Mathematical model of compartmentalized energy transfer: its use for analysis and interpretation of 31P-NMR studies of isolated heart of creatine kinase deficient mice

A mathematical model of the compartmentalized energy transfer in cardiac cells is described and used for interpretation of novel experimental data obtained by using phosphorus NMR for determination of the energy fluxes in the isolated hearts of transgenic mice with knocked out creatine kinase isoenzymes. These experiments were designed to study the meaning and importance of compartmentation of creatine kinase isoenzymes in the cells in vivo. The model was constructed to describe quantitatively the processes of energy production, transfer, utilization, and feedback between these processes. It describes the production of ATP in mitochondrial matrix space by ATP synthase, use of this ATP for phosphocreatine production in the mitochondrial creatine kinase reaction coupled to the adenine nucleotide translocation, diffusional exchange of metabolites in the cytoplasmic space, and use of phosphocreatine for resynthesis of ATP in the myoplasmic creatine kinase reaction. It accounts also for the recently discovered phenomenon of restricted diffusion of adenine nucleotides through mitochondrial outer membrane porin pores (VDAC). Practically all parameters of the model were determined experimentally. The analysis of energy fluxes between different cellular compartments shows that in all cellular compartments of working heart cells the creatine kinase reaction is far from equilibrium in the systolic phase of the contraction cycle and approaches equilibrium only in cytoplasm and only in the end-diastolic phase of the contraction cycle. Experimental determination of the relationship between energy fluxes by a 31P-NMR saturation transfer method and workload in isolated and perfused heart of transgenic mice deficient in MM isoenzyme of the creatine kinase, MM-/-showed that in the hearts from wild mice, containing all creatine kinase isoenzymes, the energy fluxes determined increased 3-4 times with elevation of the workload. By contrast, in the hearts in which only the mitochondrial creatine kinase was active, the energy fluxes became practically independent of the workload in spite of the preservation of 26% of normal creatine kinase activity. These results cannot be explained on the basis of the conventional near-equilibrium theory of creatine kinase in the cells, which excludes any difference between creatine kinase isoenzymes. However, these apparently paradoxical experimental results are quantitatively described by a mathematical model of the compartmentalized energy transfer based on the steady state kinetics of coupled creatine kinase reactions, compartmentation of creatine kinase isoenzymes in the cells, and the kinetics of ATP production and utilization reactions. The use of this model shows that: (1) in the wild type heart cells a major part of energy is transported out of mitochondria via phosphocreatine, which is used for complete regeneration of ATP locally in the myofibrils--this is the quantitative estimate for PCr pathway; (2) however, in the absence of MM-creatine kinase in the myofibrils in transgenic mice the contraction results in a very rapid rise of ADP in cytoplasmic space, that reverses the mitochondrial creatine kinase reaction in the direction of ATP production. In this way, because of increasing concentrations of cytoplasmic ADP, mitochondrial creatine kinase is switched off functionally due to the absence of its counterpart in PCr pathway, MM-creatine kinase. This may explain why the creatine kinase flux becomes practically independent from the workload in the hearts of transgenic mouse without MM-CK. Thus, the analysis of the results of studies of hearts of creatine kinase-deficient transgenic mice, based on the use of a mathematical model of compartmentalized energy transfer, show that in the PCr pathway of intracellular energy transport two isoenzymes of creatine kinase always function in a coordinated manner out of equilibrium, in the steady state, and disturbances in functioning of one of them inevitably result     

Mitochondria and diabetes. Genetic, biochemical, and clinical implications of the cellular energy circuit

Physiologically, a postprandial glucose rise induces metabolic signal sequences that use several steps in common in both the pancreas and peripheral tissues but result in different events due to specialized tissue functions. Glucose transport performed by tissue-specific glucose transporters is, in general, not rate limiting. The next step is phosphorylation of glucose by cell-specific hexokinases. In the beta-cell, glucokinase (or hexokinase IV) is activated upon binding to a pore protein in the outer mitochondrial membrane at contact sites between outer and inner membranes. The same mechanism applies for hexokinase II in skeletal muscle and adipose tissue. The activation of hexokinases depends on a contact site-specific structure of the pore, which is voltage-dependent and influenced by the electric potential of the inner mitochondrial membrane. Mitochondria lacking a membrane potential because of defects in the respiratory chain would thus not be able to increase the glucose-phosphorylating enzyme activity over basal state. Binding and activation of hexokinases to mitochondrial contact sites lead to an acceleration of the formation of both ADP and glucose-6-phosphate (G-6-P). ADP directly enters the mitochondrion and stimulates mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. G-6-P is an important intermediate of energy metabolism at the switch position between glycolysis, glycogen synthesis, and the pentose-phosphate shunt. Initiated by blood glucose elevation, mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation is accelerated in a concerted action coupling glycolysis to mitochondrial metabolism at three different points: first, through NADH transfer to the respiratory chain complex I via the malate/aspartate shuttle; second, by providing FADH2 to complex II through the glycerol-phosphate/dihydroxy-acetone-phosphate cycle; and third, by the action of hexo(gluco)kinases providing ADP for complex V, the ATP synthetase. As cytosolic and mitochondrial isozymes of creatine kinase (CK) are observed in insulinoma cells, the phosphocreatine (CrP) shuttle, working in brain and muscle, may also be involved in signaling glucose-induced insulin secretion in beta-cells. An interplay between the plasma membrane-bound CK and the mitochondrial CK could provide a mechanism to increase ATP locally at the KATP channels, coordinated to the activity of mitochondrial CrP production. Closure of the KATP channels by ATP would lead to an increase of cytosolic and, even more, mitochondrial calcium and finally to insulin secretion. Thus in beta-cells, glucose, via bound glucokinase, stimulates mitochondrial CrP synthesis. The same signaling sequence is used in the opposite direction in muscle during exercise when high ATP turnover increases the creatine level that stimulates mitochondrial ATP synthesis and glucose phosphorylation via hexokinase. Furthermore, this cytosolic/mitochondrial cross-talk is also involved in activation of muscle glycogen synthesis by glucose. The activity of mitochondrially bound hexokinase provides G-6-P and stimulates UTP production through mitochondrial nucleoside diphosphate kinase. Pathophysiologically, there are at least two genetically different forms of diabetes linked to energy metabolism: the first example is one form of maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY2), an autosomal dominant disorder caused by point mutations of the glucokinase gene; the second example is several forms of mitochondrial diabetes caused by point and length mutations of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) that encodes several subunits of the respiratory chain complexes. Because the mtDNA is vulnerable and accumulates point and length mutations during aging, it is likely to contribute to the manifestation of some forms of NIDDM.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED)     

Quantitative studies of enzyme-substrate compartmentation, functional coupling and metabolic channelling in muscle cells

Some historical aspects of development of the concepts of functional coupling, metabolic channelling, compartmentation and energy transfer networks are reviewed. Different quantitative approaches, including kinetic and mathematical modeling of energy metabolism, intracellular energy transfer and metabolic regulation of energy production and fluxes in the cells in vivo are analyzed. As an example of the system with metabolic channelling, thermodynamic aspects of the functioning the mitochondrial creatine kinase functionally coupled to the oxidative phosphorylation are considered. The internal thermodynamics of the mitochondrial creatine kinase reaction is similar to that for other isoenzymes of creatine kinase, and the oxidative phosphorylation process specifically influences steps of association and dissociation of MgATP with the enzyme due to channelling of ATP from adenine nucleotide translocase. A new paradigm of muscle bioenergetics-the paradigm of energy transfer and feedback signaling networks based on analysis of compartmentation phenomena and structural and functional interactions in the cell is described. Analysis of the results of mathematical modeling of the compartmentalized energy transfer leads to conclusion that both calcium and ADP, which concentration changes synchronously in contraction cycle, may simultaneously activate oxidative phosphorylation in the muscle cells in vivo. The importance of the phosphocreatine circuit among other pathways of intracellular energy transfer network is discussed on the basis of the recent data published in the literature, with some experimental demonstration. The results of studies of perfused rat hearts with completely inhibited creatine kinase show significantly decreased work capacity and respectively, energy fluxes, in these hearts in spite of significant activation of adenylate kinase system (Dzeja et al. this volume). These results, combined with those of mathematical analysis of the energy metabolism of hearts of transgenic mice with switched off creatine kinase isoenzymes confirm the importance of phosphocreatine pathway for energy transfer for cell function and energetics in mature heart and many other types of cells, as one of major parts of intracellular energy transfer network and metabolic regulation.     

Nerve fiber formation and catecholamine content in adult rat adrenal medullary transplants after treatment with NGF, NT-3, NT-4/5, bFGF, CNTF, and GDNF

Forward (-->ATP) and reverse (-->CrP) fluxes through the creatine kinase reaction were determined in isolated rat and bovine heart mitochondria and with soluble MM-CK from rabbit skeletal muscle, using 31P-saturation transfer NMR. With soluble MM-CK forward and reverse fluxes were identical in the absence and presence of BSA or rat liver mitochondria. Addition of liver mitochondria decreased fluxes with increasing mitochondria concentration. The fluxf/Vmax(f) ratio was 0.006 with 10 mg BSA and 0.04 with 10 mg rat liver mitochondria, respectively. With heart mitochondria, fluxr was considerably higher than fluxf and the fluxf/Vmax(f) ratio was 1.7 for rat heart and 0.22 for bovine heart. It is concluded that in the presence of isolated mitochondria, the flux through the creatine kinase is driven by the mitochondrial ATP-ADP turnover. Therefore the fluxf/Vmax(f) ratio is highest for rat heart mitochondria with a high ATP-ADP turnover, intermediate for bovine heart mitochondria and low for MM-CK in the presence of liver mitochondria. It is lowest with MM-CK alone, where the creatine kinase reaction is at equilibrium and external ATP-ADP turnover is absent. The higher reverse than forward fluxes of mitochondrial creatine kinase determined at steady state by saturation transfer NMR, are caused mainly by a high ATP<-->Pi exchange in heart mitochondria preparations, having a high ATPase activity, compared to liver mitochondria.     

Improvement of muscular oxidative capacity by training is associated with slight acidosis and ATP depletion in exercising muscles

Metabolic and mechanical properties of female rat skeletal muscles, submitted to endurance training on a treadmill, were studied by a 60-min in vivo multistep fatigue test. 31P-NMR was used to follow energy metabolism and pH. Mechanical performance was greatly improved in trained muscles. The oxidative capacity of the skeletal muscles was evaluated from the relationship between ADP calculated from the creatine kinase equilibrium and work and from the measure of the rate of phosphocreatine (PCr) resynthesis following exercise. In trained muscles, ADP production was lower per unit of mechanical performance, showing an improvement of oxidative metabolism. However, the PCr resynthesis rate was not modified. Slight acidosis and ATP depletion were observed from the beginning of the fatigue test. These modifications suggest changes of the creatine kinase equilibrium favoring mitochondrial ATP production. Our results indicate that muscle status improvement could be accompanied by ATP depletion and minimal acidosis during contraction; this would be of particular importance for objective evaluation of muscle regeneration processes and of gene therapy in muscle diseases.     

Chronic exposure of rats to hypoxic environment alters the mechanism of energy transfer in myocardium

We have investigated the effect of chronic exposure of rats to an hypoxic environment (10% O2; 3 weeks), on the first step of the intracellular energy transfer process in the myocardium, i.e. the transfer at mitochondrial level of high energy bonds from ATP to creatine. In the left ventricles from rats adapted to normobaric hypoxia, we observed, using the permeabilized fiber technique, that the stimulatory effect of creatine on the mitochondrial respiration in presence of a low ADP concentration (0.1 mM) was attenuated when compared to control. Furthermore, the creatine-induced decrease of the apparent K(m) for ADP of the mitochondrial respiration, which is observed in control, was significantly reduced. Both the basal and maximal respiratory rates of the fibers were unchanged by the hypoxic exposure of the rats. A significant decrease of the total creatine kinase activity from 755 to 630 IU/g wet weight (for control and hypoxic rats, respectively) was detected and was accompanied by a 25% decrease in mitochondrial isoform activity (mitoCK) and in the mitoCK/citrate synthase ratio. In the right ventricles, identical alterations in the effect of creatine on apparent K(m) for ADP were observed while we did not detect any changes in CK activity. The decrease in mitoCK activity and the fall in the reactivity of respiration to creatine could be interpreted as a mechanism for downregulating oxygen demand during chronic hypoxia. The consequences of such alterations on energy metabolism of cardiomyocytes under conditions of reduced oxygen supply are discussed.     

Ecotoxicology and landscape planning

Relationships between pH and the concentrations of phosphocreatine (PCr), inorganic phosphate (Pi), and lactate during ischemic exercise depend on passive buffering, proton consumption as a consequence of net PCr breakdown, the control of glycogenolysis, (particularly in relation to the concentration of Pi, a substrate of glycogen phosphorylase that is produced by net PCr breakdown), and the creatine kinase equilibrium. The author analyzes the implications of these relationships for the interpretation of 31P-magnetic resonance spectroscopic data and for the control of glycogenolysis. For realistic adenosine diphosphate (ADP) concentrations, given the constraints of the creatine kinase equilibrium, the pH must be near-linear with lactate, with an apparent buffer capacity (i.e., the ratio of lactate accumulation to pH change) that is nearly twice the true buffer capacity (i.e., the ratio of net proton loading to pH change). The implications for glycogenolytic control depend on adenosine triphosphate (ATP) turnover, but an upper limit of activation of glycogen phosphorylase (i.e., the amount of the a form) that would permit no increase in ADP concentration can be calculated. Phosphorylase activation during ischemic exercise seems approximately proportional to the power output, consistent with calcium stimulation of phosphorylase b kinase. In simulations, ADP concentration is highly sensitive to this proportionality, as (unlike in purely oxidative exercise) ADP concentration is not known to participate in any closed feedback loops in ischemic exercise.     

Duration of larval and pupal development stages of Aedes albopictus in natural and artificial containers

Mitochondrial function in muscle in vivo can be quantitatively evaluated using 31-phosphorus nuclear magnetic resonance. In resting muscle, the concentrations of ions (e.g. H+, Na+) and two of the major bioenergetic components (inorganic phosphate and creatine) are determined by regulated transcellular transport processes. During recovery after exercise the kinetics and control of mitochondrial ATP synthesis can be established. During exercise the relative contributions to ATP synthesis of phosphocreatine (using creatine kinase), anaerobic glycogenolysis and oxidative phosphorylation are dissected and have been shown to change with time. The consequences of mitochondrial lesions and dysfunctions on these processes have been summarised.     

Increased oxidative and delayed glycogenolytic ATP synthesis in exercising skeletal muscle of obese (insulin-resistant) Zucker rats

1. To examine metabolic correlates of insulin resistance in skeletal muscle, we used 31P magnetic resonance spectroscopy to study glycogenolytic and oxidative ATP synthesis in leg muscle of lean and obese Zucker rats in vivo during 6 min sciatic nerve stimulation at 2 Hz. 2. The water content of resting muscle was reduced by 21 +/- 7% in obese (insulin-resistant) animals compared with lean animals, whereas the lipid content was increased by 140 +/- 70%. These results suggest that intracellular water content was reduced by 17% in obese animals. 3. During exercise, although twitch tensions were not significantly different in the two groups, rates of total ATP synthesis (expressed per litre of intracellular water) were 48 +/- 20% higher in obese animals, suggesting a 50 +/- 8% reduction in intrinsic "metabolic efficiency'. Changes in phosphocreatine and ADP concentration were significantly greater in obese animals than in lean animals, whereas changes in intracellular pH did not differ. 4. These results imply that oxidative ATP synthesis during exercise is activated earlier in obese animals than in lean animals. This difference was not fully accounted for by the greater increase in the concentration of the mitochondrial activating signal ADP. Neither the post-exercise recovery kinetics of phosphocreatine nor the muscle content of the mitochondrial marker enzyme citrate synthase was significantly different in the two groups. The increased oxidative ATP synthesis in exercise must therefore be due to altered kinetics of mitochondrial activation by signals other than ADP. 5. Thus, the insulin-resistant muscle of obese animals may compensate for its decreased efficiency (and consequent increased need for ATP) by increased reliance on oxidative ATP synthesis.     

Phosphotransfer reactions in the regulation of ATP-sensitive K+ channels

ATP-sensitive K+ (K(ATP)) channels are nucleotide-gated channels that couple the metabolic status of a cell with membrane excitability and regulate a number of cellular functions, including hormone secretion and cardioprotection. Although intracellular ATP is the endogenous inhibitor of K(ATP) channels and ADP serves as the channel activator, it is still a matter of debate whether changes in the intracellular concentrations of ATP, ADP, and/or in the ATP/ADP ratio could account for the transition from the ATP-liganded to the ADP-liganded channel state. Here, we overview evidence for the role of cellular phosphotransfer cascades in the regulation of K(ATP) channels. The microenvironment of the K(ATP) channel harbors several phosphotransfer enzymes, including adenylate, creatine, and pyruvate kinases, as well as other glycolytic enzymes that are able to transfer phosphoryls between ATP and ADP in the absence of major changes in cytosolic levels of adenine nucleotides. These phosphotransfer reactions are governed by the metabolic status of a cell, and their phosphotransfer rate closely correlates with K(ATP) channel activity. Adenylate kinase catalysis accelerates the transition from ATP to ADP, leading to K(ATP) channel opening, while phosphotransfers driven by creatine and pyruvate kinases promote ADP to ATP transition and channel closure. Thus, through delivery and removal of adenine nucleotides at the channel site, phosphotransfer reactions could regulate ATP/ADP balance in the immediate vicinity of the channel and thereby the probability of K(ATP) channel opening. In this way, phosphotransfer reactions could provide a transduction mechanism coupling cellular metabolic signals with K(ATP) channel-associated functions.     

gamma-Interferon produced by CD8+ T cells infiltrating Kaposi''s sarcoma induces spindle cells with angiogenic phenotype and synergy with human immunodeficiency virus-1 Tat protein: an immune response to human herpesvirus-8 infection?

A theoretical metabolic-control-analysis approach has been used to study aspects of glycolytic-flux control and carbon-metabolite regulation, particularly the role of ATP demand (ATPase), in order to determine what general features of the regulation of energy metabolism would be consistent with good carbon-metabolite homeostasis in the face of large changes in carbon flux. On the basis of a semi-quantitative control-analysis model, incorporating estimates of substrate, product and effector actions on the enzymes, the experimentally observed characteristics of glycolytic-flux changes prove to impose constraints on the feasible ranges of these estimates. This leads to the identification of several features of energy metabolism, each of which is necessary but not sufficient to explain the observations; although most of these have been advocated previously (such as AMP activation of phosphofructokinase (PFK), ADP inhibition of ATPase and the role of energy charge or ATP/ADP ratio), our analysis allows their relative importance to be assessed. In the model, the distribution of flux control depends primarily on ADP inhibition of ATPase, and on the activation of PFK by AMP; increase in ADP inhibition of ATPase increases the control on PFK; increase in AMP activation of PFK increases control on ATPase. PFK exerts greater flux control than does ATPase over approximately 50% of the ranges (parameter space) studied, but its control is sufficiently high to achieve sizeable flux increases over less than 20% of the space. Furthermore, control by alteration in PFK activity is shown to result in poor glycolytic metabolite homeostasis over the entire parameter space studied. However, over a large proportion of the parameter space, control by activation of ATPase can lead to large flux changes, i.e. high flux control, coupled with excellent glycolytic-metabolite homeostasis, similar to that observed in working muscle. As well as altering the relative degrees of flux control invested in PFK and ATPase, ADP inhibition of ATPase and AMP activation of PFK have pronounced effects on the homeostatic properties of the system. Stronger ADP inhibition of ATPase results in improved homeostasis of glycolytic metabolites, ATP and ADP in response to PFK activation, whereas stronger activation of PFK by AMP improves the homeostasis of these three quantities in response to ATPase activation. The results are further evidence of the potential for physiological ATP demand to exert control over glycolytic flux, but additionally show that the known effector interactions, in addition to their previously known role in ATP regulation, could contribute to the remarkable homeostasis of glycolytic-metabolite levels observed in vivo. They further indicate that quantitative characterisation of likely domains of behaviour of metabolic systems can be achieved by an algebraic analysis that is not highly dependent on a full and precise knowledge of the molecular details of the kinetic/regulatory properties of the enzymes, but that still allows an assessment of whether hypotheses regarding the system are feasible and sufficient to account for the observations.     

A random DNA sequencing, computer-based approach for the generation of a gene map of molluscum contagiosum virus

Phosphorus MR spectroscopy (31P-MRS) was used to quantify skeletal muscle bioenergetics and proton efflux in 63 patients with migraine (23 with migraine without aura, MwoA, 22 with migraine with aura, MwA, and 18 with prolonged aura or stroke, CM) and in 14 patients with cluster headache (CH), all in an attack-free period. At rest mitochondrial function was abnormal only in CM, as shown by a low phosphocreatine (PCr) concentration. At the end of a mixed glycolytic/aerobic exercise all three migraine groups showed a significantly smaller decrease of cytosolic pH compared to controls with a similar end-exercise PCr breakdown, while end-exercise pH was normal in cluster headache patients. The normal rate of proton efflux in all headache groups suggests that the reduced end-exercise acidification was due to a reduction of glycolytic flux in migraine patients. The maximum rate of mitochondrial ATP production (Qmax), calculated from the rate of post-exercise PCr recovery and the end-exercise [ADP], was low in cluster headache patients as well as in migraine patients except MwoA. In migraine the degree of the mitochondrial impairment, that apparently is associated with a reduced glycolytic flux, is related to the severity of the clinical phenotype.     

Phosphocreatine and creatine kinase in piglet cerebral gray and white matter in situ

Rates of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) metabolism are higher in cerebral gray matter than in white matter. Like other excitable tissues, brain contains a phosphocreatine (PCr)/creatine kinase (CK)/ATP system including cytosolic (B-CK) and mitochondrial (Mi-CK) isozymes. High B-CK activity is present in white and gray matter while Mi-CK is mostly in gray matter. An in situ localizing 31P-NMR technique, one-dimensional chemical shift imaging (1D-CSI), has been used to study the PCr/CK/ATP system in these regions. In the metabolically mature 4-week-old piglet, the PCr/nucleoside triphosphate (NTP) ratio measured by the 1D-CSI technique is at least 50% higher in white than gray matter. Total creatine (Cr), ATP, and total NTP concentrations are the same in rapidly frozen rat white and gray matter, suggesting that PCr/Cr ratio is much higher in white matter. The PCr increases more in gray than white matter between 4 days and 4 weeks of age in piglet brain. The CK catalyzed reaction rate constant, measured by combining the saturation transfer experiment with the 1D-CSI, is also much higher in white than gray matter at both ages. The postnatal maturational increase in the CK rate constant is greater in gray matter. In summary, these differences in PCr concentration and CK reaction rates and isozymes characterize two physiologically different PCr/CK/ATP systems in gray and white matter.     

Impaired aerobic glycolysis in muscle phosphofructokinase deficiency results in biphasic post-exercise phosphocreatine recovery in 31P magnetic resonance spectroscopy

Using 31P magnetic resonance spectroscopy, energy metabolism in calf muscles of two patients with biochemically and genetically proven muscular phosphofructokinase deficiency, and an asymptomatic heterozygote was monitored during isometric foot plantarflexion performed under aerobic and anaerobic conditions and in the aerobic recovery phases. In the heterozygote only a moderate alteration from normal was found in terms of an elevated ATP demand during exercise. In the homozygote, hexose phosphates, indicated as phosphomonoesters, increased dramatically during contraction. Phosphomonoester accumulation resulted in consumption of free inorganic phosphate (P(i)). During ischemic exercise the absence of glycolytic ATP formation resulted in a linear time course of phosphocreatine breakdown and a moderate alkalinization. During the recovery, phosphocreatine resynthesis showed a biphasic time course, indicating that mitochondrial function itself was not directly affected. At first glance, the early depletion of P(i) below initial resting levels and the rate of phosphate splitting from sugar phosphates seemed to become the limiting factor for the rate of the oxidative phosphorylation and creatine kinase reaction. However, the actual concentrations of P(i) and ADP estimated at the onset of delay were too high to exclusively explain the dramatic delay in PCr resynthesis. For this reason, a reduced turnover of the citric acid cycle was assumed, which was caused by the complete absence of glycolysis in PFK deficiency patients. Furthermore, results from PFK deficiency patients were compared with previous findings from myophosphorylase deficiency patients in the literature.     

Androgen synthesis in a songbird: a study of cyp17 (17alpha-hydroxylase/C17,20-lyase) activity in the zebra finch

Extracellular nucleotides, e.g., ATP, ADP, and UTP, are important signaling molecules which elicit various physiological responses in different tissues. Their degradation is catalyzed by ectonucleotidases which are located on cell surfaces. Most tissues have a mixed population of ectonucleotidases. In this report, the ATP and ADP hydrolyzing ectonucleotidases of chicken gizzard smooth muscle and liver plasma membranes were studied. The two membranes exhibited marked differences in the ratio of ATPase/ADPase activities, activation by divalent cations, thermal stability, responses to detergents and cross-linking agents, and sensitivity to several enzyme inhibitors. The ATPase activity of chicken gizzard membranes is (i) labile to heat and detergents; (ii) activated by concanavalin A and disuccinimidyl suberate, both cross-linking agents; (iii) inhibited by mercurials; and (iv) insensitive to high concentrations of azide, a known inhibitor of ecto-ATP diphosphohydrolases (ecto-ATP/Dase). In contrast, the liver membrane ATPase and ADPase activities are more stable to treatment by heat and detergents and insensitive to cross-linking agents and mercurials, but are inhibited by azide. A low ADP hydrolase activity in the gizzard membranes could be distinguished from both the gizzard ATPase and the liver ATPase/ADPase. This ADP hydrolase, which is markedly stimulated by NBD-Cl, accounts for most of the ADP hydrolysis activity in gizzard membranes. It is concluded that the major ectonucleotidase in the gizzard membranes is an ecto-ATPase whereas that in the liver membranes is an ecto-ATP/Dase. That both membranes contain a mixed population of the ecto-ATPase and ecto-ATP/Dase, but in different proportions, is further demonstrated by immunochemical characterization. The different composition of ectonucleotidases in the two membranes is expected to have an important effect on the regulation of hydrolysis of extracellular ATP as well as the concentration of extracellular adenine nucleotides in the gizzard and liver tissues.     

Oxidative phosphorylation in intact hepatocytes: quantitative characterization of the mechanisms of change in efficiency and cellular consequences

Two mechanisms may affect the yield of the oxidative phosphorylation pathway in isolated mitochondria: (i) a decrease in the intrinsic coupling of the proton pumps (H+/2e- or H+/ATP), and (ii) an increase in the inner membrane conductance (proton or cation leak). Hence three kinds of modifications can occur and each of them have been characterized in isolated rat liver mitochondria (see preceding chapter by Rigoulet et al.). In intact isolated hepatocytes, these modifications are linked to specific patterns of bioenergetic parameters, i.e. respiratory flux, mitochondrial redox potential, DY, and phosphate potential. (1) The increase in H+/ATP stoichiometry of the mitochondrial ATP synthase, as induced by almitrine [20], leads to a decrease in mitochondrial and cytosolic ATP/ADP ratios without any change in the protonmotive force nor in the respiratory rate or redox potential. (2) In comparison to carbohydrate, octanoate metabolism by beta-oxidation increases the proportion of electrons supplied at the second coupling site of the respiratory chain. This mimics a redox slipping. Octanoate addition results in an increased respiratory rate and mitochondrial NADH/NAD ratio while protonmotive force and phosphate potential are almost unaffected. The respiratory rate increase is associated with a decrease in the overall apparent thermodynamic driving force (2deltaE'o - ndeltap) which confirms the 'redox-slipping-like' effect. (3) An increase in proton conductance as induced by the protonophoric uncoupler 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) leads to a decrease, as expected, in the mitochondrial NADH/NAD and ATP/ ADP ratios and in deltapsi while respiratory rate is increased. Thus, each kind of modification (proton leak, respiratory chain redox slipping or increase in H+/ATP stoichiometry of ATPase) is related to a specific set of bioenergetic parameters in intact cells. Moreover, these patterns are in good agreement with the data found in isolated mitochondria. From this work, we conclude that quantitative analysis of four bioenergetic parameters (respiration rate, mitochondrial NADH/ NAD ratio, protonmotive force and mitochondrial phosphate potential) gives adequate tools to investigate the mechanism by which some alterations may affect the yield of the oxidative phosphorylation pathway in intact cells.     

Cytoarchitectural and metabolic adaptations in muscles with mitochondrial and cytosolic creatine kinase deficiencies

We have blocked creatine kinase (CK) mediated phosphocreatine (PCr) <==> ATP transphosphorylation in mitochondria and cytosol of skeletal muscle by knocking out the genes for the mitochondrial (ScCKmit) and the cytosolic (M-CK) CK isoforms in mice. Animals which carry single or double mutations, if kept and tested under standard laboratory conditions, have surprisingly mild changes in muscle physiology. Strenuous ex vivo conditions were necessary to reveal that MM-CK absence in single and double mutants leads to a partial loss of tetanic force output. Single ScCKmit deficiency has no noticeable effects but in combination the mutations cause slowing of the relaxation rate. Importantly, our studies revealed that there is metabolic and cytoarchitectural adaptation to CK defects in energy metabolism. The effects involve mutation type-dependent alterations in the levels of AMP, IMP, glycogen and phosphomonoesters, changes in activity of metabolic enzymes like AMP-deaminase, alterations in mitochondrial volume and contractile protein (MHC isoform) profiles, and a hyperproliferation of the terminal cysternae of the SR (in tubular aggregates). This suggests that there is a compensatory resiliency of loss-of-function and redirection of flux distributions in the metabolic network for cellular energy in our mutants.     

Role of reactive oxygen species and poly-ADP-ribose polymerase in the development of AZT-induced cardiomyopathy in rat

The short term cardiac side-effects of AZT (3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine, zidovudine) was studied in rats to understand the biochemical events contributing to the development of AZT-induced cardiomyopathy. Developing rats were treated with AZT (50 mg/kg/day) for 2 wk and the structural and functional changes were monitored in the cardiac muscle. AZT treatment provoked a surprisingly fast appearance of cardiac malfunctions in developing animals characterized by prolonged RR, PR and QT intervals and J point depression. Electron microscopy showed abnormal mitochondrial structure but the cardiomyocyte had normal myofibers. The AZT treatment of rats significantly increased ROS and peroxynitrite formation in heart tissues as determined by the oxidation of nonfluorescent dihydrorhodamine123 and dichlorodihydro-fluorescein diacetate (H2DCFDA) to fluorescent dyes, and induced single-strand DNA breaks. Lipid peroxidation and oxidation of cellular proteins determined from protein carbonyl content were increased as a consequence of AZT treatment. Activation of the nuclear poly-ADP-ribose polymerase and the accelerated NAD+ catabolism were also observed in AZT-treated animals. Western blot analysis showed that mono-ADP-ribosylation of glucose regulated protein (GRP78/BIP) was enhanced by AZT treatment, that process inactivates GRP78. In this way moderate decrease in the activity of respiratory complexes was detected in the heart of AZT-treated animals indicating a damaged mitochondrial energy production. There was a significant decrease in creatine phosphate concentration resulting in a decrease in creatine phosphate/creatine ratio from 2.08 to 0.58. ATP level remained close to normal but the total extractable ADP increased with 45%. The calculated free ATP/ADP ratio decreased from 340 to 94 in the heart of AZT-treated rats as a consequence of increased free ADP concentration. It was assumed that the increased free ADP in AZT-treated cardiomyocyte may help cells to compensate the defective ATP production in damaged mitochondria by activating the ATP synthesis in undamaged mitochondria. Southern blot analysis did not show decreased quantity of mtDNA deriving from AZT-treated rat hearts indicating that under our experimental conditions AZT-induced heart abnormalities are not the direct consequence of the mtDNA depletion. These data show that ROS-mediated oxidative damages, activated ADP-ribosylation reactions and accelerated NAD+ catabolism play basic roles in the development of AZT-induced cardiomyopathy in our animal model and indicated that these ROS-mediated processes can be important factors in the development of myopathy and cardiomyopathy in zidovudine-treated AIDS patients.     

Fluorescence energy transfer immunoassay based on a long-lifetime luminescent metal-ligand complex

OBJECTIVES: Magnetization exchange experiments and force analysis were performed on porcine carotid arteries with varied phosphocreatine (PCr) levels. The aim of these experiments was to determine the creatine kinase (CK) kinetics and the role in hypoxic relaxation. METHODS: The magnetization exchange techniques used were multisite saturation transfer (MST) and conventional saturation transfer (CST). The two techniques were used because CST assumes a two-site exchange while MST allows one to assume a three-site exchange. Mechanical parameters of tension generation and relaxation were measured to determine the energetic effects on contractility of carotid strips. RESULTS: Measurements of molecular exchange between ATP and PCr found the pseudo first-order rate constant (kf) of 0.17 +/- 0.04 S-1 (PCr-->ATP) and kr = 0.12 +/- 0.03 S-1 (ATP-->PCr) in unstimulated porcine carotid artery. In the carotids, despite increased PCr and K+ stimulation, no magnetization exchange is observable with MST. This result indicates that the ATPase was less than 0.04 mumol/g/s (below the NMR resolution) while CK was 0.11 mumol/g/s. Creatine-loaded carotids showed no significant differences in force measurements: maximal force, resting tension, and the rate of hypoxia were all unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: The flux ratio (flux forward over flux reverse) was 0.94 +/- 0.13 which was considered to be indicative of CK being at equilibrium in the resting porcine carotid artery. The rate of the CK reaction is rapid enough to assume a two-site kinetic exchange not limiting energetic supply during hypoxia-induced relaxation.     

Metabolic control and metabolic capacity: two aspects of creatine kinase functioning in the cells

In this short review, the merits and limits of three theoretical concepts explaining the functional role of the creatine kinase system in muscle and brain cells are analysed. In addition to the usual concept of an energy buffer system and the recently proposed metabolic capacity theory (Sweeney, H.L. (1994) Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 26, 30-36), it is proposed that coupled creatine kinase systems are involved in effective metabolic regulation of energy fluxes and oxidative phosphorylation, beside their energy transfer function. This aspect of the system is considered on the basis of metabolic control analysis. It is shown by using the results of mathematical modelling that, due to amplification of ADP fluxes from the cytoplasm by the mechanism of metabolic channelling, coupled mitochondrial creatine kinase may exert a flux control coefficient significantly exceeding 1.