Endoplasmic reticulum stress does not mediate palmitate-induced insulin resistance in mouse and human muscle cells.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Recent experiments in liver and adipocyte cell lines indicate that palmitate can induce endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. Since it has been shown that ER stress can interfere with insulin signalling, our hypothesis was that the deleterious action of palmitate on the insulin signalling pathway in muscle cells could also involve ER stress. METHODS: We used C2C12 and human myotubes that were treated either with palmitate or tunicamycin. Total lysates and RNA were prepared for western blotting or quantitative RT-PCR respectively. Glycogen synthesis was assessed by [¹4C]glucose incorporation. RESULTS: Incubation of myotubes with palmitate or tunicamycin inhibited insulin-stimulated protein kinase B (PKB)/ v-akt murine thymoma viral oncogene homologue 1 (Akt). In parallel, an increase in ER stress markers was observed. Pre-incubation with chemical chaperones that reduce ER stress only prevented tunicamycin but not palmitate-induced insulin resistance. We hypothesised that ER stress activation levels induced by palmitate may not be high enough to induce insulin resistance, in contrast with tunicamycin-induced ER stress. Indeed, tunicamycin induced a robust activation of the inositol-requiring enzyme 1 (IRE-1)/c-JUN NH2-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway, leading to serine phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS-1) and a decrease in IRS-1 tyrosine phosphorylation. In contrast, palmitate only induced a very weak activation of the IRE1/JNK pathway, with no IRS1 serine phosphorylation. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: These data show that insulin resistance induced by palmitate is not related to ER stress in muscle cells.

Biguanides and thiazolidinediones inhibit stimulated lipolysis in human adipocytes through activation of AMP-activated protein kinase.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: In rodent adipocytes, activated AMP-activated protein kinase reduces the lipolytic rate. As the hypoglycaemic drugs metformin and thiazolidinediones activate this enzyme in rodents, we tested the hypothesis that in addition to their known actions they could have an anti-lipolytic effect in human adipocytes. METHODS: Adipose tissue was obtained from individuals undergoing plastic surgery. Adipocytes were isolated and incubated with lipolytic agents (isoprenaline, atrial natriuretic peptide) and biguanides or thiazolidinediones. Lipolysis was quantified by the glycerol released in the medium. AMP-activated protein kinase activity and phosphorylation state were determined using standard procedures. RESULTS: In human adipocytes, isoprenaline and atrial natriuretic peptide stimulated the lipolytic rate three- to fourfold. Biguanides and thiazolidinediones activated AMP-activated protein kinase and inhibited lipolysis by 30-40%, at least in part by inhibiting hormone-sensitive lipase translocation to the lipid droplet. Inhibition of AMP-activated protein kinase by compound C precluded this inhibitory effect on lipolysis. Stimulation of lipolysis also induced an activation of AMP-activated protein kinase concomitant with a drop in ATP concentration. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: We show for the first time in human adipocytes that biguanides and thiazolidinediones activate AMP-activated protein kinase, thus counteracting lipolysis induced by lipolytic agents. In addition, beta-agonist- or ANP-stimulated lipolysis increases AMP-activated protein kinase activity. This is because of an increase in the AMP/ATP ratio, linked to activation of some of the released fatty acids into acyl-CoA. AMP-activated protein kinase activation could represent a physiological means of avoiding a deleterious drain of energy during lipolysis but could be used to restrain pharmacological release of fatty acids.

Constitutive activation of protein kinase B alpha by membrane targeting promotes glucose and system A amino acid transport, protein synthesis, and inactivation of glycogen synthase kinase 3 in L6 muscle cells.

Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase) has been implicated in the regulation of numerous cellular processes, including the insulin-induced regulation of glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK-3) and glucose transport. The hormonal-induced inactivation of GSK-3 is mediated by protein kinase B (PKB), a downstream target of PI 3-kinase, whose involvement in other insulin-stimulated responses remains poorly defined at present. In this study, we investigated whether the uptake of glucose, system A amino acid transport, and cellular protein synthesis are regulated by PKBalpha in L6 skeletal muscle cells. L6 cells stably overexpressing wild-type PKBalpha (wtPKBalpha) or a constitutively active membrane-targeted PKBalpha (mPKBalpha) showed a 3- and 15-fold increase in PKB activity, respectively. Both wtPKBalpha and mPKBalpha expression led to a significant increase in the basal uptake of glucose and methyl-aminoisobutyric acid (a substrate for the system A amino acid transporter), at least to a level seen in control cells treated with insulin. The stimulation in glucose transport was facilitated, in part, by the increased translocation of GLUT4 to the plasma membrane and also through an increase in the cellular synthesis of GLUT3. In the absence of insulin, only muscle cells expressing the constitutively active PKBalpha showed a significant increase in protein synthesis and an inhibition in GSK-3. Our results indicate that constitutive activation of PKBalpha in skeletal muscle stimulates the uptake of glucose, system A amino acids, and protein synthesis and promotes the inactivation of GSK-3. These observations imply that PKBalpha may have a role in the insulin-regulated control of these processes in skeletal muscle.

Activation of glucose transport by AMP-activated protein kinase via stimulation of nitric oxide synthase.

Glucose transport in skeletal muscle is stimulated by two distinct stimuli, insulin and exercise. The mechanism by which exercise stimulates glucose transport is not known, although it is distinct from the insulin-mediated pathway. Recently, it has been shown that AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is activated by exercise in skeletal muscle, whereas pharmacological activation of AMPK by 5-amino-4-imidazolecarboxamide riboside (AICAR) leads to increased glucose transport. It has been postulated, therefore, that AMPK may be the link between exercise and glucose transport. To address this, we have examined the signaling pathway involved in the stimulation of glucose uptake after activation of AMPK. Here we show that activation of AMPK by AICAR in rat muscle and mouse H-2Kb muscle cells activates glucose transport approximately twofold. AMPK in H-2Kb cells is also activated by hyperosmotic stress and the mitochondrial uncoupling agent, dinitrophenol, both of which lead to increased glucose transport. In contrast, insulin, which activates glucose transport two- to-threefold in both rat muscle and H-2Kb cells, has no effect on AMPK activity. A previous study has shown that AMPK phosphorylates and activates endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS). We show here that NOS activity in H-2Kb cells is activated after stimulation of AMPK by AICAR. Treatment of H-2Kb cells or rat muscle with NOS inhibitors completely blocks the increase in glucose transport after activation of AMPK. In addition, an inhibitor of guanylate cyclase also blocks activation of glucose transport by AICAR in H-2Kb cells. These results indicate that activation of AMPK in muscle cells stimulates glucose transport by activation of NOS coupled to downstream signaling components, including cyclic GMP.

Regulation of glucose transporters in cultured rat adipocytes: synergistic effect of insulin and dexamethasone on GLUT4 gene expression through promoter activation.

A triggering effect of insulin on GLUT4 expression in adipocytes is consistently observed in vivo, whereas GLUT1 is roughly unaffected. However, in cultured rat adipocytes, insulin increases GLUT1 but fails to increase GLUT4, suggesting that additional factors are involved in vivo. This prompted us to evaluate the potential role of glucocorticoids as coregulators with insulin of glucose transporter expression using 3T3-F442A adipose cells and primary cultured rat adipocytes. In both systems, insulin increased and dexamethasone decreased GLUT1 messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein, an effect inhibited by the glucocorticoid antagonist RU 38486. When the two hormones were added together, the effect of dexamethasone was dominant in 3T3-F442A cells, but was totally antagonized in rat adipocytes. Moreover, in rat adipocytes, the GLUT1 gene transcription rate (run-on) was identical in the absence or presence of the two hormones. With regard to GLUT4 expression, neither insulin nor dexamethasone alone had any significant effect after 2 days of treatment. In contrast, the combined hormones markedly increased GLUT4 mRNA (+550% in rat adipocytes; +130% in 3T3-F442A cells) and protein (+164% in rat adipocytes; +79% in 3T3-F442A cells) with a 24- to 48-h delay after mRNA induction. Studies of the molecular mechanism(s) showed that exposure of rat adipocytes to dexamethasone plus insulin did not affect GLUT4 mRNA stability, but increased the GLUT4 gene transcription rate 3-fold. Transient transfections of rat adipocytes with the 5'-flanking 2.2-kilobase sequence of the rat GLUT4 gene fused to luciferase demonstrated that promoter activity was unchanged by insulin, increased 50% by dexamethasone, and increased 3-fold in the presence of both. These data show that insulin elicits an increase in GLUT4 gene expression provided glucocorticoids are present. Our results indicate that the synergism between insulin and glucocorticoids on GLUT4 gene transcription is mediated through GLUT4 promoter activation.

Protein kinase B (PKB/Akt)--a key regulator of glucose transport?

The serine/threonine kinase protein kinase B (PKB/Akt) has been shown to play a crucial role in the control of diverse and important cellular functions such as cell survival and glycogen metabolism. There is also convincing evidence that PKB plays a role in the insulin-mediated regulation of glucose transport. Furthermore, states of cellular insulin resistance have been shown to involve impaired PKB activation, and this usually coincides with a loss of glucose transport activation. However, evidence to the contrary is also available, and the role of PKB in the control of glucose transport remains controversial. Here we provide an overview of recent findings, discuss the potential importance of PKB in the regulation of glucose transport and metabolism, and comment on future directions.

Analyses of the co-localization of cellubrevin and the GLUT4 glucose transporter in rat and human insulin-responsive tissues.

We have investigated the subcellular distribution and association of cellubrevin, a low molecular weight protein implicated in the process of membrane fusion, with intracellular membranes containing the insulin-sensitive GLUT4 glucose transporter from rat adipocytes, rat skeletal muscle and human skeletal muscle. SDS-PAGE and immunoblot analyses of subcellular fractions of adipocytes and skeletal muscle indicated a positive correlation between the distribution of GLUT4 and cellubrevin in intracellular membrane fractions tested from all tissues. The identity of the polypeptide reacting with antiserum against cellubrevin was further confirmed on the basis of its susceptibility to proteolysis by tetanus toxin. Immunoisolation of GLUT4-containing vesicles from a microsomal fraction enriched with GLUT4 and cellubrevin revealed that cellubrevin could be coprecipitated with GLUT4 vesicles from adipocytes. In contrast, intracellular GLUT4 vesicles isolated from both rat and human skeletal muscle were devoid of any detectable immunoreactivity towards cellubrevin. The observation that cellubrevin does not colocalise with intracellular GLUT4 in skeletal muscle from two different species, rat and human, would strongly suggest that it is unlikely to participate in the insulin-induced delivery of GLUT4 to the cell surface in skeletal muscle.

Lactate transport in rat adipocytes: identification of monocarboxylate transporter 1 (MCT1) and its modulation during streptozotocin-induced diabetes.

We have characterised L-lactate transport in rat adipocytes and determined whether these cells express a carrier belonging to the monocarboxylate transporter family. L-Lactate was taken up by adipocytes in a time-dependent, non-saturable manner and was inhibited (by approximately 90%) by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate. Lactate transport was stimulated by 3.7-fold upon lowering extracellular pH from 7.5 to 6.5 suggesting the presence of a lactate/proton-cotransporter. Antibodies against mono carboxylate transporter 1 (MCT1) reacted positively with plasma membranes (PM), but not with intracellular membranes, prepared from adipocytes. MCTI expression was down-regulated in PM of adipocytes from diabetic rats, which also displayed a corresponding loss (approximately 64%) in their capacity to transport lactate. The data support a role for MCT1 in lactate transport and suggest that changes in MCT1 expression are likely to have important implications for adipocyte lactate metabolism.

A new look at adipocyte lipid droplets: towards a role in the sensing of triacylglycerol stores?

Lipid droplets have been considered for a long time as inert intracytoplasmic deposits formed within cells under various conditions. Recently, new tools and new approaches have been used to visualize and study these intracellular structures. This revealed new aspects of lipid droplets biology and pointed out their organized structure and dynamic composition. In adipocytes, the specialized cell type for the storage of energy as fat, lipid droplets are particularly well-developed organelles and exhibit unique properties. Also discussed in this paper is the view that lipid droplets, through specific candidate constituents, can play a role in sensing the level of their lipid stores by adipocytes.

Fatty genotype-induced increase in GLUT4 promoter activity in transfected adipocytes: delineation of two fa-responsive regions and glucose effect.

We have previously shown that adipocytes from genetically obese rats exhibited increases in GLUT4 protein and mRNA expressions. In order to elucidate the responsible defect we examined here the activity of GLUT4 promoter using adipocytes transiently transfected with -2212 + 164 rat GLUT4 gene fragment fused to luciferase reporter gene. GLUT4 promoter activity was several-fold higher in obese than in lean rat adipocytes (x4 in suckling 16 days old and x6 in weaned 30 days old rats), demonstrating the implication of transcription factors in the fatty genotype effect on GLUT4 expression. 5' deletion analysis of GLUT4 promoter allowed us to delineate two regions, -907 to -502 and -151 to -68, critical to the genotype effect, suggesting that they harbor fa-response element(s). In lean rat adipocytes GLUT4 promoter activity was not affected by the presence of glucose in the culture medium. In contrast, in obese rat adipocytes GLUT4 transcriptional activity was increased 3-fold from 0 to 5mM glucose, the concentration required for the full genotype effect, suggesting interactions between glucose and fa-dependent GLUT4 transactivator(s).

Fructose uptake in rat adipocytes: GLUT5 expression and the effects of streptozotocin-induced diabetes.

Previous studies have shown that rat adipocytes possess the capacity to take up fructose by a mechanism that is distinct from that involved in the transport of glucose. In this investigation we report that rat adipocytes express the GLUT5 fructose transporter and that it is responsible for mediating a substantial component (approximately 80%) of the total cellular fructose uptake. This proposition is based on the finding that only 21% of the total fructose uptake was cytochalasin B (CB) sensitive which most likely reflects transport via GLUT1 and/or GLUT4. Consistent with this suggestion we found (i) that insulin caused a small, but significant stimulation in fructose uptake (approximately 35%) which was abolished in the presence of CB and (ii) that 3-O-methyl glucose inhibited fructose uptake to a level comparable with that observed in the presence of CB. GLUT5 was found to be localised only in the adipocyte plasma membrane and, unlike GLUT4 or GLUT1, its cell surface abundance was not modulated by insulin. GLUT5 expression fell substantially (by approximately 75%) in adipocytes of streptozotocin-diabetic rats and was accompanied by a reduction in fructose uptake by approximately 50%. Treatment of streptozotocin-diabetic rats with sodium orthovanadate for a period of 3 days led to a significant reduction in blood glycaemia by approximately 40% and a partial restoration in both GLUT5 expression and adipocyte fructose uptake. We suggest that fructose uptake in rat adipocytes is principally mediated by GLUT5 in an insulin- and CB-insensitive manner and that expression of GLUT5 in rat adipocytes may be regulated by changes in blood glycaemia.

Intracellular signalling mechanisms regulating glucose transport in insulin-sensitive tissues (review).

The rate of glucose transport into cells is of fundamental importance in whole body homeostasis and adaptation to metabolic stresses, and this review examines the signalling mechanisms controlling this process. The events that mediate the action of insulin on glucose transport, which is by far the best characterized paradigm for glucose transport regulation, are discussed. There are several excellent reviews on various aspects of this subject, which are referred to while highlighting very recent developments in the field, including the recently described CAP pathway, and emerging mechanisms for feedback regulation of insulin signalling. The manner in which hormonal signalling is modulated by stimuli such as oxidative and osmotic stress is then discussed. The second major physiological event where glucose transport regulation is critical is the contraction of skeletal muscle, due to the large metabolic demands of this activity. The mechanism of this regulation is distinct from that initiated by insulin, and recent developments will be examined that have begun to clarify how contraction stimulates glucose transport in skeletal muscle, including the roles performed by AMP-activated protein kinase and nitric oxide synthase.

Proteolytic cleavage of cellubrevin and vesicle-associated membrane protein (VAMP) by tetanus toxin does not impair insulin-stimulated glucose transport or GLUT4 translocation in rat adipocytes.

Acute insulin stimulation of glucose transport in fat and skeletal muscle occurs principally as a result of the hormonal induced translocation of the GLUT4 glucose transporter from intracellular vesicular stores to the plasma membrane. The precise mechanisms governing the fusion of GLUT4 vesicles with the plasma membrane are very poorly understood at present but may share some similarities with synaptic vesicle fusion, as vesicle-associated membrane protein (VAMP) and cellubrevin, two proteins implicated in the process of membrane fusion, are resident in GLUT4-containing vesicles isolated from rat and murine 3T3-L1 adipocytes respectively. In this study we show that proteolysis of both cellubrevin and VAMP, induced by electroporation of isolated rat adipocytes with tetanus toxin, does not impair insulin-stimulated glucose transport or GLUT4 translocation. The hormone was found to stimulate glucose uptake by approx. 16-fold in freshly isolated rat adipocytes. After a single electroporating pulse, the ability of insulin to activate glucose uptake was lowered, but the observed stimulation was nevertheless nearly 5-fold higher than the basal rate of glucose uptake. Electroporation of adipocytes with 600 nM tetanus toxin resulted in a complete loss of both cellubrevin and VAMP expression within 60 min. However, toxin-mediated proteolysis of both these proteins had no effect on the ability of insulin to stimulate glucose transport which was elevated approx. 5-fold, an activation of comparable magnitude to that observed in cells electroporated without tetanus toxin. The lack of any significant change in insulin-stimulated glucose transport was consistent with the finding that toxin-mediated proteolysis of both cellubrevin and VAMP had no detectable effect on insulin-induced translocation of GLUT4 in adipocytes. Our findings indicate that, although cellubrevin and VAMP are resident proteins in adipocyte GLUT4-containing vesicles, they are not required for the acute insulin-induced delivery of GLUT4 to the plasma membrane.

Biochemical and functional characterization of the GLUT5 fructose transporter in rat skeletal muscle.

Previous work has demonstrated that human skeletal muscle and adipose tissue both express the GLUT5 fructose transporter, but to date the issue of whether this protein is also expressed in skeletal muscle and adipose tissue of rodents has remained unresolved. In the present study we have used a combination of biochemical and molecular approaches to ascertain whether rat skeletal muscle expresses GLUT5 protein and, if so, whether it possesses the capacity to transport fructose. An isoform-specific antibody against rat GLUT5 reacted positively with crude membranes prepared from rat skeletal muscle. A single immunoreactive band of approx. 50 kDa was visualized on immunoblots which was lost when using anti-(rat GLUT5) serum that had been pre-adsorbed with the antigenic peptide. Subcellular fractionation of skeletal muscle localized this immunoreactivity to a single membrane fraction that was enriched with sarcolemma. Plasma membranes, but not low-density microsomes, from rat adipose tissue also displayed a single protein band of equivalent molecular mass to that seen in muscle. Reverse transcription-PCR analyses, using rat-specific GLUT5 primers, of muscle and jejunal RNA revealed a single PCR fragment of the expected size in jejunum and in four different skeletal muscle types. Sarcolemmal vesicles from rat muscle displayed fructose and glucose uptake. Vesicular uptake of glucose was inhibited by nearly 90% in the presence of cytochalasin B, whereas that of fructose was unaffected. To determine whether fructose could regulate GLUT5 expression in skeletal muscle, rats were maintained on a fructose-enriched diet for 4 days. This procedure increased jejunal and renal GLUT5 protein expression by approx. 4- and 2-fold respectively, but had no detectable effects on the abundance of GLUT5 protein in skeletal muscle or on fructose uptake in rat adipocytes. The present results show that GLUT5 is expressed in the sarcolemma of rat skeletal muscle and that it is likely to mediate fructose uptake in this tissue. Furthermore, unlike the situation in absorptive and re-absorptive epithelia, GLUT5 expression in insulin-sensitive tissues is not regulated by increased substrate supply.

L-leucine availability regulates phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, p70 S6 kinase and glycogen synthase kinase-3 activity in L6 muscle cells: evidence for the involvement of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway in the L-leucine-induced up-regulation of system A amino acid transport.

Amino acid availability is known to regulate diverse cell processes including the activation of p70 S6 kinase, initiation factors involved in mRNA translation, gene expression and cellular amino acid uptake. Essential amino acids, in particular the branched-chain amino acids (e.g. leucine), have been shown to be the dominant players in mediating these effects, although the precise nature by which they regulate these processes remain poorly understood. In this study we have investigated the mechanisms involved in the leucine-induced modulation of p70 S6 kinase and addressed whether this kinase participates in the up-regulation of the System A amino acid transporter in L6 muscle cells. Incubation of muscle cells that had been amino acid-deprived for 1 h with L-leucine (2 mM) led to a rapid (>2-fold) activation of p70 S6 kinase, which was suppressed by both wortmannin and rapamycin. Consistent with this finding, addition of leucine caused a rapid ( approximately 5-fold) but transient stimulation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K). PI3K activation was inhibited by wortmannin and was not dependent upon insulin receptor substrate-1 activation. Unlike stimulation by insulin, activation of neither protein kinase B nor p42/p44 mitogen-activated protein kinase accompanied the leucine-induced stimulation of PI3K. However, the leucine-induced activation of PI3K and p70 S6 kinase did result in the concomitant inactivation of glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3). Leucine enhanced System A transport by approximately 50%. We have shown previously that this stimulation is protein-synthesis-dependent and in the current study we show that it was blocked by both wortmannin and rapamycin. Our findings indicate that PI3K and the mammalian target of rapamycin are components of a nutrient signalling pathway that regulates the activation of p70 S6 kinase and induction of System A in L6 cells. The activation of this pathway by leucine is also responsible for the inactivation of GSK-3, and this is likely to have important regulatory implications for translation initiation.

Sensitive northern blot hybridization using digoxigenin RNA probes for the mRNA detection of two glucose transporter isoforms.

Diseases involving glucose metabolism disorders are more and more prevalent. Therefore the question of glucose transporter gene expression is being addressed in experimental and clinical studies. Radioactive probes are generally used to assess glucose transporter mRNA levels, but these probes are short-lived, costly and harmful to the environment. Alternative methods that do not present these disadvantages, for example digoxigenin (DIG) labelled probes, might prove to be very interesting for the study of glucose transporter mRNA. The aim of the present work was to compare DIG-labelled cRNA probes to 32P-labelled cRNA probes in order to see whether or not the non-radioactive method can be used to assess glucose transporter gene expression. This work shows that DIG-labelled glucose transporter (GLUT1 and GLUT4) cRNAs are suitable probes for the assessment of these gene expressions. We have found that the DIG system offers a much higher sensitivity than the 32P system for both GLUT1 and GLUT4 mRNA detection. This represents a decisive advantage in human studies where tissue quantity is a limiting factor. In addition, stability, safety, time saving and cost reduction are other considerations that make DIG-labelled GLUT1 and GLUT4 cRNAs very attractive.

Regulation of glucose transport and glycogen synthesis in L6 muscle cells during oxidative stress. Evidence for cross-talk between the insulin and SAPK2/p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling pathways.

We have investigated the cellular mechanisms that participate in reducing insulin sensitivity in response to increased oxidant stress in skeletal muscle. Measurement of glucose transport and glycogen synthesis in L6 myotubes showed that insulin stimulated both processes, by 2- and 5-fold, respectively. Acute (30 min) exposure of muscle cells to hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) blocked the hormonal activation of both these processes. Immunoblot analyses of cell lysates prepared after an acute oxidant challenge using phospho-specific antibodies against c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), p38, protein kinase B (PKB), and p42 and p44 mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases established that H(2)O(2) induced a dose-dependent activation of all five protein kinases. In vitro kinase analyses revealed that 1 mM H(2)O(2) stimulated the activity of JNK by approximately 8-fold, MAPKAP-K2 (the downstream target of p38 MAP kinase) by approximately 12-fold and that of PKB by up to 34-fold. PKB activation was associated with a concomitant inactivation of glycogen synthase kinase-3. Stimulation of the p38 pathway, but not that of JNK, was blocked by SB 202190 or SB203580, while that of p42/p44 MAP kinases and PKB was inhibited by PD 98059 and wortmannin respectively. However, of the kinases assayed, only p38 MAP kinase was activated at H(2)O(2) concentrations (50 microM) that caused an inhibition of insulin-stimulated glucose transport and glycogen synthesis. Strikingly, inhibiting the activation of p38 MAP kinase using either SB 202190 or SB 203580 prevented the loss in insulin-stimulated glucose transport, but not that of glycogen synthesis, by oxidative stress. Our data indicate that activation of the p38 MAP kinase pathway plays a central role in the oxidant-induced inhibition of insulin-regulated glucose transport, and unveils an important biochemical link between the classical stress-activated and insulin signaling pathways in skeletal muscle.

Biochemical localisation of the 5-HT2A (serotonin) receptor in rat skeletal muscle.

The 5-HT2A receptor was recently shown to localise morphologically to the transverse tubules (TT) in rat foetal myoblasts. Receptor activation enhanced the expression of genes involved in myogenesis, and its TT localisation has led to the suggestion that it may participate in excitation-contraction coupling. In order to gain further insights into 5-HT2A receptor function in muscle we have (i) investigated its biochemical localisation in adult rat skeletal muscle and (ii) determined whether receptor expression is dependent upon muscle type. Immunoblot analysis of muscle membranes, isolated by subcellular fractionation, revealed that adult muscle expresses the 5-HT2A receptor and that it resides exclusively in plasma membranes and not in TT. No differences in 5-HT2A abundance were observed between red and white muscle, suggesting that receptor expression does not correlate with the metabolic or contractile properties of the muscle fibre. Our data indicate that 5-HT2A expression in skeletal muscle is maintained into adulthood and that its absence from TT make it an unlikely participant in the excitation-contraction coupling process.