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W N Lee

Publications and source records attributed to W N Lee.

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Quantitation of positional isomers of deuterium-labeled glucose by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.

A method for determining the site and extent of deuterium (D) labeling of glucose by GC/MS and mass fragmentography was developed. Under chemical and electron impact ionization, ion clusters m/z 328, 242, 217, 212, and 187 of glucose aldonitrile pentaacetate and m/z 331 and 169 of pentaacetate derivative were produced. From the mass spectra of 13C- and D-labeled reference compounds, glucose carbon and hydrogen (C-H) positions included in these fragments were deduced to be m/z 328 = C1-C6, 2,3,4,5,6,6-H6; m/z 331 = C1-C6, 1,2,3,4,5,6,6-H7; m/z 169 = C1-C6, 1,3,4,5,6,6-H6; m/z 187 = C3-C6, 3,4,5,6,6-H5; m/z 212 = C1-C5, 2,3,4,5-H4; m/z 217 = C4-C6, 4,5,6,6-H4; and m/z 242 = C1-C4, 2,3,4-H3. After correction for isotope discrimination and deuterium-hydrogen exchange, the D enrichment of these fragments can be quantitated using selective ion monitoring, and the D enrichment of all C-H positions can be obtained by the difference in enrichment of the corresponding ion pairs. The validity of this approach was tested by examining D enrichment of known mixtures of 1-d1-, 2-d1-, 3-d1-, and 5,6,6-d3-glucose with unlabeled glucose and D enrichment of perdeuterated glucose using these fragments. This method was used to determine deuterium incorporation in C1 through C6 of blood glucose in fasted (24 h) rats infused with deuterated water. The distribution of deuterium was similar to that found by Postle and Bloxham (1980, Biochem. J. 192, 65-73). Approximately one deuterium atom was incorporated into C5 and only 75% deuterium atom was incorporated into C2. The enrichment of C2 and C6 of glucose relative to that of water indicated that 74 +/- 9% of plasma glucose was newly formed 4 h after the onset of deuterium infusion, and gluconeogenesis accounted for about 76 +/- 7% of the glucose 6-phosphate flux.

Animals

Mass isotopomer pattern and precursor-product relationship.

The synthesis of a homonucleus polymer from its labeled precursor will lead to the formation of molecules with different masses. The distribution of these mass isotopomers is strictly a function of the enrichment of the 13C-labeled precursor, and can thus be used for the determination of the precursor enrichment and product dilution in the de novo synthesis of the polymer. We present here a study of the isotopomer pattern of a polymer of acetate in the form of glucose pentaacetate synthesized from 13C-enriched acetic anhydride. The molecular ion contains four acetyl units. Its synthesis is analogous to that of octanoic acid from acetyl coenzyme A. The process of obtaining the mass isotopomer distribution in the tetraacetyl moiety from the ion cluster of m/z 331 of glucose pentaacetate is illustrated. After correcting for the contribution of 13C natural abundance, the plot of the ratio of mass isotopomers (m4/m2) against the observed enrichment of the tetraacetate moiety yielded a straight line with a slope of 1.45. The ratio was not altered by dilution with pre-existing unenriched product, as predicted. The slope of the observed linear relationship agreed with the general formula (N-(j-1))/j for the ratio of any two consecutive mass isotopomers (mj/mj-1). Theoretical and practical aspects of determining precursor enrichment from isotopomer pattern in polymers are discussed.

Carbon Isotopes

Determination of pathways of glycogen synthesis and the dilution of the three-carbon pool with [U-13C]glucose.

Rats were infused with glucose at 30 mg/min, containing 18% enriched [U-13C]glucose and [1-14C]- and [3-3H]glucose. The mass isotopomer patterns of 13C-labeled blood glucose and liver glycogen were determined by gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy. The contribution of the direct pathway to glycogen was calculated from the three tracers, and the values by all three were nearly identical, about 50%. The 14C specific activity in carbon 6 of glycogen glucose was about 6% that of carbon 1. The [3H]glucose/[1-14C]glucose ratio in glycogen was 80-90% that in blood glucose. The enrichment of 13C and the specific activity of 14C in glycogen formed by the indirect path were 20-25% of glycogen formed directly from glucose. The dilution is of two kinds: (i) an exchange of labeled carbon with unlabeled carbon in the tricarboxylic acid cycle and (ii) dilution by unlabeled nonglucose carbon. Methods to calculate the two types of dilution are presented. In control rats the dilution factor by exchange in the tricarboxylic acid cycle is 1.4, and the dilution by unlabeled carbon is 2.5- to 3.0-fold, with the overall dilution about 4-fold. In rats preinjected with glucagon, the dilution through the tricarboxylic acid cycle was unaffected but that by nonglucose carbon was decreased.

Animals

Mass isotopomer analysis: theoretical and practical considerations.

A theory of mass isotopomer analysis based on the well-known principle of isotope dilution mass spectrometry is reviewed. An algorithm for the determination of isotope incorporation into a metabolic substrate from a labeled precursor using mass isotopomer analysis is presented. The steps include the determination of the contribution of the derivatization reagent to the observed spectrum of the derivatized substrate and the correction of contribution from 13C natural abundance using multiple linear regression analysis. Examples of the application of this theory to determine the spectrum of the trimethylsilyl derivative of the 'pure unlabeled' or mononuclidic cholesterol, and the calculation of mass isotopomer distribution in cholesterol due to tracer incorporation using this 'pure unlabeled' spectrum, are also provided.

Animals

Glucose isotope, carbon recycling, and gluconeogenesis using [U-13C]glucose and mass isotopomer analysis.

Experimental determinations of glucose carbon recycling using 14C or 13C glucose tracer often underestimate true Cori cycle activity because of dilution and exchange of isotope tracer through the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. The term glucose isotope recycling therefore is used to distinguish recycling of isotope from recycling of glucose carbon, the actual quantity of circulating glucose recycled. Recently, per-labeled glucose ([U-13C6]glucose) has been used to estimate glucose appearance rate and glucose isotope recycling. Chemical structural information determined by mass isotopomer analysis has been used to correct for dilution of isotope through the TCA cycle. In this report, we present experiments in the study of glucose turnover and recycling using [U-13C6]glucose. Methods of single injection and continuous infusion of [U-13C6]glucose are compared. A formula for the calculation of a dilution factor using TCA cycle parameters is derived. In this study of six rabbits, glucose turnover rate ranged from 3.4 to 8.8 mg/kg/min, and glucose m + 3 mass isotopomer recycling from 7 to 12%. The rate of pyruvate carboxylation (Y) was comparable to that of citrate synthetase, having an average relative flux of 0.89. Applying the correction factor for tracer dilution to the observed mass isotopomer recycling, we determined glucose carbon recycling (or Cori cycle activity) to be 22-35% of hepatic glucose output.

Animals

Application of mass isotopomer analysis for determination of pathways of glycogen synthesis.

An elementary exposition of the application of mass spectroscopy to studies with substrates labeled uniformly with 13C is presented. A procedure to obtain mass isotopomer spectra, corrected for natural abundance, of products labeled with 13C in several positions is outlined. The calculation for enrichment, a term equivalent to specific activity with radioisotopes, is shown. Examples of mass isotopomer patterns of blood glucose and glycogen are presented, and calculations of the contribution of the direct path to hepatic glycogen synthesis and the dilution of glucose-derived pyruvate are shown. The analysis of mass isotopomer patterns recently offered by C. Des Rosiers, B. R. Landau, and H. Brunengraber [Am. J. Physiol. 259 (Endocrinol. Metab. 22): E757-E762, 1990] is critically examined.

Animals

Studies of glycogen synthesis and the Krebs cycle by mass isotopomer analysis with [U-13C]glucose in rats.

Starved rats were infused intragastrically via indwelling duodenal cannulae with glucose at a rate of 30 mg/min/kg. The infusate contained [U-13C]glucose at an enrichment of 32 or 17%. At the end of the infusion, after 160 min, glucose and lactate were isolated from arterial and portal blood and from liver, and liver glycogen was isolated and hydrolyzed to glucose. The enrichment in glucose and lactate and the isotopomer distribution in glucose of masses from 180 to 186 were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). From analysis of these data we determined (a) gluconeogenesis proceeds at half the basal rate in the presence of a large infused glucose load, (b) one-quarter of the hepatic pyruvate pool is derived from nonglucose carbon, (c) half of the labeled molecules in liver glycogen are of mass 186 from the infused glucose and half are of masses 181-183, (d) the contribution of the indirect path from pyruvate when corrected for synthesis from unlabeled pyruvate ranges from 55 to 65%, (e) the rate of pyruvate carboxylase averages 90% that of citrate synthase, and (f) the rate of exchange of oxaloacetate with fumarate is about three times the rate of flux in the Krebs cycle (four times in the "forward" direction), and the enrichment in carbon 1 of oxaloacetate was 2.3 times that in carbon 4. In the Appendix a method to obtain the isotopomer distribution of newly formed glucose and glycogen glucose is described. An algorithm to correct for the contribution of natural abundance of 13C and the presence of 12C in commercial [U-13C]glucose is presented. A novel mathematical analysis to obtain the parameters of the Krebs cycle from the isotopomer distribution is developed in the Appendix. Equations to calculate the relative rates of pyruvate carboxylase (y), and the equilibration of oxaloacetate with fumarate from the isotopomer distribution are derived. Mass isotopomer analysis provides a novel and powerful tool for the study of carbohydrate metabolism and the operation of the Krebs cycle.

Animals

Blood glucose turnover during high- and low-intensity exercise.

We hypothesized that whole body glucose uptake (Rd) during exercise is not related in a simple, linear manner to O2 uptake (VO2). To test this, seven healthy male subjects (age range 23-34 yr) were studied in the postabsorptive but not glycogen-depleted state. Three conditions were examined: 1) rest, 2) 40 min of constant exercise in which the work rates were carefully chosen to consist of low-intensity exercise (no elevated blood lactate, a mean of 40% maximal VO2), and 3) 40 min of high-intensity exercise (markedly elevated blood lactate, 79% maximal VO2). Gas exchange was measured breath by breath, and glucose uptake and production were measured using [6,6-2H2]glucose. Low-intensity exercise (n = 7) resulted in a small but not statistically significant increase in mean Rd [3.06 +/- 0.37 (SE) mg.min-1.kg-1] compared with resting values (2.87 +/- 0.39 mg.min-1.kg-1) despite a fourfold increase in the production of CO2 and VO2. By contrast, the high-intensity exercise Rd (n = 5, 6.98 +/- 0.67 mg.min-1.kg-1) was significantly greater than the resting value (3.03 +/- 0.56 mg.min-1.kg-1). Results of glucose production were virtually the same. Similarly, mean levels of epinephrine and norepinephrine increased significantly above resting values during high- but not low-intensity exercise. Our data demonstrate that whole body glucose dynamics and regulation during 40 min of exercise do not change in a simple linear manner with respect to metabolic rate.

Adult

Inherited abnormal thyroid hormone-binding protein causing selective increase of total serum thyroxine.

A 9-yr-old boy is described in whom increased serum T4 concentration, increased T3 uptake, and increased free T4 index were associated with a euthyroid clinical state with normal total serum T3. T4-binding globulin (TBG), measured by RIA, was decreased. Reverse flow paper electrophoresis of serum proteins after reaction with radioactively labeled T4 demonstrated increased binding of T4 to a protein with electrophoretic mobility corresponding to albumin. Displacement of serum protein-bo-nd [125I]T4 activity by increasing concentrations of T4 revealed the presence of a low affinity, high binding capacity system with an association constant similar to that of T4-binding prealbumin. This low affinity binding protein cochromatographed with TBG on a DEAE-Sephadex column which normally separates TBG from T4-binding prealbumin. At free T4 concentrations equivalent to those present in the plasma of normal individuals, the T4 bound to free ratio is higher in the patient than in normals and the total serum T4 level is increased in the presence of normal free T4 concentrations. The relative affinity of this abnormal T4-binding protein for T3 is low compared to that of TBG. The patient's father had the same abnormal binding protein, which was not found in his mother or fraternal twin brother. These data suggest an autosomal dominant mode of inheritance of an aberration leading to synthesis of a new protein instead of normal TBG. The new protein is different from TBG in electrophoretic mobility, T4 and T3 binding, and antigenic properties.

Child

Cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase in human lymphocytes and lymphoblasts.

Cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase activities were examined in lymphocytes from 12 transformed human B cell lines, two T cell lines, six patients with lymphocytic leukemia, and 10 normal donors. A consistent difference bwtween cells from the normal and leukemic state was observed. The cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase activity from normal lymphocytes is inhibited greater than 80% by muM cyclic GMP while this concentration of nucleotide has little or no effect on the enzyme from transformed lymphocytic cell lines or from lymphocytic cells of leukemia patients. The reported lack of cyclic GMP phosphodiesterase in human lymphocytes from several sources is confirmed. The apparent absence of a cyclic GMP degradation mechanism and of cyclic GMP control of cyclic AMP hydrolysis may be related to defective lymphocyte growth control.

3',5'-Cyclic-AMP Phosphodiesterases

Use of I-123 in early radioiodide uptake and its suppression in children and adolescents with hyperthyroidism.

Absolute activity measurement of I-123 by coincidence counting was used to study the early thyroidal iodide uptake in 20 hyperthyroid children. Patients were pretreated either with methimazole or propylthiouracil before injection of Na123I. The usual method of analysis of the early uptake was modified to account for a rapidly equilibrating compartment, to give thyroidal iodide trapping rate constant (K1) and absolute iodide uptake (AIU). The suppressibility of the early uptake by triiodothyronine (T3) was evaluated in some patients. The upper limit of normal for K1 was 0.03 min-1 and for AIU was 0.04 microgram/min. In the hyperthyroid subjects, K1 and AIU were in the hyperthyroid range before and after T3 suppression. For patients with suppressible uptake, remission from hyperthyroidism was maintained for 6 mo to 2 1/2 yr. Only two patients with nonsuppressible uptake achieved remission from hyperthyroidism, perhaps because of coexistence of thyroiditis.

Adolescent

Value of simultaneous T3, T4, and TSH measurements for management of graves' disease in children.

One hundred simultaneous determinations of serum T4 and T3 were performed during the course of treatment of 23 children and adolescents with Graves' disease. Five patients were previously untreated and six were experiencing relapse after treatment was discontinued. During relapse, increased T3 concentration is frequently present when serum T4 concentration is normal and T3 measurement is therefore more reliable for early detection of relapse. During therapy with thionamides, T4 measurement alone is often misleading in assessing adequacy of control achieved by therapy. Commonly, patients who clinically have hyperthyroidism have serum T4 concentrations within the normal range but continue to have elevated T3 concentrations (T3 toxicosis). Similarly, T4 can be suppressed into the hypothyroid range in the clinically euthyroid patient with either a normal or high T3 concentration. In these patients, determination of serum T3 often prevents premature reduction of thionamide dosage. When T4 and T3 concentrations do not clearly demonstrate presence or absence of hypothyroidism, measurement of serum thyroid stimulating hormone can be of value.

Graves Disease

Absolute radioassay of extended sources: an equivalent point-source coincidence-counting approach with application to the thyroid.

A general methodology is provided for the absolute assay of radioisotopes decaying with coincident photons in an extended source. In the determination of the source activity, the method requires neither the detailed consideration of the geometric and self-attenuation processes taking place between the source component points nor a knowledge of the distribution of activity across the source. It derives from the concept of the "equivalent point source," that is a fictitious point source whose activity would equal that measured for the actual extended source. It has been developed for an arbitrary number of coincident photon types displaying an arbitrary degree of mutual correlation, and for arbitrary detection geometry. A unifying formalism is developed for both point and extended sources and for single and dual detecting systems. It is found that in all cases the various instrumental and spectroscopic uncertainties appear within a composite parameter (herein called F factor) that can be determined by standard calibration procedures; this factor is in turn only weakly dependent on its own component parameters. New expressions and relationships are obtained that provide a greater physical insight into coincidence-counting methods.

Humans