The metabolism of glucose 1-phosphate and glucose 6-phosphate and their influence on the metabolism of glucose in rat-diaphragm muscle

Influence of some mononucleotides and their corresponding nucleosides on the metabolism of carbohydrates in the isolated rat diaphragm muscle

1. The influence of ATP on glucose metabolism was studied in the isolated rat diaphragm; it was shown that ATP increases the oxidation of glucose and the aerobic conversion of glucose into lactate, whereas it decreases glycogen synthesis. There was no influence of ATP on the anaerobic formation of lactate from glucose. 2. A maximum effect of ATP on the oxidation of glucose (about 160% increase) was obtained in the presence of 10mm-ATP; in the presence of 2mm-ATP the effect was about 65%, and was approximately constant from 10 to 90min. incubation period. 3. In a phosphate-free tris-buffered medium the oxidation of glucose was considerably decreased, but the percentage stimulation by ATP was about the same as in a phosphate-buffered medium. 4. ATP was shown to increase the oxidation of fructose, glucose 6-phosphate, glucose 1-phosphate, fructose 1,6-diphosphate and, to a much smaller extent, pyruvate. 5. ADP stimulated the oxidation of glucose to the same extent as ATP at a concentration of 2mm and the effect with AMP was only slightly less; IMP and adenosine had only a small stimulatory effect at this concentration, whereas inosine had no effect.

EVIDENCE FOR EXTRACELLULAR ENZYMIC ACTIVITY OF THE ISOLATED PERFUSED RAT HEART

1. The dissimilation of a number of externally added hexose phosphates and 5'-nucleotides by the perfused rat heart is described, and non-specific esterase and 5'-nucleotidase activity associated with the superficial cell membrane or vascular system has been demonstrated. 2. The rate of production of (14)CO(2) from [U-(14)C]glucose 6-phosphate suggests that oxidation occurred after hydrolysis to glucose. The incorporation of isotope from [U-(14)C]glucose 6-phosphate into glycogen was small, and similar to that obtained with [U-(14)C]glucose as substrate. 3. Glucose 6-phosphate was also partially isomerized to fructose 6-phosphate. Similarly, fructose 6-phosphate was converted mainly into glucose 6-phosphate, but also into glucose and inorganic phosphate. When fructose 1,6-diphosphate was added to the perfusate, a mixture of glucose 6-phosphate, fructose 6-phosphate and triose phosphates accumulated in the medium approximately in the equilibrium proportions of the phosphohexose-isomerase and triose phosphate-isomerase reactions, together with inorganic phosphate and some glucose. Glucose 1-phosphate was hydrolysed to glucose, but was not converted into glucose 6-phosphate. Leakage of enzymes out into the perfusion fluid did not occur. 4. This demonstration that phosphohexose isomerase, triose phosphate isomerase and aldolase may react with extracellular substrates at an appreciable rate suggests that these enzymes are attached to the cell membrane.

Effects of insulin on the pattern of glucose metabolism in the perfused working and Langendorff heart of normal and insulin-deficient rats

1. The metabolic pattern of [U-(14)C]glucose in the isolated rat heart has been studied, with both retrograde aortic (Langendorff) and atrially (working) perfused preparations in the presence and absence of insulin, in normal animals, animals rendered insulin-deficient (by injection of anti-insulin serum 1hr. before excision of the heart) and animals rendered diabetic by streptozotocin injection 7 days before use. 2. Radioautochromatograms of heart extracts show that the pattern of glucose metabolism in heart muscle is more complex than in diaphragm muscle. In addition to (14)CO(2), glycogen, oligosaccharides, phosphorylated sugars and lactate (the main metabolites formed from [(14)C]glucose in diaphragm muscle), (14)C label from [(14)C]glucose appears in heart muscle in glutamate, glutamine, aspartate and alanine, and in tricarboxylic acid-cycle intermediates. 3. By a quantitative scanning technique of two-dimensional chromatograms it was found that a mechanical work load stimulates glucose metabolism, increasing by a factor of 2-3 incorporation of (14)C into all the metabolites mentioned above except lactate and phosphorylated sugars, into which (14)C incorporation is in fact diminished; (14)CO(2) production is equally stimulated. 4. Addition of insulin to the perfusion fluid of the working heart causes increases in (14)C incorporation, by a factor of about 1.5 into (14)CO(2), by a factor of about 3-5 into glycogen, lactate and phosphorylated sugars, by a factor of about 2-3 into glutamate and tricarboxylic acid-cycle intermediates and by a factor of about 0.5 into aspartate, whereas incorporation into alanine and glutamine is not affected. The effect of a work load on the pattern of glucose metabolism is thus different from that of insulin. 5. Increasing the concentration of glucose in the perfusion fluid from 1 to 20mm leads to changes of the pattern of glucose metabolism different from that brought about by insulin. (14)CO(2) production steadily increases whereas [(14)C]lactate and glycogen production levels off at 10mm-glucose, at values well below those reached in the presence of insulin. 6. In Langendorff hearts of animals rendered insulin-deficient by anti-insulin serum or streptozotocin, glucose uptake, formation of (14)CO(2) and [(14)C]lactate, and (14)C incorporation into glycogen and oligosaccharides are decreased. In insulin-deficient working hearts, however, glucose uptake and (14)CO(2) production are normal, whereas incorporation of (14)C into glycogen and [(14)C]lactate production are greatly decreased. 7. Insulin added to the perfusion fluid restores (14)C incorporation from glucose into (14)CO(2), glycogen and lactate in the Langendorff heart from animals rendered insulin-deficient by anti-insulin serum; in hearts from streptozotocin-diabetic animals addition of insulin restores (14)C incorporation into glycogen and lactate, but (14)CO(2) production remains about 50% below normal. 8. The bearing of these results on the problem of the mode of action of insulin is discussed.

Pathways of glycogen synthesis in Novikoff ascites-hepatoma cells

Affinity of glucose, fructose and mannose for tumour hexokinase and their rates of phosphorylation at saturation concentration have been correlated with rates of glycogen synthesis by intact tumour cells at different concentrations of the three substrates. Competition experiments with one sugar labelled and the other sugar unlabelled indicate inhibition of glycogen synthesis by the sugar with a low K(m) for hexokinase. Glycogen synthesis from glucose 1-phosphate in aged cells and from nucleoside in freshly prepared cells is stimulated by fructose and inhibited by glucose. The decrease in glycogen formation from glucose 1-phosphate by oligomycin is partially overcome by increased fructose concentrations. These results are explained by an activation of alpha-glucan phosphorylase by fructose and an inhibition of this enzyme by glucose. It is suggested that differences in localization of glucose 6-phosphate, available to the intact cell in various ways, determine its transformation into glycogen by either the UDP-glucose-alpha-glucan glucosyltransferase reaction or by the alpha-glucan phosphorylase reaction.

Studies on glycogen synthesis in pigeon liver homogenates. Glycogen synthesis from glucose monophosphates and uridine diphosphate glucose

Comparative time-course studies of glycogen synthesis from glucose 6-phosphate, glucose 1-phosphate and UDP-glucose show that glucose 1-phosphate forms glycogen at an initial rate faster than that obtained with glucose 6-phosphate and UDP-glucose. After 5min. the rates from glucose monophosphates are considerably slower. 2,4-Dinitrophenol decreases glycogen synthesis from both glucose monophosphates, whereas arsenate and EDTA increase glycogen synthesis from glucose 1-phosphate and inhibit the reaction from glucose 6-phosphate, galactose and galactose 1-phosphate. Mitochondria-free pigeon liver cytoplasmic fraction forms less glycogen from glucose monophosphates than does the whole homogenate. 2-Deoxyglucose 6-phosphate inhibits glycogen synthesis from glucose monophosphates. Glycogen formation from UDP-glucose is relatively unaffected by dinitrophenol, by arsenate, by EDTA, by 2-deoxyglucose 6-phosphate and by the removal of mitochondria from the whole homogenate.