Glutamine uptake by cortical slices and luminal brush border vesicles of rat kidney

Reconstitution into liposomes of the glutamine/amino acid transporter from renal cell plasma membrane: functional characterization, kinetics and activation by nucleotides

The glutamine/amino acid transporter was solubilized from rat renal apical plasma membrane (brush-border membrane) with C12E8 and reconstituted into liposomes by removing the detergent from mixed micelles by hydrophobic chromatography on Amberlite XAD-4. The reconstitution was optimised with respect to the protein concentration, the detergent/phospholipid ratio and the number of passages through a single Amberlite column. The reconstituted glutamine/amino acid transporter catalysed a first-order antiport reaction stimulated by external, not internal, Na+. Optimal activity was found at pH 7.0. The sulfhydryl reagents HgCl2, mersalyl and p-hydroxymercuribenzoate and the amino acids alanine, serine, threonine, cysteine, asparagine, methionine and valine strongly inhibited the transport, whereas the amino acid analogue methylaminoisobutyrate had no effect. Glutamine, alanine, serine, asparagine, threonine were efficiently translocated from outside to inside and from inside to outside the proteoliposomes as well. Cysteine and valine were translocated preferentially from outside to inside. The Km for glutamine on the external and internal side of the transporter was 0.47 and 11 mM, respectively; the values were not influenced by the type of the counter substrate. The transporter is functionally asymmetrical and it is unidirectionally inserted into the proteoliposomal membrane with an orientation corresponding to that of the native membrane. By a bisubstrate kinetic analysis of the glutamine antiport, a random simultaneous mechanism was found. The glutamine antiport was strongly stimulated by internal nucleoside triphosphates and, to a lower extent, by pyrophoshate. The reconstituted glutamine/amino acid transporter functionally corresponds to the ASCT2 protein.

A rapid method for the reconstitution of Na+-dependent neutral amino acid transport from bovine renal brush-border membranes

1. A simple and rapid method for the reconstitution of Na+-dependent neutral amino acid transport activity from bovine renal brush border membranes is described. 2. The neutral detergent decanoyl-N-methylglucamide ('MEGA-10') was employed to solubilize the membrane protein. This obviated the necessity for a prolonged dialysis step. 3. The properties of amino acid transport in these vesicles were similar to those observed in native membranes. 4. This should be a useful procedure in the eventual identification and isolation of amino acid transport proteins.

Evidence for a single common Na+-dependent transport system for alanine, glutamine, leucine and phenylalanine in brush-border membrane vesicles from bovine kidney

The characteristics of the Na+-dependent transport of alanine, glutamine, leucine and phenylalanine were studied in bovine renal brush-border membrane vesicles. Inhibition of the transport of any one of these amino acids by any other was mutually competitive. The Ki value for the inhibition of alanine transport by leucine was similar to the Km for leucine transport; similar interrelationships existed for the other amino acids. Each amino acid was shown to exchange with each of the other amino acids across the membrane. From these and other results it is concluded that the Na+-dependent transport of these four amino acids is catalysed by a single common transport system.

Maleate effects on kidney peptidases and proteinuria of male and female rats. Histochemical and biochemical studies

The effects of maleate on membrane-bound and lysosomal peptidases were studied histochemically in the kidney and biochemically in the kidney and the urine of male and female rats 6 h after the administration of two different doses of sodium maleate (150 and 300 mg/kg body weight). Additionally, the proteinuria of experimental animals was electrophoretically analysed to detect maleate-induced alterations in the urinary protein composition. The histochemistry of the brush-border peptidases (aminopeptidase A, gamma-glutamyltransferase) showed dose-dependent maleate effects in the late pars convoluta and the pars recta of the proximal tubule (blurring of the brush-border enzyme reaction pattern). The female animals were more severely affected by both maleate doses. After maleate treatment, enzyme-activity measurements in the kidney homogenate supernatant and urine indicated dose-dependent structural destruction of the proximal tubule, especially of brush-border membranes, and revealed an increase in enzyme excretion. Both the maleate-induced enzyme excretion and proteinuria were more pronouncedly increased in females than in males. Electrophoretic analysis of urinary proteins revealed alterations in the urinary-protein composition after maleate treatment, which favoured the excretion of proteins with a molecular weight higher than 20,000 daltons. Again, sex-related differences in the maleate effects were demonstrated. The results indicate that maleate causes alterations in the brush-border membranes and, especially at higher doses, results in cellular destruction selectively in the late proximal tubule of rat kidneys. Selectivity was also encountered in the maleate effects on urinary-protein composition, suggesting that the tubular alterations lead to an inhibition of the reabsorption of mainly high-molecular-weight proteins. Although the nature of the effects was independent of sex, it appears that females are less well protected against tubular damage caused by maleate.