Differentiation of rapid and slower-acting effects of insulin on mitochondrial processes in brown adipose tissue from streptozotocin-diabetic rats.

Insulin treatment of streptozotocin-diabetic rats restores the depressed palmitoyl-group oxidation observed in brown-adipose-tissue mitochondria from diabetic rats. A relatively rapid effect of insulin (5 h) to increase carnitine-dependent oxidation of palmitoyl-CoA and to increase overt carnitine palmitoyltransferase activity is differentiated from a slower effect of the hormone (1 day) to increase palmitoylcarnitine oxidation.     

Regulation by noradrenaline of the mitochondrial and microsomal forms of glycerol phosphate acyltransferase in rat adipocytes.

Incubation of rat adipocytes with 1 microM-noradrenaline caused a decrease in both the N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive (microsomal) and N-ethylmaleimide-insensitive (mitochondrial) glycerol phosphate acyltransferase activities measured in homogenates from freeze-stopped cells. The effects of noradrenaline on glycerol phosphate acyltransferase activity were apparent over a wide range of concentrations of glycerol phosphate and palmitoyl-CoA. The effect of noradrenaline was reversed within cells by the subsequent addition of insulin or propranolol. Inclusion of albumin in homogenization buffers abolished the effect of noradrenaline on the N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive activity. The effect of noradrenaline on the N-ethylmaleimide-insensitive (mitochondrial) activity was, however, not abolished by inclusion of albumin in buffers for preparation of homogenates from freeze-stopped cells. Inclusion of fluoride in homogenization buffers did not alter the observed effect of noradrenaline. The inactivating effect of noradrenaline persisted through the subcellular fractionation procedures used to isolate adipocyte microsomes (microsomal fractions). The effect of noradrenaline on mitochondrial glycerol phosphate acyltransferase did not persist through subcellular fractionation. Noradrenaline treatment of cells significantly decreased the Vmax. of glycerol phosphate acyltransferase in isolated microsomes without changing the activity of NADPH-cytochrome c reductase. Glycerol phosphate acyltransferase activity in microsomes from noradrenaline-treated cells is unstable, being rapidly lost on incubation at 30 degrees C. Bivalent metal ions (Mg2+, Ca2+) or post-microsomal supernatant protected against this inactivation. Glycerol phosphate acyltransferase activity in microsomes from noradrenaline-treated cells could not be re-activated by incubation with either alkaline phosphatase or phosphoprotein phosphatase-1. Addition of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunits to adipocyte microsomes incubated with [gamma-32P]ATP considerably increased the incorporation of 32P into microsomal protein, but did not cause inactivation of glycerol phosphate acyltransferase. These findings provide no support for the proposal that inactivation of adipocyte microsomal glycerol phosphate acyltransferase by noradrenaline is through a phosphorylation type of covalent modification.     

Effect of compound D-600 (methoxyverapamil) on gluconeogenesis and on acceleration of the process by alpha-adrenergic stimuli in rat kidney tubules.

1. Tubule fragments were isolated from renal cortex of fed rats and glucose formation was measured after incubation with 5 mM-sodium lactate. 20 Compound D-600 (10-100 microM) decreased gluconeogenesis from lactate. This inhibition of the process by compound D-600 increased with increasing extracellular Ca2+ concentration, was overridden by noradrenaline and diminished by starvation for 24 h. 3. Inhibition of lactate-supported gluconeogenesis by compound D-600 was not prevented by the alpha 1-adrenoceptor antagonist thymoxamine. 4. Compound D-600 had little effect on gluconeogenesis from 2-oxoglutarate and increased gluconeogenesis from succinate. 5. Compound D-600 opposed stimulation of gluconeogenesis by noradrenaline or oxymetazoline (a selective alpha-adrenoceptor agonist) in a manner suggesting that compound D-600 is an alpha-adrenoceptor blocker. Oxymetazoline was more sensitive than noradrenaline to blockade by both compound D-600 and by the conventional alpha-adrenoceptor antagonist phentolamine. Noradrenaline became more sensitive to blockade by compound D-600 when extracellular Ca2+ was decreased. 6. Compound D-600 did not block stimulation of gluconeogenesis by angiotensin or cyclic AMP.     

Intertissue differences in the hysteretic behaviour of carnitine palmitoyltransferase in the presence of malonyl-CoA.

In the presence of malonyl-CoA, the overt form of carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT1) in mitochondria from rat liver, kidney cortex, heart, skeletal muscle and brown adipose tissue shows non-linear time courses, suggesting hysteretic behaviour. The pattern of this hysteresis is similar in heart, skeletal muscle and brown adipose tissue, but the hysteretic behaviour of the enzyme in these three tissues differs markedly from that seen in liver and kidney.     

Subcellular distribution and some properties of N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive and-insensitive forms of glycerol phosphate acyltransferase in rat adipocytes.

1. Glycerol phosphate acyltransferase (GPAT) activities were measured in subcellular fractions obtained from rat epididymal adipocytes. These contained both N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive and N-ethylmaleimide-insensitive forms of the enzyme. 2. As shown by parallel measurements of marker enzymes, N-ethylmaleimide-insensitive GPAT is most probably a mitochondrial activity, whereas N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive GPAT is the microsomal enzyme. 3. Subcellular distributions are also reported for dihydroxyacetone phosphate acyltransferase (DHAPAT) (assayed with and without N-ethylmaleimide), monoacylglycerol phosphate acyltransferase (MGPAT) and Mg2+-dependent and Mg2+-independent forms of phosphatidate phosphohydrolase (PPH).     

Evidence that catecholamines stimulate renal gluconeogenesis through an alpha 1-type of adrenoceptor.

1. Noradrenaline stimulates gluconeogenesis through an alpha-adrenoceptor in renal cortical tubule fragments from fed rats incubated with 5 mM-lactate. 2. The selective alpha 1-adrenoreceptor agonist methoxamine stimulated gluconeogenesis, but the selective alpha 2-adrenoceptor agonist clonidine was ineffective. 3. The selective alpha 1-adrenoceptor antagonist thymoxamine blocked the stimulatory effects on gluconeogenesis of noradrenaline and of oxymetazoline (a synthetic alpha-agonist). The selective alpha 2-adrenoceptor antagonist yohimbine was ineffective in this respect. 4. It is concluded that noradrenaline and oxymetazoline stimulate gluconeogenesis in rat kidney via an alpha 1-rather than an alpha 2-type of adrenoceptor.     

Altered lipolytic response to glucagon and adenosine deaminase in adipocytes from starved rats.

1. Adipocytes isolated from epididymal adipose tissue of fed or 24 h-starved rats were incubated with a range of glucagon concentrations in the presence and absence of adenosine deaminase (4 munits/ml). 2. With adenosine deaminase present, the lipolytic response to low concentrations of glucagon (1-6 ng/ml) was considerably enhanced in cells from starved rats. 3. The effect of adenosine deaminase on basal lipolysis was altered after starvation. 4. D-3-Hydroxybutyrate (5 mM) decreased the sensitivity of lipolysis to glucagon. 5. The possible involvement of glucagon-stimulated lipolysis in the regulation of ketogenesis is briefly discussed.     

Use of mitochondrial inner membrane proteins and phospholipids to facilitate disengagement of the catalytic and malonyl-CoA binding components of carnitine palmitoyltransferase from liver mitochondrial outer membranes.

1. It was shown by Ghadiminejad and Saggerson (1991) that the anionic detergent cholate caused disengagement of the malonyl-CoA binding entity from the catalytic entity of outer membrane carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT1). 2. This disengagement was only observed if inner membrane material was present. 3. It is now shown that this effect is mimicked by a CPT-free inner membrane protein fraction together with an inner membrane lipid extract or with individual phospholipids (phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine or diphosphatidylglycerol). 4. The lipids alone have no effect but act synergistically with the inner membrane protein fraction.     

The regulation of glyceride synthesis in isolated white-fat cells. The effects of acetate, pyruvate, lactate, palmitate, electron-acceptors, uncoupling agents and oligomycin

1. The incorporation of 5mm-[U-(14)C]glucose into glyceride fatty acids by fat cells from normal rats incubated in the presence of 20munits of insulin/ml was increased by acetate, pyruvate, palmitate, NNN'N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine, phenazine methosulphate, dinitrophenol, tetrachlorotrifluoromethyl benzimidazole and oligomycin. Lactate did not stimulate glucose incorporation into fatty acids. The effects of these agents were concentration-dependent. 2. In the presence of 5mm-glucose+insulin, [U-(14)C]acetate, [U-(14)C]pyruvate and [U-(14)C]lactate were incorporated into fatty acids in a concentration-dependent manner, thereby further increasing the total rate of fatty acid synthesis. 3. NNN'N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine decreased the incorporation of [U-(14)C]pyruvate into fatty acids in normal cells and increased the incorporation of [U-(14)C]lactate into fatty acids. 4. In fact cells from 72h-starved rats the stimulatory effects of NNN'N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine upon glucose and lactate incorporation into fatty acids were totally and partially abolished respectively whereas the stimulatory effects of acetate upon glucose incorporation were retained. 5. Combinations of the optimum concentrations of the substances that stimulate glucose incorporation into fatty acids were tested and compared. The effects of acetate+NNN'N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine and acetate+palmitate upon normal cells were additive. The effects of NNN'N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine+palmitate were not additive. It was found that total fatty acid synthesis in the presence of glucose was most effectively increased by raising the concentration of pyruvate in the incubation system. 6. The significance of these results in supporting the proposal that fatty acid synthesis from glucose in adipose tissue is a ;self-limiting process' is discussed.