Isolation and characterization ofl-methionine-resistant mutants of SV40-transformed balb 3T3 (SVT2) affectingl-methionine transport

Recessive 2-(methylamino)-isobutyrate (MeAIB)-resistant mutant of Chinese hamster ovary cells (CHO-K1) with increased transport through ASC system

Mutants of Chinese hamster ovary cells (CHO-K1 Pro-), resistant to the proline transport antagonist 2-(methylamino)-isobutyrate (MeAIB) were isolated by a single-step procedure. Mutation rates to Pro+ and to Pro- MeAIB resistance (MeAIBr) are 1.7 X 10(-6) and 2.4 X 10(-5), respectively. Several Pro- MeAIBr mutants were tested by measuring the uptake of 0.05 mM proline through the various amino acid transport systems: some showed increases in one transport system only; others revealed pleiotropic changes affecting two or more systems; still others had no apparent change in proline transport. One Pro- MeAIBr mutant analyzed in detail (MeAIBr22) was isolated after EMS treatment as resistant to 5 mM MeAIB, is Pro-, stable, and shows a 1.6-fold increase in the initial velocity of transport of 0.05 mM proline. There appears to be no change in the velocity of proline transport through the amino acid transport systems A, P, and L, and the "glutamine inhibitable fraction." In contrast, there is a 5.5-fold increase in the velocity of transport of 0.05 mM proline through the ASC system. Kinetic studies reveal a sixfold increase in the Vm and a slight increase in the Km of the transport of serine through the ASC system. Hybrids between MeAIBr22 and CHO-K1 Pro-, OUAr, HPRT- showed the parental phenotype. These results indicate that the mutant ASC phenotype of MeAIBr22 is recessive and is probably the result of a regulatory gene mutation.

Inhibition of growth of proline-requiring Chinese hamster ovary cells (CHO-k1) resulting from antagonism by a system amino acids

CHO-K1 requires proline for growth. Two proline-independent revertants were isolated--K1-J and K1-6. CHO-K1 pro- is much more sensitive than the pro+ cell lines to inhibition of growth by addition to the medium of amino acids and amino acid analogues that are transported through the A system. In contrast, pro+ cells are as sensitive as, or in some cases slightly more sensitive than, pro- cells to glycine, basic amino acids, and to amino acids that are mainly transported by the L system. The A system analogue alpha(methylamino) isobutyric acid (MAIB) in low concentrations reacts competitively with proline to regulate the growth of pro- cells, yielding a Ki for MAIB of 0.56 mM. CHO-K1 and K1-6 transport proline at the same initial rate and are equally sensitive to the inhibition of proline transport by alanine. Alanine and MAIB inhibit proline transport strongly and similarly in CHO-K1. Thus although these compounds inhibit the transport of proline by both cell types to the same extent, pro+ cells are immune to the effect of this starvation since they are able to synthesize their own proline. We also describe a secondary inhibition caused by high A system amino acid concentrations that affects both pro- and pro+ cells.

Elucidation of an A and L system for amino acid transport in the human lymphoblast using a membrane filtration technique

Optimum conditions have been established for the measurement of amino acid transport by human lymphoblastoid cell lines using a membrane-filtration technique. The parameters we found to be important for the reproducibility of the method are: the types and combination of filters, the strength of the vacuum applied to the filters and the density of the cultures at the time of harvesting and during uptake and filtration. We found that bovine serum albumin added to phosphate buffered saline (PBS) glucose in which the cells are washed, resuspended and assayed is essential for the maintenance of viability, the prevention of clumping and the retention of the accumulated amino acid. Using this procedure we have characterized two transport systems for the neutral amino acids; an A and an L system, which are similar but not identical to the A and L systems characterized in rodent cell lines. These A and L systems have characteristically lower Km's and Vm's for alanine and phenylalanine, when compared to rodent cell lines. In addition, we find alpha-AIB to be a poor competitor of alanine and phenylalanine uptake.