Paths of carbon in gluconeogenesis and lipogenesis: the role of mitochondria in supplying precursors of phosphoenolpyruvate

The Hepatic Mitochondrial Pyruvate Carrier as a Regulator of Systemic Metabolism and a Therapeutic Target for Treating Metabolic Disease

Pyruvate sits at an important metabolic crossroads of intermediary metabolism. As a product of glycolysis in the cytosol, it must be transported into the mitochondrial matrix for the energy stored in this nutrient to be fully harnessed to generate ATP or to become the building block of new biomolecules. Given the requirement for mitochondrial import, it is not surprising that the mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC) has emerged as a target for therapeutic intervention in a variety of diseases characterized by altered mitochondrial and intermediary metabolism. In this review, we focus on the role of the MPC and related metabolic pathways in the liver in regulating hepatic and systemic energy metabolism and summarize the current state of targeting this pathway to treat diseases of the liver. Available evidence suggests that inhibiting the MPC in hepatocytes and other cells of the liver produces a variety of beneficial effects for treating type 2 diabetes and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. We also highlight areas where our understanding is incomplete regarding the pleiotropic effects of MPC inhibition.

AMPK inhibits liver gluconeogenesis: fact or fiction?

Is there a role for AMPK in the control of hepatic gluconeogenesis and could targeting AMPK in liver be a viable strategy for treating type 2 diabetes? These are frequently asked questions this review tries to answer. After describing properties of AMPK and different small-molecule AMPK activators, we briefly review the various mechanisms for controlling hepatic glucose production, mainly via gluconeogenesis. The different experimental and genetic models that have been used to draw conclusions about the role of AMPK in the control of liver gluconeogenesis are critically discussed. The effects of several anti-diabetic drugs, particularly metformin, on hepatic gluconeogenesis are also considered. We conclude that the main effect of AMPK activation pertinent to the control of hepatic gluconeogenesis is to antagonize glucagon signalling in the short-term and, in the long-term, to improve insulin sensitivity by reducing hepatic lipid content.

NADH inhibition of SIRT1 links energy state to transcription during time-restricted feeding

In mammals, circadian rhythms are entrained to the light cycle and drive daily oscillations in levels of NAD+, a cosubstrate of the class III histone deacetylase sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) that associates with clock transcription factors. Although NAD+ also participates in redox reactions, the extent to which NAD(H) couples nutrient state with circadian transcriptional cycles remains unknown. Here we show that nocturnal animals subjected to time-restricted feeding of a calorie-restricted diet (TRF-CR) only during night-time display reduced body temperature and elevated hepatic NADH during daytime. Genetic uncoupling of nutrient state from NADH redox state through transduction of the water-forming NADH oxidase from Lactobacillus brevis (LbNOX) increases daytime body temperature and blood and liver acyl-carnitines. LbNOX expression in TRF-CR mice induces oxidative gene networks controlled by brain and muscle Arnt-like protein 1 (BMAL1) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα) and suppresses amino acid catabolic pathways. Enzymatic analyses reveal that NADH inhibits SIRT1 in vitro, corresponding with reduced deacetylation of SIRT1 substrates during TRF-CR in vivo. Remarkably, Sirt1 liver nullizygous animals subjected to TRF-CR display persistent hypothermia even when NADH is oxidized by LbNOX. Our findings reveal that the hepatic NADH cycle links nutrient state to whole-body energetics through the rhythmic regulation of SIRT1.

Metformin's Therapeutic Efficacy in the Treatment of Diabetes Does Not Involve Inhibition of Mitochondrial Glycerol Phosphate Dehydrogenase

Mitochondrial glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase (mGPD) is the rate-limiting enzyme of the glycerol phosphate redox shuttle. It was recently claimed that metformin, a first-line drug used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, inhibits liver mGPD 30-50%, suppressing gluconeogenesis through a redox mechanism. Various factors cast doubt on this idea. Total-body knockout of mGPD in mice has adverse effects in several tissues where the mGPD level is high but has little or no effect in liver, where the mGPD level is the lowest of 10 tissues. Metformin has beneficial effects in humans in tissues with high levels of mGPD, such as pancreatic β-cells, where the mGPD level is much higher than that in liver. Insulin secretion in mGPD knockout mouse β-cells is normal because, like liver, β-cells possess the malate aspartate redox shuttle whose redox action is redundant to the glycerol phosphate shuttle. For these and other reasons, we used four different enzyme assays to reassess whether metformin inhibited mGPD. Metformin did not inhibit mGPD in homogenates or mitochondria from insulin cells or liver cells. If metformin actually inhibited mGPD, adverse effects in tissues where the level of mGPD is much higher than that in the liver could prevent the use of metformin as a diabetes medicine.

A human pluripotent stem cell model for the analysis of metabolic dysfunction in hepatic steatosis

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is currently the most prevalent form of liver disease worldwide. This term encompasses a spectrum of pathologies, from benign hepatic steatosis to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, which have, to date, been challenging to model in the laboratory setting. Here, we present a human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC)-derived model of hepatic steatosis, which overcomes inherent challenges of current models and provides insights into the metabolic rewiring associated with steatosis. Following induction of macrovesicular steatosis in hepatocyte-like cells using lactate, pyruvate, and octanoate (LPO), respirometry and transcriptomic analyses revealed compromised electron transport chain activity. 13C isotopic tracing studies revealed enhanced TCA cycle anaplerosis, with concomitant development of a compensatory purine nucleotide cycle shunt leading to excess generation of fumarate. This model of hepatic steatosis is reproducible, scalable, and overcomes the challenges of studying mitochondrial metabolism in currently available models.

The malate-aspartate shuttle (Borst cycle): How it started and developed into a major metabolic pathway

This article presents a personal and critical review of the history of the malate–aspartate shuttle (MAS), starting in 1962 and ending in 2020. The MAS was initially proposed as a route for the oxidation of cytosolic NADH by the mitochondria in Ehrlich ascites cell tumor lacking other routes, and to explain the need for a mitochondrial aspartate aminotransferase (glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase 2 [GOT2]). The MAS was soon adopted in the field as a major pathway for NADH oxidation in mammalian tissues, such as liver and heart, even though the energetics of the MAS remained a mystery. Only in the 1970s, LaNoue and coworkers discovered that the efflux of aspartate from mitochondria, an essential step in the MAS, is dependent on the proton‐motive force generated by the respiratory chain: for every aspartate effluxed, mitochondria take up one glutamate and one proton. This makes the MAS in practice uni‐directional toward oxidation of cytosolic NADH, and explains why the free NADH/NAD ratio is much higher in the mitochondria than in the cytosol. The MAS is still a very active field of research. Most recently, the focus has been on the role of the MAS in tumors, on cells with defects in mitochondria and on inborn errors in the MAS. The year 2019 saw the discovery of two new inborn errors in the MAS, deficiencies in malate dehydrogenase 1 and in aspartate transaminase 2 (GOT2). This illustrates the vitality of ongoing MAS research.

Plasma metabolite profiling and chemometric analyses of tobacco snuff dippers and patients with oral cancer: Relationship between metabolic signatures

BACKGROUND

Cancer of oral cavity is a seriously growing problem in many parts of the world. In Indian subcontinent, most of these cases have been attributed to the use of tobacco-related products. This study is focused on the identification of distinguishing metabolites of oral cancer in comparison with tobacco snuff dippers and healthy controls.

METHODS

A total of 234 plasma samples including 62 healthy controls, 81 tobacco snuff dippers, and 91 oral cancer samples were analyzed using mass spectrometry.

RESULTS

Twenty-nine of 3326 metabolites were found to distinguish among oral cancer, tobacco snuff dippers, and healthy controls using P-value ≤.001 and fold change ≥3. Prediction model was generated with an overall accuracy of 89.3%. Two metabolites, that is, stearyl alcohol and sucrose, can be used as predictive biomarkers showing progression of tobacco snuff dippers toward oral cancer.

CONCLUSION

The unique metabolite profile gives evidence of a strong correlation between tobacco snuff dipping and oral cancer.

Mitochondrial pyruvate transport: a historical perspective and future research directions

Pyruvate is the end-product of glycolysis, a major substrate for oxidative metabolism, and a branching point for glucose, lactate, fatty acid and amino acid synthesis. The mitochondrial enzymes that metabolize pyruvate are physically separated from cytosolic pyruvate pools and rely on a membrane transport system to shuttle pyruvate across the impermeable inner mitochondrial membrane (IMM). Despite long-standing acceptance that transport of pyruvate into the mitochondrial matrix by a carrier-mediated process is required for the bulk of its metabolism, it has taken almost 40 years to determine the molecular identity of an IMM pyruvate carrier. Our current understanding is that two proteins, mitochondrial pyruvate carriers MPC1 and MPC2, form a hetero-oligomeric complex in the IMM to facilitate pyruvate transport. This step is required for mitochondrial pyruvate oxidation and carboxylation-critical reactions in intermediary metabolism that are dysregulated in several common diseases. The identification of these transporter constituents opens the door to the identification of novel compounds that modulate MPC activity, with potential utility for treating diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and other common causes of morbidity and mortality. The purpose of the present review is to detail the historical, current and future research investigations concerning mitochondrial pyruvate transport, and discuss the possible consequences of altered pyruvate transport in various metabolic tissues.

Analysis and interpretation of transcriptomic data obtained from extended Warburg effect genes in patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma

Background

Many cancers adopt a metabolism that is characterized by the well-known Warburg effect (aerobic glycolysis). Recently, numerous attempts have been made to treat cancer by targeting one or more gene products involved in this pathway without notable success. This work outlines a transcriptomic approach to identify genes that are highly perturbed in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (CCRCC).

Methods

We developed a model of the extended Warburg effect and outlined the model using Cytoscape. Following this, gene expression fold changes (FCs) for tumor and adjacent normal tissue from patients with CCRCC (GSE6344) were mapped on to the network. Gene expression values with FCs of greater than two were considered as potential targets for treatment of CCRCC.

Results

The Cytoscape network includes glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP), the TCA cycle, the serine/glycine pathway, and partial glutaminolysis and fatty acid synthesis pathways. Gene expression FCs for nine of the 10 CCRCC patients in the GSE6344 data set were consistent with a shift to aerobic glycolysis. Genes involved in glycolysis and the synthesis and transport of lactate were over-expressed, as was the gene that codes for the kinase that inhibits the conversion of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA. Interestingly, genes that code for unique proteins involved in gluconeogenesis were strongly under-expressed as was also the case for the serine/glycine pathway. These latter two results suggest that the role attributed to the M2 isoform of pyruvate kinase (PKM2), frequently the principal isoform of PK present in cancer: i.e. causing a buildup of glucose metabolites that are shunted into branch pathways for synthesis of key biomolecules, may not be operative in CCRCC. The fact that there was no increase in the expression FC of any gene in the PPP is consistent with this hypothesis. Literature protein data generally support the transcriptomic findings.

Conclusions

A number of key genes have been identified that could serve as valid targets for anti-cancer pharmaceutical agents. Genes that are highly over-expressed include ENO2, HK2, PFKP, SLC2A3, PDK1, and SLC16A1. Genes that are highly under-expressed include ALDOB, PKLR, PFKFB2, G6PC, PCK1, FBP1, PC, and SUCLG1.

Metabolomic Profiling of Autoimmune Hepatitis: The Diagnostic Utility of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is often confused with other liver diseases because of their shared nonspecific symptoms and serological and histological overlap. This study compared the plasma metabolomic profiles of patients with AIH, primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), PBC/AIH overlap syndrome (OS), and drug-induced liver injury (DILI) with those of healthy subjects to identify potential biomarkers of AIH. Metabolomic profiling and biomarker screening were performed using proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹H NMR) coupled with a partial least-squares discriminant analysis. Compared with the levels in healthy volunteers and other liver disease patients, AIH patients exhibited relatively high levels of plasma pyruvate, lactate, acetate, acetoacetate, and glucose. Such metabolites are typically related to energy metabolism alterations and may be a sign of metabolic conversion to the aerobic glycolysis phenotype of excessive immune activation. Increased aromatic amino acids and decreased branched-chain amino acids were found in the plasma of AIH patients. The whole NMR profiles were stepwise-reduced, and nine metabolomic biomarkers having the greatest significance in the discriminant analysis were obtained. The diagnostic utility of the selected metabolites was assessed, and these biomarkers achieved good sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy (all above 93%) in distinguishing AIH from PBC, DILI, and OS. This report is the first to present the metabolic phenotype of AIH and the potential utility of ¹H NMR metabolomics in the diagnosis of AIH.

Deletion of protein kinase Cε in mice has limited effects on liver metabolite levels but alters fasting ketogenesis and gluconeogenesis

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS

Protein kinase Cε (PKCε) is emerging as a key mediator of lipid-induced insulin resistance in liver and hepatic lipid metabolism itself. We investigated whether PKCε plays a role in other metabolic processes, to further examine its suitability as a therapeutic target.

METHODS

We measured amino acid, organic acid and sugar levels by liquid and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of liver extracts from chow and fat-fed wild-type (WT) and PKCε-deficient (Prkce(-/-)) mice. Fed and fasting glucose, ketone and fatty acid levels were measured in blood. Triacylglycerol levels and gluconeogenic and ketogenic enzyme expression were measured in liver. The effect of fasting on epididymal fat pad mass was also determined.

RESULTS

Metabolomic analysis indicated that the short-term high-fat diet affected over 20 compounds, including a 50% reduction in the glucogenic amino acid alanine. Prkce deletion resulted only in a reduction of 4-hydroxyproline and aspartate and an increase in glutamate. However, upon fasting, Prkce(-/-) mice were better able to maintain blood glucose levels and also exhibited lower levels of the ketone β-hydroxybutyrate compared with WT mice. Upon fasting, Prkce deletion also resulted in lower liver and plasma lipids and a smaller reduction in fat pad mass.

CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION

Metabolomic analysis provided new insights into the effects of a high-fat diet on liver metabolite levels. Glucose homeostasis under fasting conditions is improved in Prkce(-/-) mice, which, in turn, may reduce the mobilisation of lipid from adipose tissue, reducing the availability of ketogenic substrate in the liver. Together with the protection against fat-diet-induced glucose intolerance previously observed in the fed state, these findings indicate PKCε as a unique therapeutic target for the improvement of glucose homeostasis.

Biochemical aspects of bovine ketosis

1. The concentrations of acetoacetate, beta-hydroxybutyrate and metabolites related to gluconeogenesis were determined in biopsy samples of the livers of ketotic, normal lactating and normal non-lactating cows. Key enzymes of gluconeogenesis in the liver were also assayed. 2. Significant decreases were found in the ketotic liver in the concentrations of glucogenic amino acids (glutamate, glutamine, alanine) and of glucogenic oxo acids (alpha-oxoglutarate, pyruvate, oxaloacetate). 3. The beta-hydroxybutyrate/acetoacetate concentration ratios were generally much higher than in rat liver. 4. The concentration of total fat was sevenfold higher in the ketotic liver, and that of glucose plus glycogen fourfold lower than in normal liver. 5. The blood of ketotic cows showed a marked rise in the concentration of free fatty acids. 6. The activities of pyruvate carboxylase, propionyl-CoA carboxylase, phosphopyruvate carboxylase and fructose 1,6-diphosphatase showed no clear-cut differences between normal and ketotic animals. 7. Glucose injection promptly relieved the ketotic condition with respect to both the clinical and biochemical signs. The fall in the concentrations of the ketone bodies in the blood was preceded by a fall in the concentrations of free fatty acids and glycerol. 8. The findings are taken to be consistent with the concept that an increased rate of gluconeogenesis, causing a decrease in the concentration of oxaloacetate, is a major causal factor in ketogenesis.

Development of gluconeogenesis in neonatal rat liver. Effect of triamcinolone

1. The normal development of the key enzymes of gluconeogenesis in rat liver, glucose 6-phosphatase, hexose diphosphatase, phosphopyruvate carboxylase and pyruvate carboxylase, was measured during the neonatal period. 2. Glucose 6-phosphatase, hexose diphosphatase and pyruvate carboxylase are all present in the late foetal liver, but all the enzymes show an increase in activity after birth. 3. Phosphopyruvate carboxylase is not present in liver extracts from foetal rats, but activity appears immediately after birth and increases rapidly over the first day and then more slowly to reach its maximum at the fourth postnatal day. 4. The fluorinated synthetic glucocorticoid, triamcinolone, was administered to foetal rats at various gestation times by intraperitoneal injection in utero and the animals were killed at intervals between 4 and 48hr. later. 5. The administration of triamcinolone results in slight depression of glucose 6-phosphatase, and a more significant depression of hexose diphosphatase to about one-half its normal activity in foetal rat liver. 6. Triamcinolone injection is without effect on pyruvate carboxylase activity and does not result in premature appearance of phosphopyruvate carboxylase in foetal rat liver. 7. Pyruvate kinase and aspartate amino-transferase activities in foetal rat liver are both depressed by triamcinolone treatment, whereas phosphofructokinase activity is elevated. 8. Tyrosine amino-transferase activity in foetal rat liver is markedly elevated in animals exposed to triamcinolone for 10hr. or more, but the effect is only observed in animals close to term. 9. The results are discussed in relation to mechanisms involved in the initial synthesis of tissue-specific enzymes in developing tissues, and it is concluded that glucocorticoids do not initiate the synthesis of the gluconeogenic enzymes.

The permeability of mitochondria to oxaloacetate and malate

1. A spectrophotometric assay of the rates of penetration of oxaloacetate and l-malate into mitochondria is described. The assay is based on the measurement of the oxidation of intramitochondrial NADH by oxaloacetate and of the reduction of intramitochondrial NAD(+) by malate. 2. The rate of entry of both oxaloacetate and l-malate into mitochondria is restricted, as shown by the fact that disruption of the mitochondrial structure can increase the rate of interaction between the dicarboxylic acids and intramitochondrial NAD(+) and NADH by between 100- and 1000-fold. 3. The rates of entry of oxaloacetate and malate into liver, kidney and heart mitochondria increased by up to 50-fold on addition of a source of energy, either ascorbate plus NNN'N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine aerobically, or ATP anaerobically. 4. In the absence of a source of energy the changes in the concentrations of intramitochondrial NAD(+) and NADH brought about by the addition of l-malate or oxaloacetate were followed by parallel changes in the concentrations of NADP(+) and NADPH, indicating the presence in the mitochondria of an energy-independent transhydrogenase system. 5. The results are discussed in relation to the hypothesis that malate acts as a carrier of reducing equivalents between mitochondria and cytoplasm.

Metabolic alterations produced in the liver by chronic ethanol administration. Increased oxidative capacity

1. Administration of ethanol (14g/day per kg) for 21-26 days to rats increases the ability of the animals to metabolize ethanol, without concomitant changes in the activities of liver alcohol dehydrogenase or catalase. 2. Liver slices from rats chronically treated with ethanol showed a significant increase (40-60%) in the rate of O(2) consumption over that of slices from control animals. The effect of uncoupling agents such as dinitrophenol and arsenate was completely lost after chronic treatment with ethanol. 3. Isolated mitochondria prepared from animals chronically treated with ethanol showed no changes in state 3 or state 4 respiration, ADP/O ratio, respiratory control ratio or in the dinitrophenol effect when succinate was used as substrate. With beta-hydroxybutyrate as substrate a small but statistically significant decrease was found in the ADP/O ratio but not in the other parameters or in the dinitrophenol effect. Further, no changes in mitochondrial Mg(2+)-activated adenosine triphosphatase, dinitrophenol-activated adenosine triphosphatase or in the dinitrophenol-activated adenosine triphosphatase/Mg(2+)-activated adenosine triphosphatase ratio were found as a result of the chronic ethanol treatment. 4. Liver microsomal NADPH oxidase activity, a H(2)O(2)-producing system, was increased by 80-100% by chronic ethanol treatment. Oxidation of formate to CO(2)in vivo was also increased in these animals. The increase in formate metabolism could theoretically be accounted for by an increased production of H(2)O(2) by the NADPH oxidase system plus formate peroxidation by catalase. However, an increased production of H(2)O(2) and oxidation of ethanol by the catalase system could not account for more than 10-20% of the increased ethanol metabolism in the animals chronically treated with ethanol. 5. Results presented indicate that chronic ethanol ingestion results in a faster mitochondrial O(2) consumption in situ suggesting a faster NADH reoxidation. Although only a minor change in mitochondrial coupling was observed with isolated mitochondria, the possibility of an uncoupling in the intact cell cannot be completely discarded. Regardless of the mechanism, these changes could lead to an increased metabolism of ethanol and of other endogenous substrates.

Early stage diagnosis of oral cancer using 1H NMR-based metabolomics

Oral cancer is the eighth most common cancer worldwide and represents a significant disease burden. If detected at an early stage, survival from oral cancer is better than 90% at 5 years, whereas late stage disease survival is only 30%. Therefore, there is an obvious clinical utility for novel metabolic markers that help to diagnose oral cancer at an early stage and to monitor treatment response. In the current study, blood samples of oral cancer patients were analyzed using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to derive a metabolic signature for oral cancer. Using multivariate chemometric analysis, we obtained an excellent discrimination between serum samples from cancer patients and from a control group and could also discriminate between different stages of disease. The metabolic profile obtained for oral cancer is significant, even for early stage disease and relatively small tumors. This suggests a systemic metabolic response to cancer, which bears great potential for early diagnosis.

Metabolomic and mass isotopomer analysis of liver gluconeogenesis and citric acid cycle. I. Interrelation between gluconeogenesis and cataplerosis; formation of methoxamates from aminooxyacetate and ketoacids

We conducted a study coupling metabolomics and mass isotopomer analysis of liver gluconeogenesis and citric acid cycle. Rat livers were perfused with lactate or pyruvate +/- aminooxyacetate or mercaptopicolinate in the presence of 40% enriched NaH(13)CO(3). Other livers were perfused with dimethyl [1,4-(13)C(2)]succinate +/- mercaptopicolinate. In this first of two companion articles, we show that a substantial fraction of gluconeogenic carbon leaves the liver as citric acid cycle intermediates, mostly alpha-ketoglutarate. The efflux of gluconeogenic carbon ranges from 10 to 200% of the rate of liver gluconeogenesis. This cataplerotic efflux of gluconeogenic carbon may contribute to renal gluconeogenesis in vivo. Multiple crossover analyses of concentrations of gluconeogenic intermediates and redox measurements expand previous reports on the regulation of gluconeogenesis and the effects of inhibitors. We also demonstrate the formation of adducts from the condensation, in the liver, of (i) aminooxyacetate with pyruvate, alpha-ketoglutarate, and oxaloacetate and (ii) mercaptopicolinate and pyruvate. These adducts may exert metabolic effects unrelated to their effect on gluconeogenesis.

Late onset of dietary restriction reverses age-related decline of malate-aspartate shuttle enzymes in the liver and kidney of mice

Dietary restriction (DR) influences several physiological processes, retards the incidences and severity of various age-related diseases and extends lifespan of various animal species. The effect of DR on the activities of malate-aspartate shuttle enzymes, viz. cytosolic and mitochondrial aspartate aminotransferase (c- and m-AsAT) and malate dehydrogenase (c- and m-MDH) was investigated in the liver and kidney of adult (5-months) and old (21-months) male mice. The results show that the activity (U/mg protein) of both c- and m-MDH and AsAT is decreased significantly in the liver and kidney of old mice compared to adult ones. However, DR in old mice reverses significantly the enzyme activities to a level closer to adult animals. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) and specific staining of c-AsAT, one of the selected isoenzymes of the shuttle, showed a similar pattern of activity expression as observed by activity measurements in both the tissues studied. Slot blot analysis of c-AsAT confirmed the lower protein content of this isoenzyme in old mice compared to adult ones and a higher level in old-dietary restricted mice. Thus, our results suggest that the late onset of DR in older mice reverses decline in malate-aspartate shuttle enzymes and that it may allow a better metabolic regulation in older animals.

Teaching the role of mitochondrial transport in energy metabolism

Studies from our laboratories over recent years have uncovered the existence, and established the properties of a variety of mitochondrial transporters. The properties of these transporters throw light on a variety of biochemical phenomena that were previously poorly understood. In particular the role of mitochondrial transport in energy metabolism has been investigated under a variety of physio-pathological conditions. Consistently we describe the procedure to investigate mitochondrial traffic in isolated mitochondria as a model system for students to learn. Here we report some observations that contribute to novel knowledge of the role of mitochondria in glycolysis, urea and purine nucleotide cycle, and nitrogen metabolism with particular reference to the malate/oxaloacetate shuttle and fumarate, glutamine, and lactate metabolism.

C19‐5‐ene Steroids in Nature

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), produced from cholesterol in the adrenals, is the most abundant steroid in our circulation. It is present almost entirely as the sulfate ester, but the free steroid is the form that serves as a precursor of estrogens and androgens, as well as 7- and 16-oxygenated derivatives. Mammalian tissues reduce the 17-keto Group of DHEA to produce androstenediol-a weak estrogen and full-fledged androgen. Its androgen activity is not inhibited by the anti-androgens commonly used to treat prostate cancer. It is probably responsible for the growth of therapy-resistant prostate cancer. DHEA is hydroxylated at the 7 alpha position, and this derivative is oxidized by 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase to form 7-keto DHEA. The latter is reduced by the same dehydrogenase to form 7 beta-hydroxy DHEA. When fed to rats, each of the latter three steroids induce the formation of two thermogenic enzymes in the liver. The late-term human fetus produces relatively large amounts of 16 alphahydroxy DHEA, which serves the mother as a precursor of estriol.

Transformations of DHEA and its metabolites by rat liver

Because dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) has a wide variety of weak beneficial effects in experimental animals and humans, we searched for metabolites of this steroid in the hope of finding more active compounds that might qualify for the title "steroid hormone." Incubation of DHEA with rat liver homogenate fortified with energy-yielding substrates resulted in rapid hydroxylation at the 7alpha-position of the molecule and subsequent conversion to other 7-oxygenated steroids in the sequence DHEA --> 7alpha-hydroxyDHEA --> 7-oxoDHEA --> 7beta-hydroxyDHEA, with branching to diols, triols, and sulfate esters. The ability of these metabolites to induce the formation of liver thermogenic enzyme activity increased from left to right in that sequence. A total of 25 different steroids were characterized, and at least six additional structures that are currently under study were produced from DHEA. 7-OxoDHEA is more effective than DHEA in enhancing memory performance in old mice and in reversing the amnesic effects of scopolamine.

Normal thyroid thermogenesis but reduced viability and adiposity in mice lacking the mitochondrial glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase

The mitochondrial glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase (mGPD) is important for metabolism of glycerol phosphate for gluconeogenesis or energy production and has been implicated in thermogenesis induced by cold and thyroid hormone treatment. mGPD in combination with the cytosolic glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase (cGPD) is proposed to form the glycerol phosphate shuttle, catalyzing the interconversion of dihydroxyacetone phosphate and glycerol phosphate with net oxidation of cytosolic NADH. We made a targeted deletion in Gdm1 and produced mice lacking mGPD. On a C57BL/6J background these mice showed a 50% reduction in viability compared with wild-type littermates. Uncoupling protein-1 mRNA levels in brown adipose tissue did not differ between mGPD knockout and control pups, suggesting normal thermogenesis. Pups lacking mGPD had decreased liver ATP and slightly increased liver glycerol phosphate. In contrast, liver and muscle metabolites were normal in adult animals. Adult mGPD knockout animals had a normal cold tolerance, normal circadian rhythm in body temperature, and demonstrated a normal temperature increase in response to thyroid hormone. However, they were found to have a lower body mass index, a 40% reduction in the weight of white adipose tissue, and a slightly lower fasting blood glucose than controls. The phenotype may be secondary to consequences of the obligatory production of cytosolic NADH from glycerol metabolism in the mGPD knockout animal. We conclude that, although mGPD is not essential for thyroid thermogenesis, variations in its function affect viability and adiposity in mice.

Thyroid hormone and dehydroepiandrosterone permit gluconeogenic hormone responses in hepatocytes

The importance of the sn-glycerol- 3-phosphate (G-3-P) electron transfer shuttle in hormonal regulation of gluconeogenesis was examined in hepatocytes from rats with decreased mitochondrial G-3-P dehydrogenase activity (thyroidectomized) or increased G-3-P dehydrogenase activity [triiodothyronine (T(3)) or dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) treated]. Rates of glucose formation from 10 mM lactate, 10 mM pyruvate, or 2.5 mM dihydroxyacetone were somewhat less in hypothyroid cells than in cells from normal rats but gluconeogenic responses to calcium addition and to norepinephrine (NE), glucagon (G), or vasopressin (VP) were similar to the responses observed in cells from normal rats. However, with 2. 5 mM glycerol or 2.5 mM sorbitol, substrates that must be oxidized in the cytosol before conversion to glucose, basal gluconeogenesis was not appreciably altered by hypothyroidism but responses to calcium and to the calcium-mobilizing hormones were abolished. Injecting thyroidectomized rats with T(3) 2 days before preparing the hepatocytes greatly enhanced gluconeogenesis from glyc erol and restored the response to Ca(2+) and gluconeogenic hormones. Feeding dehydroepiandrosterone for 6 days depressed gluconeogenesis from lactate or pyruvate but substantially increased glucose production from glycerol in euthyroid cells and restored responses to Ca(2+) in hypothyroid cells metabolizing glycerol. Euthyroid cells metabolizing glycerol or sorbitol use the G-3-P and malate/aspartate shuttles to oxidize excess NADH generated in the cytosol. The transaminase inhibitor aminooxyacetate (AOA) decreased gluconeogenesis from glycerol 40%, but had little effect on responses to Ca(2+) and NE. However, in hypothyroid cells, with minimal G-3-P dehydrogenase, AOA decreased gluconeogenesis from glycerol more than 90%. Thus, the basal rate of gluconeogenesis from glycerol in the euthyroid cells is only partly dependent on electron transport from cytosol to mitochondria via the malate/aspartate shuttle and almost completely dependent in the hypothyroid state, and the hormone enhancement of the rate in euthyroid cells involves primarily the G-3-P cycle. These data are consistent with Ca(2+) being mobilized by gluconeogenic hormones and G-3-P dehydrogenase being activated by Ca(2+) so as to permit it to transfer reducing equivalents from the cytosol to the mitochondria.

Flux of the L-serine metabolism in rat liver. The predominant contribution of serine dehydratase

L-Serine metabolism in rat liver was investigated, focusing on the relative contributions of the three pathways, one initiated by L-serine dehydratase (SDH), another by serine:pyruvate/alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (SPT/AGT), and the other involving serine hydroxymethyltransferase and the mitochondrial glycine cleavage enzyme system (GCS). Because serine hydroxymethyltransferase is responsible for the interconversion between serine and glycine, SDH, SPT/AGT, and GCS were considered to be the metabolic exits of the serine-glycine pool. In vitro, flux through SDH was predominant in both 24-h starved and glucagon-treated rats. Flux through SPT/AGT was enhanced by glucagon administration, but even after the induction, its contribution under quasi-physiological conditions (1 mM L-serine and 0.25 mM pyruvate) was about (1)/(10) of that through SDH. Flux through GCS accounted for only several percent of the amount of L-serine metabolized. Relative contributions of SDH and SPT/AGT to gluconeogenesis from L-serine were evaluated in vivo based on the principle that 3H at the 3 position of L-serine is mostly removed in the SDH pathway, whereas it is largely retained in the SPT/AGT pathway. The results showed that SPT/AGT contributed only 10-20% even after the enhancement of its activity by glucagon. These results suggested that SDH is the major metabolic exit of L-serine in rat liver.

Dicarboxylic acid fluxes during gluconeogenesis. No channelling of mitochondrial oxalacetate

A rather complete model of the gluconeogenic pathway was used, with the known separate pools of mitochondrial and cytosolic oxalacetate, malate and aspartate. The fumarase, malate dehydrogenase and glutamate oxalacetate transaminase reactions were assumed to be isotopically actively reversible, but none at isotopic equilibrium. Malate was assumed to exchange actively between the mitochondria and cytosol, while aspartate exchange was more limited, in agreement with the known electrogenic nature of aspartate export from the mitochondria. This model was fit to 14C data obtained in hepatocyte studies, and to the whole rat 14C data obtained by Heath and Rose (Biochem J. 227, 851-876, 1985). The latter data were easily fit to our model, when a single mitochondrial oxalacetate pool was assumed. However, invoking two mitochondrial oxalacetate pools, as proposed by Heath and Rose, with the oxalacetate formed via pyruvate carboxylase preferentially channelled to gluconeogenesis, could not be fit with the known differences in scrambling in glucose and glutamate produced from L[3-14C]lactate.

Concerning the mechanism of increased thermogenesis in rats treated with dehydroepiandrosterone

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) treatment of rats decreases gain of body weight without affecting food intake; simultaneously, the activities of liver malic enzyme and cytosolic glycerol-3-P dehydrogenase are increased. In the present study experiments were conducted to test the possibility that DHEA enhances thermogenesis and decreases metabolic efficiency via transhydrogenation of cytosolic NADPH into mitochondrial FADH2 with a consequent loss of energy as heat. The following results provide evidence which supports the proposed hypothesis: (a) the activities of cytosolic enzymes involved in NADPH production (malic enzyme, cytosolic isocitrate dehydrogenase, and aconitase) are increased after DHEA treatment; (b) cytosolic glycerol-3-P dehydrogenase may use both NAD+ and NADP+ as coenzymes; (c) activities of both cytosolic and mitochondrial forms of glycerol-3-P dehydrogenase are increased by DHEA treatment; (d) cytosol obtained from DHEA-treated rats synthesizes more glycerol-3-P during incubation with fructose-1,6-P2 (used as source of dihydroxyacetone phosphate) and NADP+; the addition of citrate in vitro further increases this difference; (e) mitochondria prepared from DHEA-treated rats more rapidly consume glycerol-3-P added exogenously or formed endogenously in the cytosol in the presence of fructose-1,6-P2 and NADP+.

Effects of alanine on malate-aspartate shuttle in perfused livers from cold-exposed rats

The role of glucocorticoids in the increase by cold-exposure of the effect of alanine on the malate-aspartate shuttle was studied in perfused rat liver. The capacity of the shuttle was evaluated by measurement of changes in both the rate of glucose production from sorbitol and the ratio of lactate to pyruvate during ethanol oxidation (Biomed. Res. 6, Suppl., 1986). The effect of alanine on the shuttle capacity was decreased by adrenalectomy. When 1.5 mg/kg dexamethasone sulfate was administrated to adrenalectomized rats kept at 24 or 4 degrees C, once daily for 5 days, the effect of alanine on the shuttle increased its capacity to the level of sham-operated rats that had been exposed to 4 degrees C for 5 days. The effects of dexamethasone were blocked by the coadministration of tetracycline with the agent. Cold exposure and steroid replacement had little effect on the alanine-induced elevation of the levels of aspartate, glutamate, and alpha-ketoglutarate in liver cells. The increase of the effect of alanine could not be explained only by changes in the activity of NAD+ malate dehydrogenase and aspartate aminotransferase. The results suggest that cold exposure and replacement treatment with glucocorticoids modulate equally the effect of alanine on the capacity of the malate-aspartate shuttle.

Glucose metabolism in renal tubular function

Heterogeneity of metabolic activity along the nephron points to a very varied relationship between glucose metabolism and ion transport. Glycolysis is linked closely to free-water clearance and possibly to sodium, potassium, and hydrogen ion transport. Glucose oxidation, while not the major source of renal energy, is crucial in sodium, potassium, and phosphate reabsorption. Gluconeogenesis recovers carbon compounds generated during the process of renal ammoniagenesis. Glucose synthesis and active sodium transport appear to compete for renal ATP, although no regulatory function for this competition has been identified. Glucose formed in the proximal tubule may support free-water clearance in adjacent distal tubule, but is not thought to contribute to any medullary function. The complex network of biosynthetic and catabolic pathways of glucose metabolism may have evolved in the kidney to protect the organism against wide variations in glucose demand which would otherwise be unavoidable during the course of rapidly fluctuating renal electrolyte loads.

Quinolinate inhibition of gluconeogenesis is dependent on cytosolic oxalacetate concentration. An explanation for the differential inhibition of lactate and pyruvate gluconeogenesis

In isolated rat hepatocytes, the phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) inhibitor, quinolinate decreased gluconeogenesis from lactate more than from pyruvate (78 vs 44%). Quinolinate inhibition of PEPCK has been reported to be competitive with oxalacetate (OAA), and therefore higher cytosolic OAA concentrations could be expected to alleviate quinolinate inhibition of PEPCK and hence reduce its effect on gluconeogenesis. With pyruvate as a carbon source, the cytosolic concentration of OAA was higher than with lactate (40 vs 9.7 microM). The levels of OAA were manipulated metabolically by adding asparagine (which provides more cytosolic OAA through the urea cycle) or oleate (which increases malate efflux from the mitochondria). In each of the 8 conditions studied, quinolinate inhibition of gluconeogenesis was inversely related to the levels of OAA in the cytosol. Quinolinate inhibition of asparagine gluconeogenesis was not due to a non-specific effect on urea synthesis.

Selective inhibition of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase in rat hepatocytes

Experiments were conducted with intact rat hepatocytes to identify inhibitors and incubation conditions that cause selective inhibition of alanine aminotransferase or aspartate aminotransferase. Satisfactory results were obtained by preincubating cells with L-cycloserine or L-2-amino-4-methoxy-trans-but-3-enoic acid in the absence of added substrates. When cells were incubated for 20 min with 50 microM-L-cycloserine, alanine aminotransferase activity was decreased by 90%, whereas aspartate aminotransferase was inhibited by 10% or less. On subsequent incubation, synthesis of glucose and urea from alanine was strongly inhibited, but glucose synthesis from lactate was unaffected. L-2-Amino-4-methoxy-trans-but-3-enoic acid (400 microM) in hepatocyte incubations caused 90-95% inactivation of aspartate aminotransferase, but only 15-30% loss of alanine aminotransferase activity. After preincubation with the inhibitor, glucose synthesis from lactate was almost completely blocked; with alanine as the substrate, gluconeogenesis was unaffected, and urea synthesis was only slightly decreased. By comparison with preincubation with inhibitors, simultaneous addition of substrates (alanine; lactate plus lysine) and inhibitors (cycloserine; aminomethoxybutenoic acid) resulted in smaller decreases in aminotransferase activities and in metabolic rates. Other compounds were less satisfactory as selective inhibitors. Ethylhydrazinoacetate inactivated the two aminotransferases to similar extents. Vinylglycine was almost equally effective in blocking the two enzymes in vitro, but was a very weak inhibitor when used with intact cells. Concentrations of DL-propargylglycine (4 mM) required to cause at least 90% inhibition of alanine aminotransferase in hepatocytes also caused a 16% decrease in aspartate aminotransferase. When tested in vitro, alanine aminotransferase was, as previously reported by others, more sensitive to inhibition by amino-oxyacetate than was aspartate aminotransferase, but in liver cell incubations the latter enzyme was more rapidly inactivated by amino-oxyacetate.

The sub-cellular localisation of pyruvate carboxylase and of some other enzymes in Aspergillus nidulans

The sub-cellular localisation of enzymes has been defined by latency analysis, and fractionation by differential centrifugation, in cell-free extracts prepared from the mycelium of Aspergillus nidulans by growth in the presence of 2-deoxyglucose followed by treatment with a mixture of beta-glucuronidase, sulphatase and beta-glucanase and exposure to N2 cavitation at 5.2 PMa. In such extracts pyruvate carboxylase and NAD-dependent and NADP-dependent glutamate dehydrogenases are exclusively localised in the cytosol whereas all the other enzymes studied have sub-cellular localisation patterns similar to those described for mammalian liver. Electrophoretic analysis has established the presence of unique mitochondrial and cytosolic isoenzymes for many of the enzymes, e.g. NAD--malate dehydrogenase, NADP--isocitrate dehydrogenase, glutamate/oxaloacetate transaminase, fumarase, which show a marked extent of incomplete latency and the presence of significant activity in the mitochondrial and cytosolic fractions prepared by differential centrifugation. A novel method is described for detection of citrate synthase activity following electrophoresis of the cell-free extract. Application of this method confirms the absence of a unique cytosolic isoenzyme of citrate synthase and hence shows that citrate synthase activity detected in the soluble fraction results from damage to the mitochondria during isolation. A scheme is proposed on the basis of these data to describe the organisation of lipid and amino acid synthesis from glucose in an organism which possesses a cytosolic pyruvate carboxylase.

Fluctuations in the enzymatic activity of the human endometrium

Cyclic fluctuations were studied in the activity of oxidoreductases playing a role in the major energy metabolic pathways, lysosomal and non-lysosomal hydrolases and some non-enzymatic cytochemical components demonstrable in different developmental physiological or pathophysiological phases of human endometrium. The total scope of the study involved 170 tissues and cytological specimens. The cytological material included microcurettings, aspirates, brush preparations and tissue prints. An evaluation of the usefulness of the application of enzyme cytochemistry to cytological material is included. The most important results were a cyclic fluctuation and a progestagenic controlled increase in the activity of many oxidoreductases, especially the NADPH regenerating enzymes of the pentose phosphate pathway, and of the NADP+ dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase. The histochemical evaluation of the activity of these NADP+ linked enzymes can therefore be recommended for the evaluation of the physiological status of the endometrial cells, especially in patients with infertility problems.

Gluconeogenesis in vitro. Formation of glucose 6-phosphate from malate by a cell-free rat-liver system consisting of cytosol and mitochondria

A cell-free system prepared from rat liver containing cytosol and mitochondria as well as a number of cofactors at near physiological concentrations was shown to form glucose 6-phosphate from malate + 3-phosphoglycerate at a rate of 1.11 +/- 0.09 mumol . min-1 . g liver-1 (mean +/- SEM, n = 9, 30 degrees C). At least 70% of glucose 6-phosphate formed was derived from malate as calculated from experiments with [U-14C]malate. The indicated rates were measured between 10 min and 30 min incubation time when the system was near steady state with respect to the lactate/pyruvate ratio and to most of the gluconeogenic intermediates. In the absence of mitochondria, the rate of formation of glucose 6-phosphate from malate was about seven times lower than in their presence. A comparison between incubations carried out in presence or absence of mitochondria revealed that mitochondria decreased the lactate/pyruvate ratio and increased the ratio of (ATP + ITP)/(ADP + IDP). It could be shown that under the present incubation conditions, formation of glucose 6-phosphate was closely linked to the ratio of (ATP + ITP)/(ADP + IDP) whereas changing redox ratios had little influence on the gluconeogenic rate.

Re-activation by glutamate or aspartate of amino-oxyacetate-inhibited aspartate aminotransferase in vitro and in isolated hepatocytes

Experiments with isolated rat hepatocytes and with cell extracts indicate, in contrast with previous reports, that pyruvate does not block or reverse the inhibition of aspartate aminotransferase (EC 2.6.1.1) by amino-oxyacetate. That inhibition, however, is partially overcome by glutamate or aspartate either in cell extracts or in whole cells incubated with substrate combinations that cause accumulation of those amino acids.

13C NMR study of gluconeogenesis from labeled alanine in hepatocytes from euthyroid and hyperthyroid rats

Metabolism of [3-13C]alanine in the presence and absence of beta-hydroxybutyrate or ethanol has been followed at 25 degrees C by 13C NMR at 90.5 MHz in primary hepatocytes from untreated rats and rats treated with triiodothyronine and not allowed to eat for 24 hr. The phosphoenolpyruvate/pyruvate futile cycle was followed in situ by comparing the concentration of 13C at the scrambled alanine C2 position with that at glucose C5. In the absence of ethanol, the flux through pyruvate kinase was 60% of the gluconeogenic flux in hepatocytes from hyperthyroid rats, compared with 25% in the controls. Incubation with ethanol reduced the pyruvate kinase flux in the hyperthyroid state to that measured in the controls. Under all conditions, the relative concentration of label at the aspartate C2 and C3 sites was 1:2, whereas at the corresponding carbons in glutamate, randomization was almost complete. These observations, which require flux of unscrambled label into aspartate, are consistent with intramitochondrial synthesis of aspartate only if there is incomplete mixing of the intramitochondrial oxaloacetate pool. The 13C enrichment measured in the ketone bodies is increased by the presence of exogenous beta-hydroxybutyrate. The greater labeling that we observe at C2 of beta-hydroxybutyrate compared with C4 under this condition is explained by the flow through 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A synthase.

Kinetics and mechanisms of glutamate transport across the mitochondrial membrane

The kinetics of glutamate influx and efflux on the glutamate-hydroxyl carrier have been measured and compared in rat liver mitochondria. At pH 7.4 and 25 degrees C, the Michaelis constants and V'max values were in agreement with the Haldane relationship when the alpha pH was accounted for. The Km values for glutamate influx and aspartate efflux on the glutamate-aspartate translocator are also reported. Extrapolation of the maximum velocities to 37 degrees and the intact liver provide values of 5.6 and 2.4 mmol/g dry wt/hr for glutamate influx and efflux, respectively, on the glutamate-aspartate translocator. Both translocators operate by a sequential mechanism with formation of a ternary complex. Their possible regulatory role in urea synthesis by liver is assessed.

Relationship between lactate and glutamine metabolism in vitro by the kidney: differences between dog and rat and importance of alanine synthesis in the dog

Interaction between lactate (1 or 5 mM) and glutamine (1 or 5 mM) metabolism was studied with renal cortical slices incubated at a pH of 7.0 and obtained from acidotic (ammonium chloride) dogs and rats. The effect of aminooxyacetate (0.2 mM), dichloroacetate (3 mM), and fluoroacetate (0.05 mM) was also studied. Significant differences were observed between dog and rat. In the dog, lactate had no effect on glutamine uptake and vice versa, but gluconeogenesis increased. Ammonia production, however, decreased by 13 to 21%, whereas a significant increase in alanine production was noted. In the rat, glutamine extraction and ammonia production dropped by 33% with 5 mM lactate. In contrast to the observation in the dog, no production of alanine was noted, but significant accumulation of glutamate took place. Amino-oxyacetate inhibited alanine production in the dog and reestablished ammoniagenesis, and it led to a marked decrement in the uptake of lactate and glucose production in both species. Dichloroacetate in the dog resulted in a reduction in pyruvate, alanine, glucose, and ammonia production while glutamate accumulation was observed. In both species, fluoroacetate stimulated glutamine uptake and ammonia production. With lactate alone, fluoroacetate decreased lactate uptake and glucose production. With both lactate and glutamine in the medium, fluoroacetate prevented any effect of lactate on ammoniagenesis. The present study demonstrates that lactate has a modest depressing effect on renal ammonia production by dog slices through increased synthesis of alanine and redistribution of nitrogen from glutamine. In the rat, the depressing effect of lactate on ammonia production in the alanine amino-transferase deficient kidney occurs through accumulation of glutamate. The data also reveal that oxidation of lactate to carbon dioxide is greater in the dog than it is in the rat, but that gluconeogenesis from lactate is more important in the rat.

Inhibition of gluconeogenesis in isolated rat liver cells by methylenecyclopropylpyruvate (ketohypoglycin)

1. In isolated rat liver cells, hypoglycin is a less effective inhibitor of gluconeogenesis than its transamination product, methylenecyclopropylpyruvate (ketohypoglycin). 2. Methylenecyclopropylpyruvate at 0.3 mM inhibits gluconeogenesis from all substrates tested, except fructose. 3. Methylenecyclopropylpyruvate does not affect 14CO2 release from [1(-14)C]palmitate, but, in the absence of lactate, inhibits ketogenesis and causes a decrease in the [beta-hydroxybutyrate]/[acetoacetate] ratio. These effects are masked when lactate (10 mM) is present. 4. In the presence of lactate and palmitate, 0.3 mM-methylenecyclopropylpyruvate produces a fall in total acid-soluble CoA and a relative increase in short-chain acyl-CoA at the expense of CoA and acetyl-CoA without changing the ATP, ADP and aspartate contents or the [lactate]/[pyruvate] ratio. 5. Many of the effects of methylenecyclopropylpyruvate observed are consistent with inhibition of butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase and of specific CoA-dependent enzymes involved in gluconeogenesis.