Lanthanides inhibit the human noradrenaline, 5-hydroxytryptamine and dopamine transporters

Transporters for the monoamine neurotransmitters, including noradrenaline, 5-hydroxytryptamine [5-HT] and dopamine, have twelve transmembrane spanning regions and cotransport Na⁺ and Cl^– ions. Another family of Na⁺-dependent transporters is that containing the Na⁺/glucose and Na⁺/proline cotransporters that are found in the epithelial cells of renal and intestinal brush border membranes. It has been shown that various trivalent lanthanides can substitute for Na⁺ for transport of glucose and proline. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of lanthanides on the activities of the human noradrenaline, 5-HT and dopamine transporters. Cultured cells were incubated for 2min with 10nM ³H-noradrenaline (SK-N-SH-SY5Y human neuroblastoma cells), ³H-5-HT (JAR human placental choriocarcinoma cells) or ³H-dopamine (COS-7 cells transfected with the cDNA of the human dopamine transporter). Specific amine uptake was determined as the difference between accumulation of the amine in the cells in the absence and presence of a corresponding uptake inhibitor. Under both isotonic (150mM NaCl or LiCl or 90mM lanthanide salt) and hypertonic (150mM NaCl + 100mM LiCl, 250mM LiCl or 150mM lanthanide salt) conditions, replacement of Na⁺ by Li⁺, La³⁺, Eu³⁺ or Sm³⁺ abolished the specific uptake of noradrenaline in SK-N-SH-SY5Y cells and replacement of Na⁺ by Li⁺ or Eu³⁺ decreased the specific uptake of 5-HT in JAR cells by 94–100% and that of dopamine in transfected COS-7 cells by 95–99%. The direct effects of Eu³⁺ (with Na⁺ present) on the human noradrenaline transporter in SK-N-SH-SY5Y cells were also examined. Eu³⁺ inhibited noradrenaline uptake into the cells (IC₅₀ 2.6mM) and nisoxetine binding to crude membranes of SK-N-SH-SY5Y cells (IC₅₀ 4.7mM) with similar potencies. Further experiments showed that 4.5mM EuCl₃ in the presence of 150mM Na⁺ caused a 3.5-fold increase in the K_m of noradrenaline and no change in the maximal rate of noradrenaline uptake. EuCl₃ (4.5mM) also caused a pronounced inhibition of the Na⁺-dependent stimulation of noradrenaline uptake by SK-N-SH-SY5Y cells. It can be concluded from these data that, in contrast with the Na⁺/glucose and Na⁺/proline cotransporters, the lanthanides cannot substitute for Na⁺ in the transport of substrates by the monoamine neurotransmitter transporters and that the lanthanides inhibit the latter transporters by interacting with sites of the transporters involved in amine and Na⁺ binding. Received: 15 July 1996 / Accepted: 28 January 1997