Possible involvement of alanine and pyruvate in the regulation of glucose transport in heart muscle cells

Pyruvate-dependent preconditioning and cardioprotection in murine myocardium

1. Whether pyruvate inhibits or can actually initiate myocardial preconditioning is unclear and whether pyruvate provides protection via its action as a 'cosubstrate' with glucose or via alternative mechanisms also remains controversial. We examined effects of a high concentration of pyruvate (10 mmol/L) alone or with 15 mmol/L glucose in mouse hearts subjected to 20 min ischaemia and 30 min reperfusion. 2. Provision of 10 mmol/L pyruvate alone or as a cosubstrate markedly reduced ischaemic contracture and enhanced postischaemic recovery. Time to contracture was increased from approximately 3 min to over 8 min, peak contracture was reduced from 90 mmHg to less than 60 mmHg and postischaemic pressure development was also improved. Effects on contracture were independent of the presence of pyruvate during ischaemia and improved postischaemic recovery was evident with pre-ischaemic pyruvate perfusion. 3. Cardioprotection did not require the presence of pyruvate during ischaemia or reperfusion and effects of pyruvate pretreatment could be mimicked by pretreatment with 1 mmol/L dichloroacetate (DCA), an activator of pyruvate dehydrogenase. 4. Myocardial adenosine efflux and Ca2+ content were elevated (by 215 and 65%, respectively) following pretreatment with pyruvate, potentially triggering a preconditioned state. A role for adenosine A1 receptors is supported by lack of added protection with pyruvate in hearts transgenically overexpressing adenosine A1 receptors. 5. Collectively, these observations demonstrate that pre-ischaemic treatment with pyruvate or DCA provides a beneficial preconditioning-like effect in ischaemic and postischaemic myocardium. The response appears unrelated to glycolytic inhibition, but may be mediated via transient changes in adenosine levels and/or cellular Ca2+.

Perfusion-independent effect of bradykinin and fosinoprilate on glucose transport in Langendorff rat hearts

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor-stimulated glucose metabolism and perfusion in muscle tissue seem to be, at least in part, mediated by kinins. However, the relative contribution of direct metabolic or secondary hemodynamically induced effects is unclear. It was the aim of this study to characterize the effects of ACE inhibition and bradykinin on glucose transport while changes in cardiocoronary function that might influence glucose transport were minimized. Hearts from Wistar rats were perfused by a Langendorff preparation and a set of functional parameters were simultaneously measured. Bradykinin (10[-11] M) and fosinoprilate (10[-7] M) were administered at concentrations that did not affect coronary flow. Insulin was employed as reference at half-maximal concentration. The nonmetabolizable glucose analog 3-O-[14C]methyl-D-glucose and the nontransportable tracer L-[3H]glucose were coperfused for the calculation of glucose transport. Using a 2-compartment mathematical model we found that the glucose transport rate, which was doubled with insulin, was increased almost 3-fold by either bradykinin or fosinoprilate. In the presence of the B2 bradykinin receptor antagonist HOE 140 (D-Arg[Hyp3,Thi5,D-Tic7,Oic8]-bradykinin; icatibant), the effect of both agents was completely abolished. Both agents also induced minor changes in contractility/relaxation parameters that again were completely neutralized with icatibant. A perfusion-independent but B2-kinin receptor-dependent stimulating effect on glucose transport by either bradykinin or fosinoprilate is concluded. This effect could, in analogy to insulin be due to increased glucose transporter translocation, increased endothelium-derived nitric oxide formation, or--despite constant coronary flow conditions--secondary to altered cardiac function.

Glucose transport and glucose transporter GLUT4 are regulated by product(s) of intermediary metabolism in cardiomyocytes

Alternative substrates of energy metabolism are thought to contribute to the impairment of heart and muscle glucose utilization in insulin-resistant states. We have investigated the acute effects of substrates in isolated rat cardiomyocytes. Exposure to lactate, pyruvate, propionate, acetate, palmitate, beta-hydroxybutyrate or alpha-oxoglutarate led to the depression of glucose transport by up to 50%, with lactate, pyruvate and propionate being the most potent agents. The percentage inhibition was greater in cardiomyocytes in which glucose transport was stimulated with the alpha-adrenergic agonist phenylephrine or with a submaximal insulin concentration than in basal or fully insulin-stimulated cells. Cardiomyocytes from fasted or diabetic rats displayed a similar sensitivity to substrates as did cells from control animals. On the other hand, the amination product of pyruvate (alanine), as well as valine and the aminotransferase inhibitors cycloserine and amino-oxyacetate, stimulated glucose transport about 2-fold. In addition, the effect of pyruvate was counteracted by cycloserine. Since reversible transamination reactions are known to affect the pool size of the citrate cycle, the influence of substrates, amino acids and aminotransferase inhibitors on citrate, malate and glutamate content was examined. A significant negative correlation was found between alterations in glucose transport and the levels of citrate (P < 0.01) or malate (P < 0.01), and there was a positive correlation between glucose transport and glutamate levels (P < 0.05). In contrast, there was no correlation with changes in [1-(14)C]pyruvate oxidation or in glucose-6-phosphate levels. Finally, pyruvate decreased the abundance of GLUT4 glucose transporters at the surface of phenylephrine- or insulin-stimulated cells by 34% and 27 % respectively, as determined by using the selective photoaffinity label [3H]ATB-BMPA [[3H]2-N-[4-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl]-1,3-bis-(D-man nos-4-yloxy)propyl-2-amine]. In conclusion, cardiomyocyte glucose transport is subject to counter-regulation by alternative substrates. The glucose transport system appears to be controlled by (a) compound(s) of intermediary metabolism (other than glucose 6-phosphate), but in a different way than pyruvate dehydrogenase. Transport inhibition eventually occurs via a decrease in the amount of glucose transporters in the plasma membrane.

5-hydroxytryptamine stimulates glucose transport in cardiomyocytes via a monoamine oxidase-dependent reaction

This study deals with the effect of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT; serotonin) on glucose transport in isolated rat cardiac myocytes. In these cells, 5-HT (10-300 microns), as well as tryptamine, 5-methoxytryptamine and dopamine, elicited a 3-5 fold increase in glucose transport, as compared with control. This effect was maximal after 90 min, and was concomitant with a 1.8- and 1.5-fold increase in the amounts of glucose transporters GLUT1 and GLUT4 at the cell surface of the cardiomyocytes, as determined by using the photoaffinity label 3H-2-N-[4-(1-azi-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)benzoyl]-1,3-bis-(D-manno s-4-yl) propyl-2-amine (3H-ATB-BMPA). In contrast, 3-3000 microM of the selective 5-HT receptor agonists 5-carboxyamido-tryptamine, alpha-methyl-serotonin, 2-methyl-serotonin or renzapride failed to stimulate glucose transport. The effect of 5-HT was not affected by (i) the 5-HT receptor antagonists methysergide (1 microM), ketanserin (1 microM), cyproheptadine (1 microM), MDL 72222 (1 microM) or ICS 205-930 (3 microM), nor by (ii) the adrenergic receptor antagonists prazosin (1 microM), yohimbine (1 microM) or propranolol (5 microM), nor by (iii) the dopaminergic antagonists SCH 23390 (1 microM) or haloperidol (1 microM). The monoamine oxidase inhibitors clorgyline (1 microM) and tranylcypromine (1 microM) completely suppressed the effect of 5-HT, whereas the control and insulin-stimulated rates of glucose transport were unaffected. Addition of catalase or glutathione diminished the 5-HT-dependent stimulation of glucose transport by 50%; these two factors are known to favour the degradation of H2O2 (which can be formed during the deamination of amines by monoamine oxidases). Glutathione also depressed the stimulatory action of exogenously added H2O2 (20 microM) by 30%. Furthermore, in cells treated with 5_HT, a time-dependent accumulation of 5-hydroxy-1H-indol-3-ylacetic acid (a product of 5-HT metabolism via monoamine oxidases) was observed, which paralleled the changes in glucose transport. In conclusion, the stimulation of glucose transport by 5-HT in cardiomyocytes is not mediated by a 5-HT1, 5-HT2, 5-HT3 or 5-HT4 receptor, nor by an adrenergic or dopaminergic receptor, but is likely to occur through the degradation of by a monoamine oxidase and concomitant formation of H2O2.

Phenylarsine oxide and hydrogen peroxide stimulate glucose transport via different pathways in isolated cardiac myocytes

The aim of this study was to investigate the stimulating effects of sulfhydryl reagents on glucose transport in isolated rat heart muscle cells and to compare them with the action of insulin. Low concentrations of the sulfhydryl oxidants hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and diamide (5-100 microM), but also of phenylarsine oxide (PAO) (0.5-3 microM), that is known to specifically react with vicinal SH-groups, stimulated the rate of 2-deoxy-D-glucose uptake by a factor of 4 to 8 in these cells, while higher concentrations were inhibitory. The stimulating effects of H2O2 or diamide, and, to a significantly lesser extent, those of PAO or insulin, were depressed in cells pretreated with the sulfhydryl-alkylating agent N-ethylmaleimide (56-100 microM). H2O2 raised the Vmax and lowered the Km of 3-O-methyl-D-glucose uptake, while PAO or insulin solely increased Vmax. The increase in glucose transport caused by H2O2 was antagonized by the beta-adrenergic agonist isoprenaline (1 microM) or by a membrane-permeant cyclic AMP analog, whereas the effects of PAO or insulin were not altered. The action of H2O2 was additive with the stimulation induced by the protein phosphatase inhibitors okadaic acid (1 microM) or vanadate (6 mM), whereas the responses to PAO or insulin were reduced in the presence of these agents. Finally, H2O2 and PAO, but not insulin, acted additively with the protein kinase C ligand phorbol myristate acetate (0.8 microM) and with phospholipase C (0.03 units/ml). We conclude that, in cardiac myocytes, H2O2, on the one hand, and PAO (and possibly insulin), on the other hand, stimulate glucose transport via at least two distinct, SH-dependent pathways. These pathways, in turn, differ from a protein kinase C- and from a phospholipase C-mediated mechanism.

Highly insulin-responsive isolated rat heart muscle cells yielded by a modified isolation method

Freshly isolated adipocytes or cardiac myocytes appear to be subject to unspecific stimulation during isolation and subsequent handling, e.g. with respect to glucose transport. We have developed a modified procedure that yields rat cardiomyocytes with a very low basal, i.e. non stimulated hexose uptake rate (ca. 3 pmol * s-1 * mg protein-1 at 1 mM sugar), as compared to data reported by others. This low value correlates with the reported oxygen consumption of non-beating, isolated rat hearts, when these are perfused with glucose as the only substrate. The basal rate of glucose uptake in our quiescent cardiomyocytes is slightly lower than the value measured by others in beating rat hearts in vivo. Insulin (10 nM) stimulates 2-deoxy-D-glucose uptake 8- to 20-fold and 3-O-methyl-D-glucose uptake 14- to 20-fold, as compared to control. This insulin effect is markedly larger than that usually observed in isolated cardiomyocytes, but it is similar in magnitude to the stimulation of glucose transport reported for isolated, perfused rat hearts. In these cells, new stimulatory effects on the glucose transport, e.g. that of sulfhydryl reagents like phenylarsine oxide, become apparent. We conclude that the cardiomyocytes obtained by this modified method exhibit a basal glucose transport rate that is close to physiological values. These cells represent a new highly responsive model to detect and to investigate the effects of glucose transport stimulators (insulin, contraction etc.).