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F W Robinson

Publications and source records attributed to F W Robinson.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1993

Primary sites of actions of staurosporine and H-7 in the cascade of insulin action to glucose transport in rat adipocytes.

The insulin-stimulated glucose transporter in rat adipocytes was inhibited by two protein kinase inhibitors, staurosporine (SSP) and H-7 (1-(5-isoquinolinylsulfonyl)-2-methylpiperazine). However, whereas SSP (10 microM) blocked the insulin-dependent translocation of glucose transporter, H-7 (3 mM) did not. The latter inhibited glucose transporter activity not only in cells, but also in reconstituted liposomes. On the other hand, SSP blocked both the action of insulin and the insulinomimetic action of GTP gamma S (Guanosine 5'-O-(3-thiotriphosphate)). GTP gamma S had distinct effects on the glucose transport and cAMP phosphodiesterase (PDE) activities. It is suggest that H-7 may inhibit glucose transport activity per se; a SSP sensitive protein kinases (protein kinase C isoforms?) may be involved in cascade of the insulin action on glucose transporter as modulated by GTP gamma S; and glucose transport and PDE activities may be regulated by distinct GTP gamma S-sensitive factors.

1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-Methylpiperazine↗
PubMed1992

Effects of fluorescein isothiocyanate on insulin actions in rat adipocytes.

The effects of fluorescein isothiocyanate II (FITC) on the actions of insulin in rat adipocytes were studied. When adipocytes were incubated with FITC at pH 7.4 (2 mM agent, 8 min), the cells were completely deprived of their specific insulin-binding activity and rendered unresponsive to the hormone. The effect of FITC on the insulin-binding activity was milder at pH 9.0, and cAMP phosphodiesterase in cells exposed to FITC at pH 9.0 was maximally stimulated if the insulin concentration was increased to 100 nM. Under identical conditions, however, glucose transport activity was rendered not only less sensitive but also less responsive to the hormone. When FITC was added to cells after insulin at pH 9.0, the glucose transport activity that had been stimulated by the hormone was considerably reduced. This reduction was largely, but not entirely, prevented if the cells were deprived of ATP, suggesting that FITC (a) elicited the ATP-dependent reversal of the hormonal effect and, simultaneously, (b) mildly inhibited the transport activity per se. Western blot assay of GLUT-4 (a major isoform of glucose transporter in adipocytes) indicated that FITC (a) partially blocked insulin-dependent translocation of GLUT-4 from the intracellular site to the plasma membrane while it (b) induced a mild "insulin-like" effect. It is concluded that FITC at pH 9.0 (a) renders both glucose transport and phosphodiesterase activities less insulin sensitive presumably by modifying the cellular hormone receptor and (b) makes glucose transport activity less responsive to insulin presumably by (i) blocking hormone-dependent translocation of glucose transporter and (ii) mildly inhibiting intrinsic glucose transport activity.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1991

Effects of okadaic acid on insulin-sensitive cAMP phosphodiesterase in rat adipocytes. Evidence that insulin may stimulate the enzyme by phosphorylation.

Okadaic acid, a potent inhibitor of Type 1 and Type 2A protein phosphatases, was used to investigate the mechanism of insulin action on membrane-bound low Km cAMP phosphodiesterase in rat adipocytes. Upon incubation of cells with 1 microM okadaic acid for 20 min, phosphodiesterase was stimulated 3.7- to 3.9-fold. This stimulation was larger than that elicited by insulin (2.5- to 3.0-fold). Although okadaic acid enhanced the effect of insulin, the maximum effects of the two agents were not additive. When cells were pretreated with 1-(5-isoquinolinylsulfonyl)-2-methylpiperazine (H-7), the level of phosphodiesterase stimulation by okadaic acid was rendered smaller, similar to that attained by insulin. In cells that had been treated with 2 mM KCN, okadaic acid (like insulin) failed to stimulate phosphodiesterase, suggesting that ATP was essential. Also, as reported previously, the effect of insulin on phosphodiesterase was reversed upon exposure of hormone-treated cells to KCN. This deactivation of previously-stimulated phosphodiesterase was blocked by okadaic acid, but not by insulin. The above KCN experiments were carried out with cells in which A-kinase activity was minimized by pretreatment with H-7. Okadaic acid mildly stimulated basal glucose transport and, at the same time, strongly inhibited the action of insulin thereon. It is suggested that insulin may stimulate phosphodiesterase by promoting its phosphorylation and that the hormonal effect may be reversed by a protein phosphatase which is sensitive to okadaic acid. The hypothetical protein kinase thought to be involved in the insulin-dependent stimulation of phosphodiesterase appears to be more H-7-resistant than A-kinase.

1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-Methylpiperazine↗
PubMed1991

Evidence that protein kinase C may not be involved in the insulin action on cAMP phosphodiesterase: studies with electroporated rat adipocytes that were highly responsive to insulin.

Partially permeabilized rat adipocytes with a high responsiveness to insulin were prepared by electroporation and used to study the effect of 1-(5-isoquinolinylsulfonyl)-2-methylpiperazine (H-7) on insulin actions in adipocytes. H-7 is a well-documented inhibitor of several protein kinases, including protein kinase C; however, it does not rapidly enter adipocytes protected with the intact plasma membrane. The cells were suspended in Buffer X [4.74 mM NaCl, 118.0 mM KCl, 0.38 mM CaCl2, 1.00 mM EGTA, 1.19 mM Mg2SO4, 1.19 mM KH2PO4, 25.0 mM Hepes/K, 20 mg/ml bovine serum albumin, and 3 mM pyruvate/Na, pH 7.4] and electroporated six times with a Gene-Pulser (from Bio-Rad) set at 25 microF and 2 kV/cm. In cells electroporated as above, insulin stimulated (a) membrane-bound, cAMP phosphodiesterase approximately 2.6-fold when the hormone concentration was 10 nM and (b) glucose transport activity approximately 4.5-fold when the hormone concentration was raised to 100 nM. H-7 strongly inhibited the actions of insulin on both glucose transport (apparent Ki = 0.3 mM) and cAMP phosphodiesterase (apparent Ki = 1.2 mM) in electroporated adipocytes. H-7 also inhibited lipolysis in adipocytes; the apparent Ki value for the reaction in intact cells was 0.45 mM, and that in electroporated cells was 0.075 mM. It is suggested that a certain protein kinase or kinases that are significantly sensitive to H-7 may be involved in the insulin-dependent stimulation of glucose transport and that of phosphodiesterase. However, protein kinase C (or Ca2+/phospholipid-dependent protein kinase) may not be involved, at least, in the hormonal action on phosphodiesterase since the apparent Ki value of H-7 for the reaction is too high.

1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-Methylpiperazine↗
PubMed1989

Cyclic GMP-dependent stimulation of the membrane-bound insulin-sensitive cAMP phosphodiesterase from rat adipocytes.

The insulin-sensitive cAMP phosphodiesterase (phosphodiesterase) in rat adipocytes is a membrane-bound low Km enzyme that can be recovered in a crude microsomal fraction (Fraction P-2). The action of this enzyme to hydrolyze cAMP is known to be inhibited by cGMP; nevertheless, it was found in our present study that under selected conditions, the enzyme can also be stimulated by cGMP as well as some other nucleotide derivatives. The maximum cGMP-dependent stimulation was observed when the enzyme in Fraction P-2 was incubated with 10 microM cGMP for 5-20 min at 37 degrees C in the presence of Mg2+, washed, and then assayed in the absence of added cGMP. The level of this stimulation was close to, but less than, that achieved by insulin in intact cells. The actions of the cGMP- and insulin-stimulated enzymes to hydrolyze labeled cAMP were inhibited in an identical manner by cilostamide (Ki = 0.10 microM), griseolic acid (Ki = 0.19 microM), unlabeled cAMP (Km = 0.20 microM), and cGMP (Ki = 0.16 microM), all added to the assay system. Also, the basal, insulin-stimulated, and cGMP-activated enzymes were identically inhibited by a polyclonal antibody raised against a purified membrane-bound low Km phosphodiesterase from bovine adipose tissue. When the same antibody was used for the Western blot analysis of Fraction P-2, it immunoreacted with a single band of protein (165 kDa). These observations indicate that the insulin-sensitive phosphodiesterase in rat adipocytes can be stimulated with 10 microM cGMP and that this stimulation is detectable only after the nucleotide has been eliminated since the enzyme would be strongly inhibited by the nucleotide if the latter exists in the assay system. It is proposed that the insulin-sensitive phosphodiesterase, which is often referred to as a Type IV enzyme, is functionally similar to the Type II enzymes that are known to be stimulated by a low concentration of cGMP and inhibited by higher concentrations of the same nucleotide.

3',5'-Cyclic-AMP Phosphodiesterases↗
PubMed1987

Diversity in the effects of extracellular ATP and adenosine on the cellular processing and physiologic actions of insulin in rat adipocytes.

ATP or adenosine (1 mM) added to extracellular buffer abolished both chloroquine- and monensin-dependent accumulation of [125I]iodoinsulin in isolated rat adipocytes. The effects of ATP were not secondary to its conversion to adenosine and were mimicked by beta, gamma-methyleneadenosine 5'-triphosphate. ATP, but not adenosine, partially inhibited the binding of insulin to the cellular receptor. Neither ATP nor adenosine had any significant effect on both internalization of cell-bound insulin and externalization of the internalized hormone. The degradation of cell-bound insulin was reduced to a considerable extent by both 0.1 mM chloroquine and 5 mM ATP, to a lesser degree by 1 mM ATP, and not significantly by 1 or 5 mM adenosine. Physiologically, (a) 1 mM ATP had a strong, while 1 mM adenosine had a mild inhibitory effect on the insulin-stimulated glucose transport without affecting its basal activity, (b) both ATP and adenosine moderately stimulated basal as well as insulin-stimulated glycogen synthase, and (c) ATP, but not adenosine, transiently stimulated basal cAMP phosphodiesterase without affecting the insulin-stimulated enzyme. Phosphodiesterase in cells that had been exposed to ATP for 30 min was refractory to ATP added afresh, but not to insulin. These data suggest that (a) extracellular ATP may block the degradative pathway of insulin processing, (b) adenosine might render the ordinarily irreversible intracellular traffic of insulin reversible or modulate a pathway which is yet to be identified, (c) the previously reported effect of ATP on glycogen synthase may not involve phosphorylation, (d) ATP stimulates cAMP phosphodiesterase by a mechanism which is distinct from that of insulin, and (e) the degradative pathway of insulin processing may not be involved in the physiologic actions of the hormone on glycogen synthase and phosphodiesterase.

2,4-Dinitrophenol↗
PubMed1987

Sedimentation characteristics of vesicles associated with insulin-sensitive intracellular glucose transporter from rat adipocytes.

The sedimentation characteristics of vesicles associated with the insulin-sensitive intracellular glucose transporter from rat adipocytes were studied. The method used was sucrose density gradient centrifugation, which was carried out under non-equilibrium and equilibrium (isopycnic) conditions. The glucose transport activity was determined by the reconstitution method. As reported previously, the sedimentation velocity of the intracellular glucose-transport activity was considerably slower than that of the counterpart in the plasma membrane. It was found, however, that the specific gravity of the slow-sedimenting glucose-transport activity was almost identical to that of the activity in the plasma membrane (d = 1.118-1.122). It is concluded that the intracellular glucose transport activity is associated not with low-density microsomal vesicles, but with unidentified slow-sedimenting vesicles that have a specific gravity similar to that of the plasma membrane.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1986

Apparent translocation of glucose transport activity in rat epididymal adipocytes by insulin-like effects of high pH or hyperosmolarity.

The basal and plus insulin states of glucose transport activity in adipocytes are known to show different responses to changes in the pH or osmolarity of the incubation mixture. When the pH was raised from 7 to 8, the basal glucose transport activity (assessed from the rate of 3-O-methyl-D-glucose uptake) was increased approximately 3-fold while the plus insulin activity remained virtually unaffected. Likewise, when cells were exposed to 300 mM sorbitol, the basal glucose transport activity, but not the plus insulin activity, was considerably increased. In both cases, the change in the transport activity was ATP-dependent and was completed in approximately 60 min. The increase in the cellular glucose transport activity was accompanied, in both cases, by an increase in the glucose transport activity in the plasma membrane fraction and a decrease in the activity in the high-speed pellet fraction. The transport activity in the subcellular fractions was determined after reconstitution into egg lecithin liposomes. Both isotonic buffer at pH 8.0 and hypertonic buffer at pH 7.4 significantly stimulated membrane-bound cAMP phosphodiesterase in adipocytes. It is concluded that the above two experimental conditions may induce insulin-like effects in fat cells and may facilitate translocation of the glucose transport activity from an intracellular site to the plasma membrane.

3',5'-Cyclic-AMP Phosphodiesterases↗
PubMed1985

Effects of monensin on insulin processing in adipocytes. Evidence that the internalized insulin-receptor complex has some physiological activities.

In the presence of 10-100 microM monensin (a monovalent cation ionophore), a considerable amount of 125I activity of iodoinsulin accumulated in isolated rat epididymal adipocytes during a 30-min incubation. The accumulation was secondary to the action of monensin to inhibit dissociation of a certain fraction of the cellbound 125I activity. This monensin effect was reversible. The accumulation of 125I activity was ATP dependent and so was the discharge of the accumulated radioactivity. Approximately 91% of the accumulated radio-activity was precipitable with trichloroacetic acid, and at least 84% was reactive to anti-insulin antibody. Monensin at 100 microM appeared to have only mild effects on the cellular activities of glucose transport and cAMP phosphodiesterase. Nevertheless, when cells were first exposed to 10 nM insulin in the presence of 100 microM monensin and then transferred into a hormone-free buffer that contained monensin, the phosphodiesterase activity in cells remained partially activated as if cells were kept exposed to approximately 0.5 nM insulin. Under similar conditions, glucose transport activity remained partially activated as if cells were incubated with approximately 70 pM insulin. Monensin did not inhibit the reversal of the insulin effect per se. Like monensin, 20-100 microM chloroquine (a lysosomotropic inhibitor) induced a considerable accumulation of [125I] iodoinsulin. However, cells that had been exposed to insulin in the presence of chloroquine retained little hormonal effect after washing. Based on these observations and on the reported biological effects of monensin, it is suggested (a) that monensin may induce intracellular accumulation of the insulin-receptor complex by blocking the acidification of endocytic vesicles and (b) that the accumulated insulin-receptor complex may retain a weak, but significant, capacity to stimulate both glucose transport and phosphodiesterase activities.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗
PubMed1984

Insulin action on glucose transport in cardiac muscle.

The mechanism of insulin action on glucose transport in rat hearts was studied. The glucose transport activity was determined after reconstitution into egg lecithin liposomes. Isolated rat hearts were perfused in the presence or absence of insulin and homogenized. The homogenate was fractionated by differential and sucrose density gradient centrifugations. Two subcellular fractions, designated as Fractions P-5 and P-6, contained glucose transport activity. Both fractions were enriched with 5'-nucleotidase (commonly known as a plasma membrane marker) and UDP-Gal:N-acetylglucosamine galactosyltransferase (known as a Golgi marker). However, only Fraction P-5 was concentrated with the insulin receptor and ouabain-sensitive p-nitrophenylphosphatase (both plasma membrane markers). The sedimentation properties of the glucose transport activity in Fraction P-6 were considerably different from those of galactosyltransferase. Insulin added to the heart before homogenization increased the glucose transport activity in Fraction P-5 approximately 1.6-fold while decreasing the activity in Fraction P-6 to approximately 62% of the control. These results are interpreted as follows. Both Fractions P-5 and P-6 are heterogeneous; nevertheless, Fraction P-5, but not Fraction P-6, may be enriched with the plasma membrane, which is assumed to be associated with glucose transport activity. Fraction P-6 may be concentrated with the Golgi apparatus; however, the latter may not be the structure (or vesicles) to which (intracellular) glucose transport activity is associated. Insulin appears to increase the glucose transport activity in rat hearts, at least in part, by inducing translocation of the glucose transport mechanism from the unidentified vesicles (in Fraction P-6) to the plasma membrane (in Fraction P-5).

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Partial characterization of the glucose transport activity in the Golgi-rich fraction of fat cells.

The glucose transport activity solubilized from the basal and plus insulin forms of the Golgi-rich fraction of adipocytes was partially characterized, and the results were compared with those of the activity obtained from the plus insulin form of the plasma membrane-rich fraction. The transport activity was determined in a cell-free, reconstituted, system. Prior to reconstitution, the activities in the three preparations were all (a) stable at 0 degrees C for at least 4 h, but not at 37 degrees C or above; (b) most stable at pH 7-9, and (c) less stable in Tes than in Tris buffer. After reconstitution, the three activities were all (d) stable at 0 degrees C, (e) most active at pH 5.5, (f) mildly stimulated by divalent cations, (g) unaffected by insulin or 1 mM of several SH-blocking agents, (h) inhibited by heavy metal ions, 10-100 mM of monovalent salts, organic solvents, several sugar isomers, and specific sugar-transport inhibitors. The rates of D-glucose uptake by the three liposome preparations were all inhibited more strongly by 2-deoxy-D-glucose or 3-O-methyl-D-glucose than by D-glucose. These data indicate that the general properties of the glucose transport activity in the Golgi-rich fraction are similar to those of the activity in the plasma membrane-rich fraction.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1984

Effects of divalent cations on the regulation of insulin-sensitive glucose transport and cAMP phosphodiesterase in adipocytes. Insulin-like effects of divalent cations.

Effects of divalent cations on the regulation of glucose transport and cAMP phosphodiesterase in isolated rat epididymal adipocytes were studied. EDTA (5 mM) moderately inhibited the binding of insulin to adipocytes in Krebs-Henseleit Hepes buffer. In the same buffer, A-23187 (an ionophore specific for divalent cations; 50 microM) plus EDTA (5 mM) almost completely blocked the insulin- or hydrogen peroxide-dependent stimulation of phosphodiesterase. This inhibition was not secondary to the loss of ATP. When cells that had been treated with A-23187 plus EDTA were washed and then exposed to 1-10 mM of divalent cations, the cellular phosphodiesterase activity was elevated. Mn2+ was most stimulatory, Mg2+ was next, and Ca2+ was least effective. The stimulatory effects were enhanced by insulin. In the presence of insulin, Mn2+ at 10 mM was less stimulatory than that at 1 mM. In regular Krebs-Henseleit Hepes buffer, Mn2+ greatly stimulated phosphodiesterase if cells were first exposed to A-23187. The Mn2+-dependent stimulation was blocked by treatment of cells with 2,4-dinitrophenol. Results essentially parallel to those described above were also obtained when the rate of glucose transport was determined. The above results indicate that divalent cations mildly support the extracellular binding of insulin to its receptor, facilitate the physiological actions of insulin, and mimic the hormone actions, presumably by stimulating an intracellular enzyme.

2,4-Dinitrophenol↗
PubMed1982

Evidence that translocation of the glucose transport activity is the major mechanism of insulin action on glucose transport in fat cells.

The glucose transport activity associated with the plasma membrane-rich and Golgi-rich fractions of fat cells was determined after they were reconstituted into egg lecithin liposomes. When the two subcellular fractions were isolated under conditions that would minimize their cross-contamination, the transport activity in the plasma membrane-rich fraction was found to be increased 6.3- to 8.6-fold by insulin, which was added to cells before homogenization, and that the activity in the Golgi-rich fraction was reduced approximately to one-half. In this study, the glucose transport activity in the plasma membrane-rich fraction (either in the basal or plus insulin state) was solubilized, reconstituted, and assayed with an overall efficiency of 25-35%. Four agents known to have insulin-like effects on the glucose transport activity in intact fat cells (hydrogen peroxide, sodium vanadate, trypsin, and p-chloromercuriphenyl sulfonate) not only increased the transport activity in the plasma membrane-rich fraction, but also decreased the activity in the Golgi-rich fraction. The effect of hydrogen peroxide, unlike that of insulin, was not abolished when the insulin receptor was modified proteolytically. Upon administration of insulin to fat cells, and subsequent elimination of the hormone, the glucose transport activities associated with the plasma membrane-rich and Golgi-rich fractions were affected almost concomitantly towards opposite directions. It is proposed as a working hypothesis that translocation of the glucose transport system to the plasma membrane from the Golgi-rich fraction is the major, if not the sole, mechanism by which insulin stimulates glucose transport in fat cells.

3-O-Methylglucose↗
PubMed1981

Energy-dependent and protein synthesis-independent recycling of the insulin-sensitive glucose transport mechanism in fat cells.

The glucose transport mechanism of rat epididymal fat cells was reconstituted into egg lecithin liposomes, and their carrier-mediated transport activity ws estimated from the difference in the rates of uptake of D-[3H]glucose and L-[14C]glucose. Insulin increased the glucose transport activity in the plasma membrane-rich fraction while decreasing the activity in the Golgi-rich fraction in agreement with our previous data (Suzuki, K., and Kono, T. (1980) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 77, 2542-2545). The development of the insulin effects was inhibited when cells were exposed to 2,4-dinitrophenol or KCN before the insulin treatment. In addition, the reversal of the insulin effects was blocked upon exposure of insulin-treated cells to 2,4-dinitrophenol or KCN prior to the elimination of the hormone. In contrast, neither development nor reversal of the insulin effects was affected by cycloheximide or puromycin. The temperature coefficients of the transport activities reconstituted from the basal or insulin-treated forms of the plasma membrane-rich or Golgi-rich fractions were all identical. The recoveries of protein, 5'-nucleotidase, UDP-galactose:N-acetylglucosamine galactosyltransferase, and NADH dehydrogenase into subcellular fractions were determined. However, net effects of insulin on the glucose transport activities have remained unknown for lack of an appropriate marker enzyme of the Golgi-like vesicles associated with the transport activity. It is suggested that the glucose transport mechanism is recycled between the plasma membrane-rich and Golgi-rich fractions by an energy-dependent reaction.

2,4-Dinitrophenol↗
PubMed1977

Actions of insulin in fat cells. Effects of low temperature, uncouplers of oxidative phosphorylation, and respiratory inhibitors.

When isolated rat epididymal fat cells were incubated with [125I]iodoinsulin for 5 min at 37 degrees, radioactivity accumulated in the plasma membrane fraction (Peak 1) and an unidentified particulate fraction (Peak 2) as reported previously (Kono, T., Robinson, F.W., and Sarver, J.A. (1975) J. Biol. Chem. 250, 7826-7835). This accumulation of radioactivity in Peak 2 (but not that in Peak 1) was greatly impaired when cells were incubated with iodoinsulin in the presence of a variety of metabolic inhibitors that reduce the cellular content of ATP. The reduction in the ATP level coincided with a disappearance of the stimulatory effects of insulin on sugar transport and the hormone-sensitive phosphodiesterase. In contrast, ATP depletion had no significant effects, at least during a 5-to 15-min incubation, on the intracellular water space and on the basal sugar transport and phosphodiesterase activities. When cells once depleted on ATP by treatment with 2,4-dinitrophenol (1 mM; 10 min) were washed and suspended in fresh buffer, the ATP level was recovered almost fully in 10 min. This recovery coincided with the restoration of responsiveness to insulin. When cells were incubated with [125I]iodoinsulin or insulin for 5 min at 15 degrees instead of 37 degrees, a negligible quantity of radioactivity accumulated in Peak 2 and insulin failed to activate sugar transport. In contrast, under the same conditions, radioactivity accumulated in Peak 1 and insulin stimulated phosphodiesterase considerably. These results suggest that ATP, or some other compound metabolically related to ATP, may be necessary for the actions of insulin on sugar transport and phosphodiesterase. ATP, or some other related compound, may also be necessary in the formation of the radioactive Peak 2, although the physiological function and cellular location of this peak are yet to be ascertained.

Acetylglucosaminidase↗
PubMed1975

Insulin-sensitive phosphodiesterase. Its localization, hormonal stimulation, and oxidative stabilization.

As it was shown previoulsy by others, the membrane-bound phosphodiesterase (cyclic adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate phosphodiesterase) of rat epididymal fat cells was stimulated when intact cells were exposed to insulin. The levels of stimulation observed in the present study in the cell homogenate and microsomal fraction were approximately 2.0- to 2.5-fold and 2.5- to 3.0-fold, respectively, when the initial substrate level was 100 nM and insulin concentration was 1 to 3 nM. When the microsomal fraction was subjected to a sucrose density gradient centrifugation, most of the insulin-sensitive phosphodiesterase activity was fractionated into the "light" microsomal fraction which was rich in NADH2:potassium ferricyanide:oxidoreductase) and low in 5'-AMPase, adenylate cyclase, and insulin-binding activities. The latter three activities were mostly fractionated into the "heavy" microsomal fraction. Both basal and insulin-stimulated phosphodiesterase activities were low when cells were homogenized in the presence of N-ethylmaleimide or p-chloromercuribenzoate. The insulin-stimulated enzyme activity was also low when cells were homogenized in the presence of --SH compounds (e.g. dithiothreitol) or certain metal-chelating agents (e.g. ethylene glycol bis(beta-aminoethyl ehter)-N,N'-tetraacetate (EGTA)), or in a nitrogen atmosphere. The effect of EGTA was prevented by the addition of certain heavy metal ions but not by the addition of Ca2+ or Ca2+ plus Mg2+ ions. When cells were homogenized in the presence of certain oxidants (e.g. diamide, sodium tetrathionate, or air), a high plus-insulin activity was observed; this activity was not lowered by subsequent treatment of the enzyme with N-ethylmaleimede, EGTA, or fresh cell homogenate that was prepared in the presence of EGTA. However, the activity of an apparently oxidized enzyme could still be lowered by treatment woth dithiothreitol. A partially purified enzyme in the enzyme in the microsomal fraction was fairly stable both in basal and insulin-stimulated states (fully active after 35 days when kept at -20degrees). EGTA added to the homogenization buffer lowered the basal phosphodiesterase activity, but this effect was reversed by the addition of Ca2+ ions. EGTA also decreased the enzyme activity that was stimulated by norepinephrine. However, neither EGTA nor dithiothreitol had any effect on the activities of 5'-AMPase, NADH-dehydrogenase, and malate dehydrogenase of fat cells. The above data indicate that most of the insulin-sensitive phosphodiesterase and the so-called "cell membrane markers" are associated with different subcellular particles in the cell homogenate. In addition, the data seem to indicate that the insulin-stimulated phosphodiesterase has certain --SH groups and that the activity of the enzyme is stabilized when the --SH groups are oxidized by certain oxidants including molecular oxygen. It is suggested that the air oxidation of the enzyme is catalyzed by a trace of certain heavy metal ions and, therefore, can be blocked by a metal-chelating agent.

3',5'-Cyclic-AMP Phosphodiesterases↗