The appearance of transition forms between monocytes and Kupffer cells in the liver of rats treated with glucan. A cytochemical and ultrastructural study.

A massive accumulation of mononuclear phagocytes in the rat liver was found after the injection of glucan, a beta-1,3-polyglucose. Portal vessels and central veins contained large numbers of rounded and elongated cells which were adherent to the endothelium. By scanning electron microscopy most of these cells exhibited prominent lemellopodia, raised ridge-like profiles and blebs, the typical features of mononuclear phagocytes. Peroxidase cytochemistry revealed that whereas most cells in portal vessels were monocytes with peroxidase positive and negative granules, the majority of cells in central veins were macrophages exhibiting peroxidase activity in nuclear envelope (NE) and endoplasmic reticulum (ER). In sinusoids monocytes and macrophages were seen side by side. The major finding of the present study was that some cells, adherent to the endothelium or portal vessels or to the lining of sinusoids, exhibited a peroxidase pattern intermediate between monocytes and Kupffer cells, i.e. strong peroxidase activity in cytoplasmic granules, as well as a weak to moderately positive peroxidase reaction in NE and ER. These intermediate cells also contained peroxidase-negative granules with halo, which are usually seen in monocytes. Furthermore, examination of serial ultrathin sections of typical Kupffer cells revealed numerous peroxidase-positive granules and peroxidase-negative granules with halo in their cytoplasm. Finally, dividing Kupffer cells with positive peroxidase reaction in ER were found. These in vivo observations provide ultrastructural and cytochemical evidence in support of the concept of derivation of Kupffer cells from monocytes, demonstrating in addition that Kupffer cells are capable of self-replication in situ.

An ultrastructural study of glomerular permeability using catalase and peroxidase as tracer proteins.

Mice were injected intravenously with beef liver catalase (mol wt 240,000) and very small doses of horseradish peroxidase (mol wt 40,000) and the site of localization of these enzymes in the kidney was studied by ultrastructural cytochemistry. 1 min after injection, catalase was present in glomerular capillary lumina and there was minimal permeation of the basement membrane. After 5-180 min, staining of the basement membrane increased progressively but was usually less than that in capillary lumina. At all time intervals the inner (sub-endothelial) layer of the basement membrane contained more reaction product than the lamina densa and the outer (subepithelial) layer. Catalase permeated the entire thickness of the basement membrane and extended up to the slit pore but not beyond the level of the slit diaphragm and was not seen in the urinary space or tubular lumina. Horseradish peroxidase permeated the whole thickness of the basement membrane within 2 min after injection; however, gradients of staining from the inner to outer layers of the basement membrane were frequently seen. The findings with both enzymes indicate that (a) the basement membrane restricts the passage of proteins over a wide range of molecular size with increasing impediment for larger molecules and (b) the slit pore functions as an additional barrier for molecules that cross the basement membrane.

The fine structural localization of endogenous and exogenous peroxidase activity in Kupffer cells of rat liver.

Endogenous peroxidase activity has been demonstrated in sections of rat liver fixed briefly by glutaraldehyde perfusion and incubated in Graham and Karnovsky's medium for cytochemical demonstration of peroxidase activity (29). In 25-40% of sinusoidal cells, an electron-opaque reaction product is localized in segments of the endoplasmic reticulum, including the perinuclear cisternae, a few Golgi vesicles and saccules and in some large membrane-bounded granules. This staining is abolished after prolonged fixation or boiling of tissue sections in glutaraldehyde, and in the absence of H(2)O(2) or DAB from the incubation medium. Furthermore, the reaction is inhibited completely by sodium azide and high concentrations of H(2)O(2), and partially by KCN and aminotriazole. Among the different cells in hepatic sinusoids, the nonphagocytic "fat-storing" cells (39) are always peroxidase negative, whereas the lining cells in process of erythrophagocytosis are consistently peroxidase positive. The possible biological significance of endogenous peroxidase in Kupffer cells is discussed. In addition, the uptake of exogenous horseradish peroxidase by Kupffer cells has been investigated. The exogenous tracer protein, which in contrast to endogenous peroxidase of Kupffer cells is not inhibited by prolonged aldehyde fixation, is taken up by micropinocytosis and remains confined to the lysosomal system of Kupffer cells. The significance of these observations in respect to some recent studies suggesting localization of exogenous peroxidases in the endoplasmic reticulum of Kupffer cells and peritoneal macrophages (22, 23) is briefly discussed.

Cytochemical localization of peroxidatic activity of catalase in rat hepatic microbodies (peroxisomes).

Prominent staining of rat hepatic microbodies was obtained by incubating sections of aldehyde-fixed rat liver in a modified Graham and Karnovsky's medium for ultrastructural demonstration of peroxidase activity. The electron-opaque reaction product was deposited uniformly over the matrix of the microbodies. The microbodies were identified by their size, shape, presence of tubular nucleoids, and other morphologic characteristics, and by their relative numerical counts. The staining reaction was inhibited by the catalase inhibitor, aminotriazole, and by KCN, azide, high concentrations of H(2)O(2), and by boiling of sections. These inhibition studies suggest that the peroxidatic activity of microbody catalase is responsible for the staining reaction. In the absence of exogenous H(2)O(2) appreciable staining of microbodies was noted only after prolonged incubation. Addition of sodium pyruvate, which inhibits endogenous generation of H(2)O(2) by tissue oxidases, or of crystalline catalase, which decomposes such tissue-generated H(2)O(2), completely abolished microbody staining in the absence of H(2)O(2). Neither diaminobenzidine nor the product of its oxidation had any affinity to bind nonenzymatically to microbody catalase and thus stain these organelles. The staining of microbodies was optimal at alkaline pH of 8.5. The biological significance of this alkaline pH in relation to the similar pH optima of several microbody oxidases is discussed. In addition to staining of microbodies, a heat-resistant peroxidase activity is seen in some of the peribiliary dense bodies. The relation of this reaction to the peroxidase activity of lipofuscin pigment granules is discussed.

Three-dimensional reconstruction of a peroxisomal reticulum in regenerating rat liver: evidence of interconnections between heterogeneous segments.

The three-dimensional (3-D) form and the interrelationship of peroxisomes (Po) in the model of regenerating rat liver after partial hepatectomy were studied by computer-assisted 3-D reconstruction of serial ultrathin sections. Po were labeled cytochemically for either catalase, which stains them all uniformly, or for D-amino acid oxidase (DAA-OX), which gives a heterogeneous reaction with lightly and darkly stained PO. In regenerating rat liver, Po exhibit marked pleomorphism with some budding forms and dumbbell-shaped ones. The 3-D reconstruction revealed many single spherical Po measuring 0.15-0.8 micron in diameter. In addition, two to five Po were found interconnected with each other via narrow 30-50-nm hourglass-shaped bridges forming a reticulum. Such aggregates of Po measured 1.5-2.5 microns across. Whereas all segments of this reticulum stained homogeneously for catalase, they exhibited a marked difference in the intensity of the DAA-OX reaction. These observations are consistent with the view of peroxisomal proliferation by budding or fragmentation from preexisting ones. Under such conditions of rapid growth as in regenerating liver, Po may be interconnected forming a reticulum. The interconnections between Po with differing DAA-OX activities suggest that they originate from the same parent organelle.

Purification of marginal plates from bovine renal peroxisomes: identification with L-alpha-hydroxyacid oxidase B.

The matrix of mammalian peroxisomes frequently contains crystalline inclusions. The most common inclusions are membrane associated plate-like "marginal plates" of hitherto unknown nature in renal peroxisomes and central polytubular "cores" composed of urate oxidase in hepatic peroxisomes. In bovine kidney, peroxisomes of proximal tubules exhibit peculiar angular shapes that are caused by multiple marginal plates (Zaar, K., and H.D. Fahimi. 1990. Cell Tissue Res. 260:409-414). Enriched or highly purified peroxisome preparations from this source were used to purify and characterize marginal plates. By SDS-PAGE, one major polypeptide of Mr 33,500 was observed that corresponded to the marginal plate protein. This polypeptide was identified by its enzymatic activity as well as by immunoblotting and preembedding immunocytochemistry as the isozyme B of L-alpha-hydroxyacid oxidase (EC 1.4.3.2). Morphologically, marginal plates were revealed to consist of rectangular straight-edged sheets, exhibiting a defined crystalline lattice structure. The sheets apparently are composed of a single layer of protomers which associate laterally to form a plate-like structure. As deduced from the negative staining results and the additional information of the thickness of marginal plates, each protomer seems to consist of eight subunits forming a cube-like array. The tendency of L-alpha-hydroxyacid oxidase B to self-associate in vitro (Philips, D.R., J.A. Duley, D.J. Fennell, and R.S. Holmes. 1976. Biochim. Biophys. Acta. 427:679-687) corresponds to the mode of association of cubical protomers to form the so-called marginal plates in renal peroxisomes.

The use of beef liver catalase as a protein tracer for electron microscopy.

Beef liver catalase was injected intravenously into mice, and its distribution in the kidney, myocardium, and liver was studied with the electron microscope. A specific and relatively sensitive method was developed for its ultrastructural localization, based on the peroxidatic activity of catalase and employing a modified Graham and Karnovsky incubation medium. The main features of the medium were a higher concentration of diaminobenzidine, barium peroxide as the source of peroxide, and pH of 8.5. Ultrastructurally, the enzyme was seen to permeate the endothelial fenestrae and basement membranes of tubular and glomerular capillaries of the kidney. The urinary space and tubular lumina contained no reaction product. In the myocardial capillaries, the tracer filled the pinocytotic vesicles but did not diffuse across the intercellular clefts of the endothelium. In liver, uptake of catalase was seen both in hepatocytes and in Kupffer cells.

Cytochemical localization of two glycolytic dehydrogenases in white skeletal muscle.

The cytochemical localization, by conventional methods, of lactate and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenases is limited, firstly, by the solubility of these enzymes in aqueous media and, secondly, by the dependence of the final electron flow from reduced nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide (NADH) to the tetrazolium on tissue diaphorase activity: localization is therefore that of the diaphorase, which in rabbit adductor magnus is mitochondrial. NADH has been found to have great affinity to bind in the sarcoplasmic reticulum, and, therefore, if it is generated freely in the incubation media containing 2,2',5,5'-tetra-p-nitrophenyl-3,3'-(3,3'-dimethoxy-4,4'-phenylene)-ditetrazolium chloride (TNBT) and N-methyl phenazonium methyl sulfate (PMS), it can bind there and cause a false staining. Since such a production of NADH can readily occur in the incubation media for glycolytic dehydrogenases due to diffusion of these soluble enzymes from tissue sections, the prevention of enzyme solubilization is extremely important. Fixation in formaldehyde prevented such enzyme diffusion, while at the same time sufficient activity persisted to allow for adequate staining. The incubation media contained PMS, so that the staining system was largely independent of tissue diaphorase activity. Application of these methods to adductor magnus of rabbit revealed by light microscopy, for both enzymes, a fine network which was shown by electron microscopy to represent staining of the sarcoplasmic reticulum. Mitochondria also reacted. These findings add further support for the notion that the sarcoplasmic reticulum is probably involved in glycolytic activity.

Biogenesis of peroxisomes: immunocytochemical investigation of peroxisomal membrane proteins in proliferating rat liver peroxisomes and in catalase-negative membrane loops.

Treatment of rats with a new hypocholesterolemic drug BM 15766 induces proliferation of peroxisomes in pericentral regions of the liver lobule with distinct alterations of the peroxisomal membrane (Baumgart, E., K. Stegmeier, F. H. Schmidt, and H. D. Fahimi. 1987. Lab. Invest. 56:554-564). We have used ultrastructural cytochemistry in conjunction with immunoblotting and immunoelectron microscopy to investigate the effects of this drug on peroxisomal membranes. Highly purified peroxisomal fractions were obtained by Metrizamide gradient centrifugation from control and treated rats. Immunoblots prepared from such peroxisomal fractions incubated with antibodies to 22-, 26-, and 70-kD peroxisomal membrane proteins revealed that the treatment with BM 15766 induced only the 70-kD protein. In sections of normal liver embedded in Lowicryl K4M, all three membrane proteins of peroxisomes could be localized by the postembedding technique. The strongest labeling was obtained with the 22-kD antibody followed by the 70-kD and 26-kD antibodies. In treated animals, double-membraned loops with negative catalase reaction in their lumen, resembling smooth endoplasmic reticulum segments as well as myelin-like figures, were noted in the proximity of some peroxisomes. Serial sectioning revealed that the loops seen at some distance from peroxisomes in the cytoplasm were always continuous with the peroxisomal membranes. The double-membraned loops were consistently negative for glucose-6-phosphatase, a marker for endoplasmic reticulum, but were distinctly labeled with antibodies to peroxisomal membrane proteins. Our observations indicate that these membranous structures are part of the peroxisomal membrane system. They could provide a membrane reservoir for the proliferation of peroxisomes and the expansion of this intracellular compartment.

Biogenesis of peroxisomes: isolation and characterization of two distinct peroxisomal populations from normal and regenerating rat liver.

According to Poole et al. (1970, J. Cell Biol. 45:408-415), newly synthesized peroxisomal proteins are incorporated uniformly into peroxisomes (PO) of different size classes, suggesting that rat hepatic PO form a homogeneous population. There is however increasing cytochemical and biochemical evidence that PO in rat liver are heterogenous, undergoing significant modulations in shape and size in process of PO morphogenesis (Yamamoto and Fahimi, 1987. J. Cell Biol. 105:713-722). In the present study, the kinetics of incorporation of newly synthesized proteins into distinct PO-subpopulations have been studied using short-term in vivo labeling (5-90 min). Two distinct "heavy" and "light" crude PO fractions were prepared by differential pelleting from normal and regenerating liver, and highly purified PO were subsequently isolated by density-dependent metrizamide gradient centrifugation according to Völkl and Fahimi (1985. Eur. J. Biochem. 149:257-265). The peroxisomal fractions banded at 1.20 and 1.24 g x cm-3. They differed in their mean diameters and form-factors and particularly in respect to the activity of beta-oxidation enzymes which was higher in the "light" PO. Whereas the "light" PO exhibited a single immunoreactive band with the antibody to the 70-kD peroxisomal membrane protein the "heavy" PO contained an additional (68 kD) band. In pulse-labeling experiments "light" PO showed clearly a higher initial rate of incorporation than the "heavy" PO. The relative specific activity in the "heavy" PO fraction, however increased progressively reaching that of "light" PO by 90 min. These observations provide evidence for the existence of different PO populations in rat liver which differ in their morphological and biochemical properties as well as in their rates of incorporation of new proteins.

Mononuclear phagocytes (Kupffer cells) and endothelial cells. Identification of two functional cell types in rat liver sinusoids by endogenous peroxidase activity.

The fine structural characteristics and phagocytic properties of peroxidase-positive and peroxidase-negative cells in rat hepatic sinusoids were investigated. Cells with a positive peroxidase reaction in the endoplasmic reticulum and the nuclear envelope make up approximately 40% of cells in rat hepatic sinusoids and have abundant cytoplasm containing numerous granules and vacuoles, and occasional tubular, vermiform invaginations. After intravenous injection of colloidal carbon, the luminal plasma membrane of these cells shows continuous sticking of carbon, and there is evidence of avid phagocytosis of colloidal carbon particles. Peroxidase-positive cells are the only cells in hepatic sinusoids which phagocytize large (0.8 micro in diameter) latex particles. In contrast, the peroxidase-negative endothelial cells, which make up 48% of cells, have scanty perinuclear cytoplasm and organelles, and their long cytoplasmic extensions that form the lining of the hepatic sinusoids have fenestrations; these cells ingest small amounts of colloidal carbon, principally by micropinocytosis, exhibit no sticking of carbon particles to their plasma membranes, and do not ingest the larger (latex) particles. The so-called fat-storing cells are peroxidase negative and totally nonphagocytic. The peroxidase reaction thus distinguishes the typical mononuclear phagocytes or Kupffer cells of rat liver from the endothelial-lining cells.

Microbodies (peroxisomes) containing catalase in myocardium: morphological and biochemical evidence.

Microbodies characterized by a single limiting membrane and finely granular matrix occur in mouse myocardium and appear in close spatial relation to mitochondria and sarcoplasmic reticulum. The presence of catalase in the microbodies is revealed cytochemically and confirmed biochemically by direct measurement of its activity in myocardial tissue fractions. It is suggested that the microbodies may play an important role in myocardial lipid metabolism.

Cytochemical localization of lactate dehydrogenase in muscular dystrophy of the mouse.

By use of phenazine methosulfate and the "ncubation mixture film method," lactate dehydrogenase activity has been demonstrated in the dystrophic muscle fibers of strain 129 mice. The results indicate that for demonstration of lactate dehydrogenase activity in dystrophic muscle fibers phenazine methosulfate is necessary. This finding is typical for the "white" muscle fibers in the normal muscle and suggests that the dystrophy affects primarily the "white" muscle fibers.

Association of isolated bovine kidney cortex peroxisomes with endoplasmic reticulum.

Close lateral membrane associations of peroxisomes with endoplasmic reticulum are a common feature in bovine kidney cortex epithelial cells. Isolated highly purified peroxisome preparations from this tissue showed a remarkable and persistent copurification of peroxisomal marker enzymes with small amounts (5%) of the microsomal reference enzymes esterase and glucose-6-phosphatase. Contamination with mitochondrial and lysosomal markers was negligible. Ultrastructural examination of such preparations revealed a peculiar association of vesicles or short tubular segments with the peroxisomal membrane. Short electron dense crossbridges seemed to maintain their structural association. The cytochemical localization of glucose-6-phosphatase in peroxisome-associated membrane structures confirmed their derivation from endoplasmic reticulum. The metabolic significance of such structural peroxisome-endoplasmic reticulum associations is discussed.

Cytoplasmic and peroxisomal catalases of the guinea pig liver: evidence for two distinct proteins.

Catalase, a peroxisomal marker enzyme in the liver of most mammals, is found by immuno-electron microscopy in guinea pig (GP) hepatocytes not only in peroxisomes, but also in the cytoplasm (Beier et al. (1988) Eur. J. Cell Biol. 46, 129-135). We have been able to distinguish in GP liver homogenates between the cytosolic catalase and that part of the enzyme activity which is due to leakage of the enzyme from peroxisomes by adding 4% polyethylene glycol to the homogenization medium. This approach revealed that approximately 40% of the total catalase activity and almost all of alpha-hydroxy-acid oxidases are peroxisomal, while 60% of catalase is of genuine cytosolic origin. The cytosolic and peroxisomal catalases of guinea pig were purified to homogeneity and were analyzed by SDS-PAGE and isoelectric focussing. The cytosolic catalase exhibited a slightly higher Mr (approximately 1000) and a less acidic pI than the peroxisomal enzyme. Limited proteolysis and amino-acid analysis revealed also slight differences between the two molecular forms of catalase. Total RNA was isolated from guinea pig liver and translated in vitro by using a rabbit reticulocyte lysate system. Immunoprecipitation with an antibody against guinea pig catalase followed by high-resolution polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis revealed two polypeptide bands differing slightly in Mr. These observations suggest strongly, that cytoplasmic and peroxisomal catalases in guinea pig liver are two closely related but distinct proteins.

Complementary regulation of heme oxygenase-1 and peroxiredoxin I gene expression by oxidative stress in the liver.

Heme oxygenase (HO)-1, the inducible isoform of the rate-limiting enzyme of heme degradation, and peroxiredoxin (Prx) I, a thioredoxin-dependent peroxidase, are multifunctional antioxidant stress proteins which are coordinately up-regulated by oxidative stress in cell cultures. HO-1 and Prx I exhibit a different hepatic cellular and subcellular localization. Here, a distinct expression pattern of the two genes was confirmed by in situ hybridization of normal rat liver. Moreover, expression of the HO-1 and Prx I genes was determined in a model of acutely damaged rat liver which was elicited by application of a single dose of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4). The mRNA levels of the HO-1 and Prx I genes were induced in whole livers of CCl4-treated rats with differential kinetics as determined by Northern blot analysis. While HO-1 mRNA was induced up to 48 hr, Prx I exhibited a maximum level of mRNA after 12 hr of treatment with CCl4. CCl4-dependent oxidative stress led to a focal increase of perivenous HO-1 positive liver cells with simultaneous loss of Prx I immunoreactivity. Taken together, the complementary hepatic gene expression pattern of HO-1 and Prx I in response to oxidative stress may suggest a functional interplay of these antioxidant genes.

Biogenesis of peroxisomes in regenerating rat liver. I. Sequential changes of catalase and urate oxidase detected by ultrastructural cytochemistry.

The biogenesis of peroxisomes has been investigated in the model of regenerating rat liver after partial hepatectomy using ultrastructural cytochemical staining methods: catalase as a marker of the peroxisomal matrix and uricase for the cores. The peroxisomes in regenerating rat liver showed several distinctive features: a) marked variation in shape and size, e.g., peroxisomes with tail-like extensions and tortuously elongated rod-shaped ones, b) formation of peroxisomal clusters and, c) interconnections between adjacent peroxisomes suggesting cleavage or budding. Whereas the reaction product for catalase was present at all intervals after hepatectomy in the matrix of all peroxisomes, the pattern of localization of uricase case varied with the time. It was confined to the cores in controls and at 10 days after the operation, while at 24 and 48 h it showed, in addition, a diffuse reaction in the matrix of some peroxisomes. In interconnected apparently dividing peroxisomes, the core with positive uricase reaction was present only in one half, while the other half was devoid of the reaction product. Similarly, the diffuse uricase staining was confined to the half which contained the core with the other half remaining unstained. These observations are consistent with the concept that new peroxisomes are formed from preexisting ones by budding and segmentation. While catalase is transferred uniformly to all new segments, uricase is compartmentalized in certain portions, of the apparently growing "peroxisomal reticulum".

Isolation and characterization of peroxisomes from the renal cortex of beef, sheep, and cat.

The isolation and characterization of highly purified and structurally well-preserved peroxisomes from the renal cortex of different mammalian species (beef, sheep, and cat) is reported. Renal cortex tissue was homogenized and a peroxisome-enriched light mitochondrial fraction was prepared by differential centrifugation. This was subfractionated by density-dependent banding on a linear gradient of metrizamide (1.12-1.26 g/cm3) using a Beckman VTi 50 vertical rotor. Peroxisomes banded at a mean density of 1.225 cm3. Ultrastructural morphometric examination revealed that peroxisomes made up 97 to 98% of the isolated fractions. By biochemical analysis the contamination with marker enzymes of mitochondria and lysosomes was extremely low. The specific activity of catalase was enriched, depending on the species, between 28- and 38-fold over the homogenate. Peroxisome preparations from all three species exhibited a high but varying level of activity for cyanide-insensitive lipid beta-oxidation. In beef and sheep preparations a small amount of esterase activity cosediments with peroxisomes. These peroxisomes show distinct structural membrane associations with smooth elements of ER. Urate oxidase, a marker enzyme for rat liver peroxisomes, is found only in peroxisomes prepared from beef kidney cortex, with sheep and cat preparations being negative. This correlated with the occurrence of polytubular inclusions in the beef kidney peroxisomes. The large size and the angular shape of isolated peroxisomes as well as the presence of paracrystalline matrical inclusions imply that the majority of peroxisomes are derived from the epithelial cells of the proximal tubule of the kidney cortex. The significant differences found in the characteristics of the renal peroxisomes in three different species investigated, demonstrate the remarkable adaptability and plasticity of this organelle.

Peroxisomes in digestive gland cells of the mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis Lmk. Biochemical, ultrastructural and immunocytochemical characterization.

The present study was undertaken because of the paucity of information on peroxisomes in molluscs and the increasing importance of these organisms as sensitive indicators of environmental pollution. Peroxisomes were identified by electron microscopy in all three main cell types of the digestive gland of the bivalve mollusc Mytilus galloprovincialis Lmk. They stained weakly with the alkaline diaminobenzidine reaction but showed distinct immunolabeling with an antibody against mammalian catalase by the postembedding protein A-gold procedure. In addition, mussel digestive gland peroxisomes were isolated by differential and metrizamide-density gradient centrifugation, and a 30-fold enrichment of catalase and a 20-fold enrichment of palmitoyl-CoA oxidase was obtained over the initial homogenate. By Western blotting, isolated peroxisomes crossreacted with antibodies to catalase and, furthermore, specific and prominent labeling of isolated peroxisomes was also demonstrated in thin sections incubated with anti-catalase antibodies. These observations establish that peroxisomes in molluscan digestive gland contain the peroxisomal marker enzymes catalase and acyl-CoA oxidase and that they can be labeled by cytochemical and immunocytochemical techniques. Further studies of alterations of molluscan peroxisomes by environmentally relevant xenobiotics are warranted.

Tubular peroxisomes in HepG2 cells: selective induction by growth factors and arachidonic acid.

We showed recently the plasticity of the peroxisomal compartment in the human hepatoblastoma cell line HepG2 as evidenced by the presence of elongated tubular peroxisomes measuring up to 5 microm next to much smaller spherical or rod-shaped ones (0.1-0.3 microm). Since the occurrence of tubular peroxisomes in a given cell in culture is synchronized, with neighboring cells containing either small spherical or elongated tubular peroxisomes, cell counting of immunofluorescence preparations stained for catalase was used for the quantitative assessment of the dynamics of the peroxisomal compartment and the factors regulating this process. Initial studies revealed that the formation of tubular peroxisomes is primarily influenced by the cell density as well as by lipid- and protein-factors in fetal calf serum, being independent of an intact microtubular network. Biochemical studies showed that the occurrence of tubular peroxisomes correlated with the expression of the mRNA for 70 kDa peroxisomal membrane protein (PMP70), but not with that of matrix proteins. By cultivation of cells in serum- and protein-free media specific factors were identified which influenced the formation of tubular peroxisomes. Among several growth factors tested, nerve growth factor (NGF) was the most potent one inducing tubular peroxisomes and its effect was blocked by K252b, a specific inhibitor of neurotrophin receptor pathway, suggesting the involvement of signal transduction in this process. Furthermore, from several polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) which all induced tubular peroxisomes, the arachidonic acid (AA) was the most potent one. Our observations suggest that tubular peroxisomes are transient structures in the process of rapid expansion of the peroxisomal compartment which are induced either by specific growth factors or by polyunsaturated fatty acids both of which are involved in intracellular signaling.