The effects of amino acids on albumin synthesis by the isolated perfused rat liver.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Kelman L
PROVIDER: S-EPMC1174225 | biostudies-other | 1972 Oct
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other
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Project description:Background and purposePurinergic signalling plays an important role in vascular tone regulation in humans. We have identified uridine adenosine tetraphosphate (Up(4)A) as a novel and highly potent endothelial-derived contracting factor. Up(4)A induces strong vasoconstrictive effects in the renal vascular system mainly by P2X(1) receptor activation. However, other purinoceptors are also involved and were analysed here.Experimental approachThe rat isolated perfused kidney was used to characterize vasoactive actions of Up(4)A.Key resultsAfter desensitization of the P2X(1) receptor by ?,?-methylene ATP (?,?-meATP), Up(4)A showed dose-dependent P2Y(2)-mediated vasoconstriction. Continuous perfusion with Up(4)A evoked a biphasic vasoconstrictor effect: there was a strong and rapidly desensitizing vasoconstriction, inhibited by P2X(1) receptor desensitization. In addition, there is a long-lasting P2Y(2)-mediated vasoconstriction. This vasoconstriction could be blocked by suramin, but not by PPADS or reactive blue 2. In preparations of the rat isolated perfused kidney model with an elevated vascular tone, bolus application of Up(4)A showed a dose-dependent vasoconstriction that was followed by a dose-dependent vasodilation. The vasoconstriction was in part sensitive to P2X(1) receptor desensitization by ?,?-meATP, and the remaining P2Y(2)-mediated vasoconstriction was only inhibited by suramin. The Up(4)A-induced vasodilation depended on activation of nitric oxide synthases, and was mediated by P2Y(1) and P2Y(2) receptor activation.Conclusions and implicationsUp(4)A activated P2X(1) and P2Y(2) receptors to act as a vasoconstrictor, whereas endothelium-dependent vasodilation was induced by P2Y(1/2) receptor activation. Up(4)A might be of relevance in the physiology and pathophysiology of vascular tone regulation.
| S-EPMC2990153 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Protein synthesis in isolated rat hepatocytes, as measured by the incorporation of [14C]-valine at constant specific radioactivity, proceeded at a rate of 0.3-0.5%/h in an unsupplemented medium, i.e. only about one-tenth the rate of protein degradation (4%/h). Leupeptin, which inhibits lysosomal protein degradation (previously found to be 75% of the total degradation in hepatocytes), had no effect on protein synthesis, showing that endogenous protein degradation supplied amino acids in excess of the substrate requirements for protein synthesis. The inhibition of protein synthesis by NH4Cl (another inhibitor of lysosomal protein degradation) as well as the stimulation by a physiological amino acid mixture must therefore represent indirect effects, either on general energy metabolism, or on unknown regulatory processes.
| S-EPMC1185936 | biostudies-other
Project description:1. The rate of gluconeogenesis from alanine in the perfused rat liver is affected by the presence of other metabolizable substances, especially fatty acids, ornithine and ethanol. Gluconeogenesis is accelerated by oleate and by ornithine. When both oleate and ornithine were present the acceleration was greater than expected on the basis of mere additive effects. 2. Much NH(3) and some urea were formed from alanine when no ornithine was added. With ornithine almost all the nitrogen released from alanine appeared as urea. 3. Lactate was a major product of alanine metabolism. Addition of oleate, and especially of oleate plus ornithine, decreased lactate formation. 4. Ethanol had no major effect on gluconeogenesis from alanine when this was the sole added precursor. Gluconeogenesis was strongly inhibited (87%) when oleate was also added, but ethanol greatly accelerated gluconeogenesis when ornithine was added together with alanine. 5. In the absence of ethanol the alanine carbon and alanine nitrogen removed were essentially recovered in the form of glucose, lactate, pyruvate, NH(3) and urea. 6. In the presence of ethanol the balance of both alanine carbon and alanine nitrogen showed substantial deficits. These deficits were largely accounted for by the formation of aspartate and glutamine, the formation of which was increased two- to three-fold. 7. When alanine was replaced by lactate plus NH(4)Cl, ethanol also caused a major accumulation of amino acids, especially of aspartate and alanine. 8. Earlier apparently discrepant results on the effects of ethanol on gluconeogenesis from alanine are explained by the fact that under well defined conditions ethanol can inhibit, or accelerate, or be without major effect on the rate of gluconeogenesis. 9. It is pointed out that in the synthesis of urea through the ornithine cycle half of the nitrogen must be supplied in the form of asparate and half in the form of carbamoyl phosphate. The accumulation of aspartate and other amino acids suggests that ethanol interferes with the control mechanisms which regulate the stoicheiometric formation of aspartate and carbamoyl phosphate.
| S-EPMC1177866 | biostudies-other
Project description:High concentrations of urea were shown to induce a paradoxical regulatory volume decrease response with K(+) channel opening and subsequent hepatocyte shrinkage (Hallbrucker, C., vom Dahl, S., Ritter, M., Lang, F., and Häussinger, D. (1994) Pflügers Arch. 428, 552-560), although the hepatocyte plasma membrane is thought to be freely permeable to urea. The underlying mechanisms remained unclear. As shown in the present study, urea (100 mmol/liter) induced within 1 min an activation of β(1) integrins followed by an activation of focal adhesion kinase, c-Src, p38(MAPK), extracellular signal-regulated kinases, and c-Jun N-terminal kinase. Because α(5)β(1) integrin is known to act as a volume/osmosensor in hepatocytes, which becomes activated in response to hepatocyte swelling, the findings suggest that urea at high concentrations induces a nonosmotic activating perturbation of this osmosensor, thereby triggering a volume regulatory K(+) efflux. In line with this, similar to hypo-osmotic hepatocyte swelling, urea induced an inhibition of hepatic proteolysis, which was sensitive to p38(MAPK) inhibition. Molecular dynamics simulations of a three-dimensional model of the ectodomain of α(5)β(1) integrin in water, urea, or thiourea solutions revealed significant conformational changes of α(5)β(1) integrin in urea and thiourea solutions, in contrast to the simulation of α(5)β(1) in water. These changes lead to an unbending of the integrin structure around the genu, which may suggest activation, whereas the structures of single domains remained essentially unchanged. It is concluded that urea at high concentrations affects hepatic metabolism through direct activation of the α(5)β(1) integrin system.
| S-EPMC2937967 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Aristolochic acids are natural nitro-compounds found globally in the plant genus Aristolochia that have been implicated in the severe illness in humans termed aristolochic acid nephropathy (AAN). Aristolochic acids undergo nitroreduction, among other metabolic reactions, and active intermediates arise that are carcinogenic. Previous experiments with rats showed that aristolochic acid I (AA-I), after oral administration or injection, is subjected to detoxication reactions to give aristolochic acid Ia, aristolactam Ia, aristolactam I, and their glucuronide and sulfate conjugates that can be found in urine and feces. Results obtained with whole rats do not clearly define the role of liver and kidney in such metabolic transformation. In this study, in order to determine the specific role of the kidney on the renal disposition of AA-I and to study the biotransformations suffered by AA-I in this organ, isolated kidneys of rats were perfused with AA-I. AA-I and metabolite concentrations were determined in perfusates and urine using HPLC procedures. The isolated perfused rat kidney model showed that AA-I distributes rapidly and extensively in kidney tissues by uptake from the peritubular capillaries and the tubules. It was also established that the kidney is able to metabolize AA-I into aristolochic acid Ia, aristolochic acid Ia O-sulfate, aristolactam Ia, aristolactam I, and aristolactam Ia O-glucuronide. Rapid demethylation and sulfation of AA-I in the kidney generate aristolochic acid Ia and its sulfate conjugate that are voided to the urine. Reduction reactions to give the aristolactam metabolites occur to a slower rate. Renal clearances showed that filtered AA-I is reabsorbed at the tubules, whereas the metabolites are secreted. The unconjugated metabolites produced in the renal tissues are transported to both urine and perfusate, whereas the conjugated metabolites are almost exclusively secreted to the urine.
| S-EPMC3276251 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The concept that a general intracellular pool serves as the sole precursor of amino acids for protein biosynthesis has been vigorously debated in recent years. To help resolve this controversy, we followed the distribution of intraperitoneally administered [(3)H]valine in the tRNA and the extracellular and intracellular compartments of rat liver. The specific radioactivity of the valine released from isolated tRNA was 2-3 times higher than that of intracellular valine, suggesting that the intracellular pool cannot be the sole precursor of amino acids used for charging tRNA. In addition, the specific radioactivity of the tRNA was only half that of the extracellular valine. Therefore it is unlikely that the valyl-tRNA is charged exclusively with amino acids derived from the extracellular pool. A model is proposed which stipulates that both extracellular and intracellular amino acids contribute to a restricted compartment that funnels amino acids towards protein biosynthesis.
| S-EPMC1168033 | biostudies-other
Project description:Several amino acids were found to stimulate glycogen synthesis and lipogenesis, and to inhibit ketogenesis in isolated rat hepatocytes. When hepatocytes were incubated in the presence of 20 mM-glucose, the amino acids could be classified in decreasing order of efficiency as follows: glutamine and proline, alanine, aminoisobutyric acid, asparagine and histidine for stimulation of glycogen synthesis; glutamine, proline and alanine for stimulation of lipogenesis; proline and glutamine for inhibition of ketogenesis. The study of the time course revealed that the rates were not linear and were preceded by a lag period. In all conditions studied, glutamine and proline were found to have similar quantitative effects on glycogen synthesis and lipid metabolism. However, their effects differ qualitatively. Indeed, the effects of proline on glycogen synthesis, lipogenesis and glutamate and aspartate content were faster. Moreover, proline increased the hydroxybutyrate/acetoacetate ratio, whereas glutamine did not change it. Incubation of hepatocytes with aminoisobutyric acid or under hypo-osmotic conditions, which increased cell volume and mimicked the amino acid-induced stimulation of glycogen synthesis, had little effect on lipogenesis. In hepatocytes incubated without glucose, ketogenesis was inhibited, in decreasing order of efficiency, by alanine, asparagine, glutamine and proline. Under these conditions, glutamine increased, alanine decreased and asparagine did not affect the concentration of malonyl-CoA. This indicates that the latter cannot be responsible for the inhibition of ketogenesis by alanine and asparagine.
| S-EPMC1149878 | biostudies-other
Project description:In a non-recirculating system of isolated liver perfusion, stimulation of urea synthesis by NH4Cl is followed by a decrease of effluent pH by up to 0.2 pH unit. This effect is not observed when urea synthesis is inhibited by amino-oxyacetate or norvaline. When the urea formed by the liver is immediately hydrolysed with urease before the effluent perfusate reaches the pH electrode, the urea-synthesis-induced acidification is no longer observed. This indicates that accompanying alterations in hepatic metabolism after stimulation of urea synthesis, such as increased energy provision and consumption, are not responsible for the extracellular acidification, but that the effect is due to the formation of urea itself. The acidification of the extracellular space after stimulation of urea synthesis by NH4Cl is quantitatively explained by the consumption of 2 mol of HCO3-/mol of urea formed: 1 mol being incorporated into urea, the other being protonated to yield CO2 and H2O. The data match the theoretically predicted HCO3- consumption during ureogenesis and underline the role of hepatic urea synthesis for disposal of HCO3- by converting it into the excretable products CO2 and urea.
| S-EPMC1146814 | biostudies-other
Project description:Ischemic post-conditioning (iPoCo) by coronary re-occlusion/reperfusion during immediate reperfusion after prolonged myocardial ischemia reduces infarct size. Mechanical manipulation of culprit lesions, however, carries the risk of coronary microembolization which may obscure iPoCo's cardioprotection. Pharmacological post-conditioning with exogenous triiodothyronine (T3) could serve as an alternative conditioning strategy. Similar to iPoCo, T3 may activate cardioprotective prosurvival pathways. We aimed to study T3's impact on infarct size and its underlying signal transduction. Hearts were isolated from male Lewis rats (200-380 g), buffer-perfused and subjected to 30 min/120 min global zero-flow ischemia/reperfusion (I/R). In additional hearts, either iPoCo (2 × 30 s/30 s I/R) was performed or T3 (100-500 µg/L) infused at reperfusion. Infarct size was demarcated with triphenyl tetrazolium chloride staining and calculated as percent of ventricular mass. Infarct size was reduced with iPoCo to 16 ± 7% vs. 36 ± 4% with I/R only. The maximum infarct size reduction was observed with 300 µg/L T3 (14 ± 2%). T3 increased the phosphorylation of protein kinase B and mitogen extracellular-regulated-kinase 1/2, both key enzymes of the reperfusion injury salvage kinase (RISK) pathway. Pharmacological RISK blockade (RISK-BL) during reperfusion abrogated T3's cardioprotection (35 ± 10%). Adult ventricular cardiomyocytes were isolated from buffer-perfused rat hearts and exposed to 30 min/5 min hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R); reoxygenation was initiated without or with T3, respectively, and without or with RISK-BL, respectively. Maximal preservation of viability was observed with 500 µg/L T3 after H/R (27 ± 4% of all cells vs. 5 ± 3% in time-matched controls). Again, RISK-BL abrogated protection (11 ± 3%). Mitochondria were isolated at early reperfusion from buffer-perfused rat hearts without or with iPoCo or 300 µg/L T3, respectively, at reperfusion. T3 improved mitochondrial function (i.e.: increased respiration, adenosine triphosphate production, calcium retention capacity, and decreased reactive oxygen species formation) to a similar extent as iPoCo. T3 at reperfusion reduces infarct size by activation of the RISK pathway. T3's protection is a cardiomyocyte phenomenon and targets mitochondria.
| S-EPMC8055637 | biostudies-literature
Project description:1. Isolated rat liver was perfused with heparinized whole blood under physiological pressure resulting in the secretion of bile at about the rate observed in vivo. 2. The preparation remained metabolically active for 4h and was apparently normal in function and microscopic appearance. 3. When the perfusate plasma and liver cholesterol pool was labelled by the introduction of [2-(14)C]mevalonic acid the specific radioactivity of the perfusate cholesterol increased. The biliary acids (cholic acid and chenodeoxycholic acid) were labelled and had the same specific radioactivity. 4. Livers removed from rats immediately after, and 40h after, the start of total biliary drainage, were perfused; increased excretion rates of both cholic acid and chenodeoxycholic acid were found when the liver donors had been subjected to biliary drainage. 5. The incorporation of [2-(14)C]mevalonic acid or rat lipoprotein labelled with [(14)C]cholesterol into bile acids was studied. 6. A dissociation between the mass of bile acid excreted and the rate of incorporation of (14)C was found. This was attributed to the changing specific radioactivity of the cholesterol pool acting as the immediate bile acid precursor.
| S-EPMC1179221 | biostudies-other