Amino acid transport in peripheral nerve: energy and sodium dependence

Insulin increases amino acid transport into rat soleus motor axons

Hyperosmotic neurosecretion was used to measure basal and insulin-stimulated amino acid and myoinosital transport into rat motor nerve terminals. L-Alanine and alpha(methylamino)-isobutyric acid (a nonmetabolizable system A-specific analog) transport was rapid into motor nerve terminals innervating a fast-twitch muscle, the extensor digitorum longus, and slow into motor nerve terminals innervating the soleus, a slow-twitch muscle. A physiological concentration of insulin, 10 microU/mL, increased L-alanine and alpha(methylamino)-isobutyric acid transport into motor nerve terminals in the soleus. Large doses of insulin, 100 or 1000 microU/mL, had no effect on L-alanine or alpha(methylamino)-isobutyric acid transport into nerve terminals in the extensor digitorum longus. There was negligible basal or insulin-stimulated transport of D-alanine or myoinositol into nerve terminals of the soleus or extensor digitorum longus. These studies show that insulin regulates sterospecific amino acid transport into soleus motor axons, but has no effect on the rapid amino acid transport into extensor digitorum longus motor axons. Differences in basal and insulin-stimulated transport suggest that motor axons differ in their metabolism, and might be selectively vulnerable to disease processes.

Local protein synthesizing activity in axonal fields regenerating in vitro

The goldfish retinal explant system of Landreth and Agranoff was used to study endogenous protein synthesizing activity of retinal ganglion cell axons regenerating in culture. Light and electron microscopic examination of axonal fields showed that axons were free of nonneural cell investment. Decentralized axons were incubated with a mixture of tritiated amino acids, and direct quantitative microanalysis of protein and tritium radioactivity was carried out on individual axonal fields. Our findings showed that radioactive amino acids were incorporated into axonal protein in a manner that inhibited significantly by cycloheximide, but not by chloramphenicol. Decentralized axons appeared to maintain their viability for at least 3-4 h. Axonal fields maintaining their central connections to the explant incorporated 3H-amino acids at an apparent rate that was similar to decentralized axonal fields. Labeled material transported into axonal fields from ganglion cell bodies appeared in significant amounts after a delay of 2-3 h. Fluorographic patterns of axonal proteins after labeling with either 3H-amino acids or [35S]methionine and separated by microelectrophoresis indicated that primarily tubulin and, to a lesser extent, actin were labeled. Our findings indicate that goldfish retinal ganglion cell axons regenerating in vitro exhibit measureable endogenous protein-synthesizing activity.

Effects of polarizing currents and repetitive stimulation on the uptake of amino acids by peripheral nerve

The effects of polarizing currents and repetitive stimulation on the uptake of representative amino acids have been studied in peripheral nerve. Glutamic acid, lysine, pheylalanine, and GABA were chosen for study as representatives of different carrier-mediated transport mechanisms. Depolarizing currents inhibited uptakes of glutamic acid, lysine, and GABA; maximum inhibitions were 56.1%, 20.0%, and 16.7%, respectively. Pheylalanine uptake was not inhibited by polarizing currents under any experimental conditions. Only glutamic acid uptake was inhibited by hyperpolarizing current, with a maximum inhibition of 43.9%. Stimulation had no significant effect on uptake of lysine, phenylalanine, or GABA but was found to potentiate uptake of glutamic acid by 12%.

Regional transport of phenylalanine across the blood-brain barrier

In adult rats, using the single-pass brain uptake technique with a tritiated water standard, L-phenylalanine was shown to enter brain across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) by both a saturable and diffusionary process. A kinetic analysis of the data revealed a Michaelis constant (Ka) of 0.42 mM and a Vmax of 35 nmoles g-1 min-1. The saturable component of L-phenylalanine transport was adversely affected by dinitrophenol or or low sodium concentration in the intracarotid injection solution. Intravascular ouabain did not affect transport and only partial inhibition was observed with 1.5 mM L-leucine. It appears that there is no reginonal difference in the capacity of the BBB to move L-phenylalanine from blood to brain. This process is directly or indirectly coupled to sodium movement and is partially dependent on cellular energy.