Fibrillar islet amyloid polypeptide (amylin) is internalised by macrophages but resists proteolytic degradation

Pancreatic islet amyloid, formed from islet amyloid polypeptide, is found in 96% of Type II (non-insulin-dependent) diabetic patients. Islet amyloidosis is progressive and apparently irreversible. Fibrils immunoreactive for islet amyloid polypeptide are found in macrophages associated with amyloid, suggesting that deposits can be phagocytosed. To determine the mechanism for the recognition and internalisation of fibrils, mouse peritoneal macrophages were cultured with fibrillar synthetic human islet amyloid polypeptide. Fibrils did not exert a cytotoxic effect over 72 h of culture. The uptake and degradation of fibrils was analysed by quantitative light-and electron-microscopic immunocytochemistry and immunoreactivity was detectable in 86±3% cells within 6 h of culture. Neither polyinosinic acid (200 µg/ml) nor nocodazole (10 µg/ml) inhibited fibril uptake, suggesting that internalisation is not blocked by poly-ions and is independent of microtubule assembly. Inhibition of pseudopodia formation by cytochalasin B blocked fibriI uptake. Fibril aggregates became condensed in lysosomes to form protofilaments and were resistant to intracellular proteolysis. Fibrils can be phagocytosed by macrophages in vitro but amyloid-associated factors may block the recognition of fibrils in vivo preventing the removal of islet amyloid in diabetes.     

Membrane leakage of solutes after thermal shock or freezing

Washed human erythrocytes were cooled at different rates from +37 °C to 0 °C in hypertonic solutions of either NaCl (1.2 m) or of a mixture of sucrose (40% $\text{w}\text{v}$) with NaCl (2.53% $\text{w}\text{v}$). Thermal shock hemolysis was measured and the surviving cells were examined for their mass and cell water content and also for net movements of sodium, potassium, and ¹⁴C-sucrose. The results were compared with those obtained from cells in sucrose (40% $\text{w}\text{v}$) initially, cooled at different rates to ?196 °C and rapidly thawed.The cells cooled to 0 °C in NaCl (1.2 m) showed maximal hemolysis at the fastest cooling rate studied (39 °C/min). In addition in the surviving cells this cooling rate induced the greatest uptake of ¹⁴C-sucrose and increase in cell water and cell mass and also entry of sodium and loss of cell potassium. A different dependence on cooling rate was seen with the cells cooled from +37 °C to 0 °C in sucrose (40% $\text{w}\text{v}$) with NaCl (2.53% $\text{w}\text{v}$). In this solution, survival decreased both at slow and fast cooling rates correlating with the greatest uptake of cell sucrose and increase in cell water. There was extensive loss of cell potassium and uptake of sodium at all cooling rates, the cation concentrations across the cell membrane approaching unity.The cells frozen to ?196 °C at different cooling rates in sucrose (40% $\text{w}\text{v}$) initially, also showed sucrose and water entry on thawing together with a loss of cell potassium and an uptake of cell sodium. More sucrose entered the cells cooled slowly (1.8 ° C/min) than those cooled rapidly (318 ° C/min).These results show that cooling to 0 °C in hypertonic solutions (thermal shock) and freezing to ?196 °C both induce membrane leaks to sucrose as well as to sodium and potassium. These leaks are not induced by the hypertonic solutions themselves but are due to the effects of the added stress of the temperature reduction on the membranes modified by the hypertonic solutions. The effects of cooling rate are explicable in terms of the different times of exposure to the hypertonic solutions. These results indicate that the damage observed after thermal shock or slow freezing is of a similar nature.