate due to a slight increase in the Km (19.6 mM) and a decrease in the Vmax value (0.20 nmol/10(6) cells/s). The maximum concentration (10 nM) of insulin decreased the Km to approximately one-half of the basal (7.1 mM) concomitant with an 8.5-fold increase in the Vmax value (2.04 nmol/10(6) cells/s). Submaximal concentrations (50 and 150 pM) of insulin, N6-phenylisopropyladenosine (1 microM), mechanical agitation of cells by centrifugal force (160 x g), low temperature (15 degrees C), 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (1 microM), and hydrogen peroxide (10 mM) all decreased the basal Km value to a range of 13.5-7.3 mM, concomitant with a 1.7-7.4-fold increase in the Vmax. A possible explanation for the alterations in the kinetic parameters may be that insulin and other factors cause the translocation of the mobile low-Km glucose transporters from an intracellular site to the cell surface, where the stationary high-Km transporters are located. Thus, when the Km and Vmax values of the hypothetical high-Km transporters were assumed to be 20 mM and 0.20 nmol/10(6) cells/s, respectively, and the Km of the low-Km transporters was assumed to be 7 mM, the theoretical Km decreased from 20 to 7.5 mM as the Vmax of the low-Km transporters increased from near 0 to 2.0 nmol/10(6) cells/s. The relation between empirical Km and Vmax values as affected by several agents and conditions followed closely the relation predicted by the above two-transporter model.     

Detection and characterization of a nucleoside transport system in human fibroblast lysosomes

Lysosomes contain enzymatic activities capable of degrading nucleic acids to their constituent nucleosides, but the manner by which these degradation products are released from the lysosome is unknown. To investigate this process, human fibroblast lysosomes, purified on Percoll density gradients, were incubated with [3H]adenosine at pH 7.0, and the amount of adenosine taken up by the lysosomes was measured. Adenosine uptake by fibroblast lysosomes attained a steady state by 12 min at 37 degrees C and was unaffected by the presence of 2 mM MgATP or changes in pH from 5.0 to 8.0. An Arrhenius plot was linear with an activation energy of 12.9 kcal/mol and a Q10 of 2.0. Lysosomal adenosine uptake is saturable, displaying a Km of 9 mM at pH 7.0 and 37 degrees C. Various nucleosides and the nucleobase, 6-dimethylaminopurine, strongly inhibit lysosomal adenosine uptake, whereas neither D-ribose or nucleotide monophosphates have any significant effect upon lysosomal adenosine uptake. On a molar basis, purines are recognized more strongly than pyrimidines. Changing the nature of the nucleoside sugar from ribose to arabinose or deoxyribose has little effect on reactivity with this transport system. The known plasma membrane nucleoside transport inhibitors, dipyridamole and nitrobenzylthioinosine, inhibit lysosomal nucleoside transport at relatively low concentrations (25 microM) relative to the Km of 9 mM for lysosomal adenosine uptake. The half-times of [3H]inosine and [3H]uridine efflux from fibroblast lysosomes ranged from 6 to 8 min at 37 degrees C. Trans effects were not observed to be associated with either inosine or uridine exodus. In contrast to adenosine uptake, adenine primarily enters fibroblast lysosomes by a route not saturable by high concentrations of various nucleosides. In conclusion, the saturability of lysosomal adenosine uptake and its specific, competitive inhibition by other nucleosides indicate the existence of a carrier-mediated transport system for nucleosides within fibroblast lysosomal membranes.     

Adipose differentiation related protein (ADRP) expressed in transfected COS-7 cells selectively stimulates long chain fatty acid uptake.

Adipose differentiation related protein (ADRP) is a 50-kDa novel protein cloned from a mouse 1246 adipocyte cDNA library, rapidly induced during adipocyte differentiation. We have examined ADRP function, and we show here that ADRP facilitates fatty acid uptake in COS cells transfected with ADRP cDNA. We demonstrate that uptake of long chain fatty acids was significantly stimulated in a time-dependent fashion in ADRP-expressing COS-7 cells compared with empty vector-transfected control cells. Oleic acid uptake velocity increased significantly in a dose-dependent manner in ADRP-expressing COS-7 cells compared with control cells. The transport Km was 0.051 microM, and Vmax was 57.97 pmol/10(5) cells/min in ADRP-expressing cells, and Km was 0.093 microM and Vmax was 20.13 pmol/10(5) cells/min in control cells. The oleate uptake measured at 4 degrees C was only 10% that at 37 degrees C. ADRP also stimulated uptake of palmitate and arachidonate but had no effect on uptake of medium chain fatty acid such as octanoic acid and glucose. These data suggest that ADRP specifically enhances uptake of long chain fatty acids by increasing the initial rate of uptake and provide novel information about ADRP function as a saturable transport component for long chain fatty acids.