Identification of SNAP receptors in rat adipose cell membrane fractions and in SNARE complexes co-immunoprecipitated with epitope-tagged N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive fusion protein

The vesicle-associated membrane proteins [VAMPs; vesicle SNAP receptors (v-SNAREs)] present on GLUT4-enriched vesicles prepared from rat adipose cells [Cain, Trimble and Lienhard (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 11681-11684] have been identified as synaptobrevin 2 (VAMP 2) and cellubrevin (VAMP 3) by using isoform-specific antisera. Additional antisera identify syntaxins 2 and 4 as the predominant target membrane SNAP receptors (t-SNAREs) in the plasma membranes (PM), with syntaxin 3 at one-twentieth the level. Syntaxins 2 and 4 are enriched 5-10-fold in PM compared with low-density microsomes (LDM). Insulin treatment results in an 11-fold increase in immunodetectable GLUT4 in PM and smaller (approx. 2-fold) increases in VAMP 2 and VAMP 3, whereas the subcellular distributions of the syntaxins are not altered by insulin treatment. To determine which of the SNAP receptors (SNAREs) in PM might participate in SNARE complexes with proteins from GLUT4 vesicles, complexes were immunoprecipitated with anti-myc antibody from solubilized membranes after the addition of myc-epitope-tagged N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive fusion protein (NSF) and recombinant alpha-soluble NSF attachment protein (alpha-SNAP). These complexes contain VAMPs 2 and 3 and syntaxin 4, but not syntaxins 2 or 3. Complex formation requires ATP and is disrupted by ATP hydrolysis. When all membrane fractions are prepared from basal cells, few or no VAMPs and no syntaxin 4 are immunoprecipitated in SNARE complexes obtained from LDM alone (or from immunoisolated GLUT4 vesicles). The content of syntaxin 4 depends on the presence of PM, and participation of VAMPs 2 and 3 is enhanced 4-6-fold by the addition of solubilized GLUT4 vesicles to PM. The latter increase is greater than can be explained by the 2-fold higher levels of VAMPs added to the reaction mixture. When all membrane fractions are prepared from insulin-stimulated cells, SNARE complexes formed from PM alone contain similar levels of syntaxin 4 but 5-6-fold higher levels of VAMPs 2 and 3 compared with PM alone from basal cells. Addition of GLUT4 vesicle proteins to PM from insulin-treated cells results in a further 2-fold increase in VAMP 2 recovered in SNARE complexes. Therefore the VAMPs in PM of insulin-treated but not basal cells, and in GLUT4-vesicles from cells in either condition, are in a form that readily forms a SNARE complex with PM t-SNAREs and NSF. Insulin seems to activate PM and/or GLUT4 vesicles so as to increase the efficiency of SNARE complex formation.

Characterisation of glucose transport in the hyperthermophilic Archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus

Sulfolobus solfiataricus is a hyperthermophilic Archaeon growing at 80 degrees C, pH 3. The glucose transport system of this organism has been characterised kinetically at this temperature and pH using 2-deoxy-D-glucose: the sugar analogue is transported into the cells with a Km = 1.8 +/- 0.3 microM and a Vmax = 3.6 +/- 0.1 nmol min(-1) (mg protein)(-1), with an intracellular accumulation of up to 200-fold over the extracellular concentration. Transport was significantly reduced at pH 5. Inhibition of 2-deoxy-D-glucose transport was investigated using a variety of sugars and sugar analogues; D-glucose, D-galactose and D-mannose showed the highest affinity for the transporter, with D-glucose possessing a Ki = 120 +/- 20 nM.

Subcellular trafficking kinetics of GLU4 mutated at the N- and C-terminal

The glucose transporter isoform, GLUT4, has been expressed in Chinese hamster clones and its subcellular trafficking has been determined following labelling at the cell surface with the impermeant bis-mannose photolabel, 2-N-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl-1,3-bis(D-mannos -4-yloxy)-2-propylamine (ATM-BMPA). ATM-BMPA-tagged GLUT4 leaves the cell surface rapidly and equilibrates to give an internal/surface distribution ratio of approx. 3.5 after 60 min. GLUT4 in which the N-terminal phenylalanine-5 and glutamine-6 are mutated to alanine-N-(FQ-AA) and in which the C-terminal leucine-489 and -490 are mutated to alanine C-(LL-AA) have low internal/surface ratios of 0.64 and 1.24 respectively. If all cell-surface transporters are able to recycle, as would be the case for a two-pool recycling model with a single intracellular pool, then analysis suggests that the wild-type GLUT4 distribution ratio is dependent on endocytosis and exocytosis rate constants of 0.074 and 0.023 min(-1). These values are similar, but not identical, to those found for GLUT4 trafficking in adipocytes. The distribution of the N-(FQ-AA) transporter appears to be due to a decrease in endocytosis with reduced intracellular retention, while the distribution of the C-(LL_AA) transporter appears to be mainly due to poor intracellular retention. These results are also considered in terms of a consecutive intracellular pool model in which GLUT4 targeting domains alter the distribution between recycling endosomes and a slowly recycling compartment. In this case the more rapid apparent exocytosis of the mutated GLUT4 is due to their failure to reach a slowly recycling compartment with a consequent return to the plasma membrane by default. It is suggested that overexpression of transporters increases the proportion that are recycled in this way. Wortmannin is shown to decrease glucose transport activity and cell-surface photolabelled transporters in a manner consistent with an inhibition of transporter recycling. Studies on the rate of loss of transport activity and ATB-BMPA-tagged transporter in wortmannin-treated cells confirm that the N-(FQ-AA) mutant is endocytosed more slowly than the wild-type GLUT4. Taken together, these results suggest that the mutation at either the N- or the C-terminal domain can reduce movement to a slowly recycling intracellular compartment but that neither domain alone is entirely sufficient to produce wild-type GLUT4 trafficking behaviour.

Contraction-independent effects of catecholamines on glucose transport in isolated rat cardiomyocytes

The effects of catecholamines on glucose transport were studied in noncontracting isolated rat cardiomyocytes. alpha-Adrenergic treatment (phenylephrine, or norepinephrine + propranolol) led to an approximately fourfold stimulation of glucose transport in basal cells (no insulin). The effect of phenylephrine was suppressed by the alpha 2-antagonist yohimbine or the beta-antagonist propranolol. The beta-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol partially counteracted the action of phenylephrine (but not that of insulin). Phenylephrine increased glucose transport in two phases with apparent half times of 3.2 and 13.0 min, respectively. Correspondingly, different EC50 values were found after 10 and 45 min on phenylephrine addition (5.0 +/- 1.9 vs. 31.6 +/- 9.6 microM, respectively). Maximal stimulation by phenylephrine was at least partially additive to that of insulin and of other stimulators of glucose transport (e.g., H2O2, vanadate, lithium). Phenylephrine significantly increased the level of cell surface glucose carriers GLUT-1 (1.54-fold) and GLUT-4 (1.78-fold), as assessed by using the specific photolabel 2-N-[4-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl]- 1,3-bis(D-mannos-4-yloxy)propyl-2-amine. In conclusion, catecholamines stimulate cardiomyocyte glucose transport through alpha 1-adrenergic receptors independently or downstream of a contraction-evoked stimulus. This effect is at least partially explained by a recruitment of glucose transporters to the cell surface. The mechanism(s) and/or signals involved differ from those triggered by insulin and insulinomimetic agents.

Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase acts at an intracellular membrane site to enhance GLUT4 exocytosis in 3T3-L1 cells

Glucose transporters (GLUTs) are continuously recycled in 3T3-L1 cells and so insulin, through its action on phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase), could potentially alter the distribution of these transporters by enhancing retention in the plasma membrane or acting intracellularly to increase exocytosis, either by stimulating a budding or a docking and fusion process. To examine the site of involvement of PI 3-kinase in the glucose transporter recycling pathway, we have determined the kinetics of recycling under conditions in which the PI 3-kinase activity is inhibited by wortmannin. Wortmannin addition to fully insulin-stimulated cells induces a net reduction of glucose transport activity with a time course that is consistent with a major effect on the return of internalized transporters to the plasma membrane. The exocytosis of GLUT1 and GLUT4 is reduced to very low levels in wortmannin-treated cells (approximately 0.009 min-1), but the endocytosis of these isoforms is not markedly perturbed and the rate constants are approx. 10-fold higher than for exocytosis (0.099 and 0.165 min-1, respectively). The slow reduction in basal activity following treatment with wortmannin is consistent with a wortmannin effect on constitutive recycling as well as insulin-regulated exocytosis. PI 3-kinase activity that is precipitated by anti-phosphotyrosine, anti(-)[insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1)] and anti-alpha-p85 antibodies show the same level of insulin-stimulated activity, approximately 0.5 pmol/20 min per dish of 3T3-L1 cells. Since the activities precipitated by all three antibodies are similar, it seems unlikely that a second insulin receptor substrate, IRS2, contributes significantly to the insulin signalling observed in 3T3-L1 cells. To examine whether insulin targets PI 3-kinase to intracellular membranes we have carried out subcellular fractionation studies. These suggest that nearly all the insulin-stimulated PI 3-kinase activity is located on intracellular, low-density, membranes. In addition, the association of PI 3-kinase with IRS1 appears to partially deplete the cytoplasm of alpha-p85-precipitatable activity, suggesting that IRS1 may redistribute PI 3-kinase from the cytoplasm to the low-density microsome membranes. Taken together, the trafficking kinetic and PI 3-kinase distribution studies suggest an intracellular membrane site of action of the enzyme in enhancing glucose transporter exocytosis.

Analysis of the structural features of the C-terminus of GLUT1 that are required for transport catalytic activity

C-terminally truncated and mutated forms of GLUT1 have been constructed to determine the minimum structure at the C-terminus required for glucose transport activity and ligand binding at the outer and inner binding sites. Four truncated mutants have been constructed (CTD24 to CTD27) in which 24 to 27 amino acids are deleted. In addition, point substitutions of R468-->L, F467-->L and G466-->E have been produced. Chinese hamster ovary clones which were transfected with these mutant GLUT1s were shown, by Western blotting and cell-surface carbohydrate labelling, to have expression levels which were comparable with the wild-type clone. Wild-type levels of 2-deoxy-D-glucose transport activity were retained only in the clone transfected with the construct in which 24 amino acids were deleted (CTD24). The CTD25, CTD26 and CTD27 clones showed markedly reduced transport activity. From a kinetic comparison of the CTD24 and CTD26 clones it was found that the reduced transport was mainly associated with a reduced Vmax. value for 2-deoxy-D-glucose uptake but with a slight lowering of the Km. These data establish that the 24 amino acids at the C-terminus of GLUT1 are not required for the transport catalysis. However, the point mutations of F467L and G466E (26 and 27 residues from the C-terminus) did not significantly perturb the kinetics of 2-deoxy-D-glucose transport. The substitution of R468L produced a slight, but significant, lowering of the Km. The ability of the truncated GLUt1s to bind the exofacial ligand, 2-N-4-(1-zai-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl-1,3-bis-(D-mannos- 4-yl-oxy) -2-propylamine (ATB-BMPA), and the endofacial ligand, cytochalasin B, were assessed by photolabelling procedures. The ability to bind ATB-BMPA was retained only in the CTD24 truncated mutant and was reduced to levels comparable with those of the non-transfected clone in the other mutant clones. Cytochalasin B labelling was unimpaired in all four mutated GLUT1s. These data establish that a minimum structure at the C-terminus of GLUT1, which is required for the conformational change to expose the exofacial site, includes amino acids at positions Phe-467 and Arg-468; however, these amino acids are not individually essential.

Repeat treatment of obese mice with BRL 49653, a new potent insulin sensitizer, enhances insulin action in white adipocytes. Association with increased insulin binding and cell-surface GLUT4 as measured by photoaffinity labeling

(+/-)-5-([4-[2-Methyl-2(pyridylamino)ethoxy]phenyl]methyl) 2,4-thiazolidinedione (BRL 49653) is a new potent antidiabetic agent that improves insulin sensitivity in animal models of NIDDM. In C57BL/6 obese (ob/ob) mice, BRL 49653, included in the diet for 8 days, improved glucose tolerance. The half-maximal effective dose was 3 mumol/kg diet, which is equivalent to approximately 0.1 mg/kg body wt. Improvements in glucose tolerance were accompanied by significant reductions in circulating triacylglycerol, nonesterified fatty acids, and insulin. The insulin receptor number of epididymal white adipocytes prepared from obese mice treated with BRL 49653 (30 mumol/kg diet) for 14 days was increased twofold. The affinity of the receptor for insulin was unchanged. In the absence of added insulin, the rates of glucose transport in adipocytes from untreated and BRL 49653-treated obese mice were similar. Insulin (73 nmol/l) produced only a 1.5-fold increase in glucose transport in adipocytes from control obese mice, whereas after BRL 49653 treatment, insulin stimulated glucose transport 2.8-fold. BRL 49653 did not alter the sensitivity of glucose transport to insulin. The increase in insulin responsiveness was accompanied by a 2.5-fold increase in the total tissue content of the glucose transporter GLUT4. Glucose transport in adipocytes from lean littermates was not altered by BRL 49653. To establish the contribution of changes in glucose transporter trafficking to the BRL 49653-mediated increase in insulin action, the cell-impermeant bis-mannose photolabel 2-N-[4-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl]-1,3-bis-(D-mannos++ +-4-yloxy) -2-[2-3H]-propylamine was used to measure adipocyte cell-surface-associated glucose transporters.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Contraction stimulates translocation of glucose transporter GLUT4 in skeletal muscle through a mechanism distinct from that of insulin

The acute effects of contraction and insulin on the glucose transport and GLUT4 glucose transporter translocation were investigated in rat soleus muscles by using a 3-O-methylglucose transport assay and the sensitive exofacial labeling technique with the impermeant photoaffinity reagent 2-N-4-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl-1,3-bis(D-mannose-4-y loxy)-2- propylamine (ATB-BMPA), respectively. Addition of wortmannin, which inhibits phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, reduced insulin-stimulated glucose transport (8.8 +/- 0.5 mumol per ml per h vs. 1.4 +/- 0.1 mumol per ml per h) and GLUT4 translocation [2.79 +/- 0.20 pmol/g (wet muscle weight) vs. 0.49 +/- 0.05 pmol/g (wet muscle weight)]. In contrast, even at a high concentration (1 microM), wortmannin had no effect on contraction-mediated glucose uptake (4.4 +/- 0.1 mumol per ml per h vs. 4.1 +/- 0.2 mumol per ml per h) and GLUT4 cell surface content [1.75 +/- 0.16 pmol/g (wet muscle weight) vs. 1.52 +/- 0.16 pmol/g (wet muscle weight)]. Contraction-mediated translocation of the GLUT4 transporters to the cell surface was closely correlated with the glucose transport activity and could account fully for the increment in glucose uptake after contraction. The combined effects of contraction and maximal insulin stimulation were greater than either stimulation alone on glucose transport activity (11.5 +/- 0.4 mumol per ml per h vs. 5.6 +/- 0.2 mumol per ml per h and 9.0 +/- 0.2 mumol per ml per h) and on GLUT4 translocation [4.10 +/- 0.20 pmol/g (wet muscle weight) vs. 1.75 +/- 0.25 pmol/g (wet muscle weight) and 3.15 +/- 0.18 pmol/g (wet muscle weight)]. The results provide evidence that contraction stimulates translocation of GLUT4 in skeletal muscle through a mechanism distinct from that of insulin.

The effects of insulin on the level and activity of the GLUT4 present in human adipose cells

Human adipose cells are much less responsive to insulin stimulation of glucose transport activity than are rat adipocytes. To assess and characterize this difference, we have determined the rates of 3-O-methyl-D-glucose transport in human adipose cells and have compared these with the levels of glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) assessed by using the bis-mannose photolabel, 2-N-4-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl-1,3-bis-(D-mannos- 4-yloxy)-2-propyl-amine, ATB-BMPA. The rates of 3-O-methyl-D-glucose transport and the cell-surface level of GLUT4 are very similar in the human and rat adipocyte in the basal state. The Vmax for 3-O-methyl-D-glucose transport in fully insulin-stimulated human adipose cells is 15-fold lower than in rat adipose cells. Photolabelling of GLUT4 suggests that this low transport activity is associated with a low GLUT4 abundance (39 x 10(4) sites/cell; 19.9 x 10(4) sites at the cell surface). The turnover number for human adipose cell GLUT4 (5.8 x 10(4) min-1) is similar to that observed for GLUT4 in rat adipose cells and the mouse cell line, 3T3L1. Since 50% of the GLUT4 is at the cell surface of both human and rat adipose cells in the fully insulin-stimulated state, an inefficient GLUT4 exocytosis process cannot account for the low transport activity. The intracellular retention process appears to have adapted to release, in the basal state, a greater proportion of the total-cellular pool of GLUT4 to the cell surface of the larger human adipocytes. These cell-surface transporters are presumably necessary to provide the basal metabolic needs of the adipocyte.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Subcellular localization and trafficking of the GLUT4 glucose transporter isoform in insulin-responsive cells

The rate-limiting step in the uptake and metabolism of D-glucose by insulin target cells is thought to be glucose transport mediated by glucose transporters (primarily the GLUT4 isoform) localized to the plasma membrane. However, subcellular fractionation, photolabelling and immunocytochemical studies have shown that the pool of GLUT4 present in the plasma membrane is only one of many subcellular pools of this protein. GLUT4 has been found in occluded vesicles at the plasma membrane, clathrin-coated pits and vesicles, early endosomes, and tubulo-vesicular structures; the latter are analogous to known specialized secretory compartments. Tracking the movement of GLUT4 through these compartments, and defining the mechanism and site of action of insulin in stimulating this subcellular trafficking, are major topics of current investigation. Recent evidence focuses attention on the exocytosis of GLUT4 as the major site of insulin action. Increased exocytosis may be due to decreased retention of glucose transporters in an intracellular pool, or possibly to increased assembly of a vesicle docking and fusion complex. Although details are unknown, the presence in GLUT4 vesicles of a synaptobrevin homologue leads us to propose that a process analogous to that occurring in synaptic vesicle trafficking is involved in the assembly of GLUT4 vesicles into a form suitable for fusion with the plasma membrane. Evidence that the pathways of signalling from the insulin receptor and of GLUT4 vesicle exocytosis may converge at the level of the key signalling enzyme, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, is discussed.

Comparative effects of IGF-I and insulin on the glucose transporter system in rat muscle

The acute effect of insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) and insulin on glucose uptake and the glucose transport system in in vitro incubated rat soleus muscles was examined using 3-O-methylglucose and the ATB-[3H]BMPA exofacial photolabeling technique. IGF-I and insulin both stimulated 3-O-methylglucose uptake and GLUT-4 translocation in a dose-dependent manner with a maximal effect six- to sevenfold above basal. No additive effects of IGF-I and insulin on maximal 3-O-methylglucose uptake were found. On a molar basis, IGF-I was 13 times less potent than insulin. Receptor binding experiments showed that IGF-I exhibited a much lower affinity for the insulin receptor [half-maximal effective dose (ED50) = 28.5 nM] than that of insulin (ED50 = 0.20 nM). In contrast, IGF-I bound to the partially purified IGF-I receptor with an apparent affinity (ED50 = 3.7 nM) that was similar to the concentrations of IGF-I which caused half-maximal activation of 3-O-methylglucose uptake (ED50 = 2.4 nM) and GLUT-4 translocation (ED50 = 2.5 nM). Our findings suggest that IGF-I exerts its insulin-like effects on glucose uptake primarily through its own specific receptor and that the molecular events underlying IGF-I and insulin actions on glucose uptake in skeletal muscle are similar, namely caused by a translocation of the GLUT-4 transporter from an intracellular pool to the cell surface.

Insulin-stimulated GLUT4 glucose transporter recycling. A problem in membrane protein subcellular trafficking through multiple pools

The subcellular trafficking of GLUT4 in isolated rat adipose cells and 3T3-L1 adipocytes exhibits many of the properties observed in regulated secretory processes and neurosecretion. GLUT4 is sorted and sequestered from endosomes into a specialized secretory compartment in the basal state and the initial stimulation of its exocytosis by insulin is more rapid than its recycling through the endosomes and secretory compartment during the steady-state response to insulin. We present a mathematical analysis which shows that this behavior is inconsistent with a simple 2-pool model with one plasma membrane and one intracellular compartment, but that a 3-pool model, with two intracellular compartments, can simulate these properties. We extend this model to include the presence of occluded pools in the plasma membrane. Our analysis compares the behavior expected when these occluded pools are precursors in stimulation and/or clathrin-associated-like intermediates in endocytosis. The presence of a precursor occluded pool can account for a lag between the appearance of GLUT4 in the membrane and before the full stimulation of glucose transport activity. The analysis also shows that since the pool size of the occluded GLUT4 is relatively small, the formation of endocytic occluded intermediates such as GLUT4 in clathrin-coated pits is likely to be slow compared with the rate of endocytosis of the coated vesicles.

Inhibition of the translocation of GLUT1 and GLUT4 in 3T3-L1 cells by the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase inhibitor, wortmannin

Wortmannin is a potent and reversible inhibitor of insulin-stimulated PtdIns 3-kinase activity in 3T3-L1 cells (IC50 = 2.6 +/- 0.8 nM). Wortmannin inhibits the PtdIns 3-kinase activity which is precipitated with antibodies against insulin receptor substrate 1 and against the alpha-p85 subunit of PtdIns 3-kinase. These observations suggest that wortmannin inhibits at the p110 catalytic subunit of PtdIns 3-kinase. Insulin stimulation of glucose transport in permeabilized 3T3-L1 cells is also inhibited by wortmannin (IC50 = 6.4 +/- 1.4 nM). Wortmannin did not inhibit basal glucose transport activity. The close similarity of the IC50 values for wortmannin inhibition of insulin-stimulated PtdIns 3-kinase and glucose transport activities suggests that the PtdIns 3-kinase is a key intermediate in insulin signalling of glucose-transport stimulation. The wortmannin inhibitory effect on transport is associated with a reduction in the cell-surface, but not the total cellular, levels of both GLUT1 and GLUT4 glucose transporter isoforms that are accessible to the cell-impermeant photolabel, ATB-BMPA. These photolabelling results suggest that the glucose transporter translocation process is dependent upon PtdIns 3-kinase activity. The stimulatory effect of guanosine 5'-[gamma-thio]triphosphate (GTP gamma S) on glucose transport activity in permeabilized cells is only partially blocked by concentrations of wortmannin that completely inhibit the stimulatory effect of insulin. The residual stimulatory effect of GTP gamma S that occurs in the presence of wortmannin suggests that at least part of the GTP gamma S effect is mediated at a signalling site that is downstream of the site at which wortmannin inhibits the insulin stimulation of PtdIns 3-kinase and glucose transport activities.

Domain assembly of the GLUT1 glucose transporter

A full-length construct of the glucose transporter isoform GLUT1 has been expressed in Sf9 (Spodoptera frugiperida Clone 9) insect cells, and a photolabelling approach has been used to show that the expressed protein binds the bismannose compound 2-N-4-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl-1,3-bis-(D-mannos- 4-yloxy)-2-propylamine (ATB-BMPA) and cytochalasin B at its exofacial and endofacial binding sites respectively. Constructs of GLUT1 which produce either the N-terminal (amino acids 1-272) or C-terminal (amino acids 254-492) halves are expressed at levels in the plasma membrane which are similar to that of the full-length GLUT1 (approximately 200 pmol/mg of membrane protein), but do not bind either ATB-BMPA or cytochalasin B. When Sf9 cells are doubly infected with virus constructs producing both the C- and N-terminal halves of GLUT1, then the ligand labelling is restored. Only the C-terminal half is labelled, and, therefore, the labelling of this domain is dependent on the presence of the N-terminal half of the protein. These results suggest that the two halves of GLUT1 can assemble to form a stable complex and support the concept of a bilobular structure for the intact glucose transporters in which separate C- and N-domain halves pack together to produce a ligand-binding conformation.

Substitution of tyrosine 293 of GLUT1 locks the transporter into an outward facing conformation

Tyrosines 292 and 293 in the mammalian glucose transporter GLUT1 have been substituted by either isoleucine or phenylalanine. Chinese hamster ovary clones that were transfected with Tyr-292-->Ile, Tyr-292-->Phe, Tyr-293-->Ile, and Tyr-293-->Phe constructs of GLUT1 were shown, by Western blotting and cell surface carbohydrate labeling, to have expression levels that were comparable with the wild type. The Vmax for 2-deoxy-D-glucose transport was markedly reduced only as a result of the Tyr-293-->Ile mutation. The ability of the Tyr-293-->Ile mutated GLUT1 to bind the exofacial ligand 2-N-4-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl-1,3-bis-(D-mannos- 4-yloxy)-2- propylamine (ATB-BMPA) and the endofacial ligand cytochalasin B were assessed by photolabeling procedures. The ability to bind the bis-mannose compound was unimpaired, whereas the ability to bind cytochalasin B was totally abolished, and the level of labeling was lower than in the nontransfected clone. Affinities of the wild-type and Tyr-293-->Ile GLUT1 for D-glucose, the exofacial ligands (ATB-BMPA and 4,6-O-ethylidene-D-glucose), and the endofacial ligand (cytochalasin B) were assessed by the ability of these agents to displace the radioactive ATB-BMPA photolabel. These data indicated that the Tyr-293-->Ile substitution produced no change in the affinity for D-glucose, a relatively small enhancement in the affinity for exofacial ligands, but a large approximately 300-fold reduction in affinity for cytochalasin B, suggesting that the mutated GLUT1 is locked in an outward facing conformation. The observation that the Tyr-293-->Ile mutant transporter can bind nontransported C4 and C6 substituted hexose analogues but cannot catalyze transport is interpreted as indicating that Tyr-293 is involved in closing the exofacial site around C4 and C6 of D-glucose in the transport catalysis process.

Growth factor-induced stimulation of hexose transport in 3T3-L1 adipocytes: evidence that insulin-induced translocation of GLUT4 is independent of activation of MAP kinase

We have examined the effect of growth factors on the rate of hexose transport in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) and platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) were found to stimulate deoxyglucose transport by about 2-fold. The concentrations of EGF and PDGF which elicited half maximal responses were 100 and 350 pM, respectively. The increases in transport rate were acute effects; the stimulations were evident within minutes of exposure to growth factors. By contrast, insulin stimulated deoxyglucose transport approximately 16-fold over similar time periods. We have measured the appearance of both the insulin-responsive glucose transporter (GLUT4) and the erythrocyte-type glucose transporter (GLUT1) at the cell surface in response to insulin, EGF and PDGF. We show that both EGF and PDGF induce a 2-fold increase in GLUT1 at the cell surface, but both these growth factors were without effect on GLUT4 levels at the cell surface. In contrast, insulin induced a 13-fold increase in cell surface GLUT4. We further show that insulin, EGF and PDGF all activate MAP kinase as determined by a shift in electrophoretic mobility of this protein on SDS-PAGE. However, since the large translocation of GLUT4 to the cell surface is specific for insulin, we suggest that activation of MAP kinase is not the sole requisite for this process.

Glucose transporter localization in rat skeletal muscle. Autoradiographic study using ATB-[2-3H]BMPA photolabel

Surface glucose transporters of intact muscles were photolabeled with the membrane impermeant ATB-[2-3H]BMPA reagent and localized by autoradiography. We found sparse labeling of the glucose transporters by ATB-[2-3H]BMPA on the sarcolemmal membrane around the muscle fiber. The majority of label was on the interior of the muscle fiber, at a discrete site which matched the distribution of AI junctions and which was presumed to be on the exterior surface of T-tubules. The amount of photolabel on the T-tubule was increased in response to insulin and was blocked by cytochalasin B. These results support the concept that glucose transport may occur predominantly across the T-tubule membrane under basal and insulin-stimulated conditions.

Substitution at Pro385 of GLUT1 perturbs the glucose transport function by reducing conformational flexibility

The mammalian glucose transporter, GLUT1, is capable of alternating between two conformations which expose either an outward- or inward-facing ligand binding site. The possibility that these conformational changes are related to the presence of prolines and glycines in transmembrane region 10 was investigated by site-directed mutagenesis. Chinese hamster ovary clones which were transfected with Pro385-->Ile and Pro385-->glycine mutations of GLUT1 were shown, by Western blotting and cell surface carbohydrate labelling, to have expression levels which were comparable with the wild type. The transport activity was markedly reduced as a result of the Pro385-->isoleucine but not in the Pro385-->glycine mutation. The loss of transport activity in the Pro385-->isoleucine clone was associated with loss of labeling by the exofacial photoaffinity ligand, 2-N-4-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl-1,3-bis(D-mannos-4 -yloxy)-2- propylamine (ATB-BMPA), but there was no loss in labeling by the inside site-directed ligand cytochalasin B. These results suggest that the transporter cannot adopt the outward-directed conformation in the Pro385-->isoleucine clone. By contrast, the glycine substitution for proline at this position resulted in a retention of the ligand binding properties at both inside and outside sites. We suggest a putative mode of operation of the transporter which involves conformational flexibility about the prolines in transmembrane segment 10 such that helices 11 and 12 can alternately either pack against the outside (ATB-BMPA binding) site in helices 7, 8, and 9 or against the inner (cytochalasin B binding) site at the base of transmembrane segment 10.