Substrate-induced modulation of ATP turnover in dog and rabbit proximal tubules

Summary In dog proximal tubules in suspension, the addition of glucose increased significantly the ouabain-sensitive fraction of respiration, a response suppressed by phlorizin. The addition of -methyl-d-glucoside (-MG) had a modest effect and 3-O-methyl-d-glucoside (3-O-MG) had no effect. The different stimulation of the Na⁺,K⁺-ATPase activity elicited for each hexose could be explained by a different increment of net transepithelial flux of sodium induced by the sodium: hexose cotransport. This flux is a direct function of the transport characteristics of both luminal and antiluminal membranes of proximal cells for these sugars: glucose is rapidly transported by both membranes (allowing a large transepithelial flux of glucose: sodium) while MG is poorly transported by the basolateral, and 3-O-MG by the luminal, membrane of the dog proximal tubule (allowing a small transepithelial flux of hexoses and sodium). However the overall tubular respiration of dog proximal tubules was not increased by glucose addition because the increment in the ouabain-sensitive fraction was accompanied by a reciprocal decrement in an ouabain-insensitive but oligomycin-or N,N dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCCD)-sensitive (or in the bafilomycin-sensitive) component of respiration. This component reflects the activity of a large BBM-bound H⁺-ATPase found in this species. The intracellular pH of dog proximal tubules in suspension was measured using the proton-sensitive fluorescent probe 2,7-bis-2-(carboxyethyl)-5, (and 6)-carboxyfluorescein. Glucose application significantly alkalinized the cells. In contrast, other substrates such as lactate or acetate simultaneously acidified the cells and increased the ouabain-insensitive phosphorylative respiration of dog tubules. These observations suggest that a modulation of the activities of both the sodium and most probably the proton pump is elicited by substrate availability in suspensions of proximal tubules.This work was presented in part at the 22^nd and the 23^rd annual meeting of the American Society of Nephrology in Washington in December 1989 and 1990. The authors are grateful to Dr. Andrew Baines and Dr. Alfred Berteloot for fruitful discussions. The technical assistance of Jacques Sénécal is acknowledged. This work was supported by the Medical Research Council of Canada (grant M-7875). J. Noël received a MRC studentship.