Effects of hypophysectomy and growth hormone treatment on renal hydroxylation of 25-hydroxycholecalciferol in rats

Growth hormone stimulates intestinal calcium absorption. This action has been linked to vitamin D metabolism. We have investigated the effects of hypophysectomy and GH treatment on renal metabolism of 25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25-OH-D3). Renal hydroxylation of 25-OH-D3 was measured in vitro using the renal slice technique. Experiments were performed in young F344 rats fed a vitamin D-replete, low calcium diet for 4 weeks. In hypophysectomized rats, renal conversion of 25-OH-D3 to 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol (1,25-(OH)2D3) was markedly reduced compared with sham-operated rats. Renal conversion of 25-OH-D3 to 24,25-(OH)2D3 was markedly increased in hypophysectomized rats compared with sham-operated rats. Treatment of hypophysectomized rats with rat GH (rGH) for 10 days resulted in a significant increase in renal conversion of 25-OH-D3 to 1,25-(OH)2D3 and a significant decrease in conversion to 24,25-(OH)2D3. Rat GH treatment caused no significant changes in serum levels of immunoreactive parathyroid hormone. Serum calcium concentrations were similar in all groups, and serum phosphorus was low in hypophysectomized rats. Treatment of hypophysectomized rats with ovine GH for 6 days caused changes which were much less pronounced than those induced by rGH. Renal conversion of 25-OH-D3 to 1,25-(OH)2D3 and 24,25-(OH)2D3 correlated well with growth rate (weight gain). These results suggest that GH, either directly or indirectly, modulates renal metabolism of 25-OH-D3.     

Effects of vitamin D and its metabolites on calcium transport in the diabetic rat.

We studied diabetic rats, 5 days after streptozotocin injection, and matched controls to determine whether depressed duodenal calcium absorption associated with uncontrolled diabetes in the rat would respond to vitamin D or its metabolites. At the appropriate time following the intravenous injection of 0.25 mug of either vitamin D3, 25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25-OHD3), 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol (1,25-OH)2D3), or 1alpha-hydroxycholecalciferol (1alpha-OHD3) to half of each diabetic and control group, calcium transport was evaluated using everted duodenal sacs with 0.4 mM40Ca and tracer 45Ca on both mucosal and serosal surfaces. All agents stimulated duodenal calcium absorption in controls. Diabetics responded only to 1,25-(OH)2D3, the metabolite that acts directly on the duodenum, and to its synthetic analog, 1alpha-OHD3. 1alpha-OHD3 is activated to 1,25-(OH)2D3 by 25-hydroxylation in the liver; 25-OHD3 must be 1alpha-hydroxylated in the kidney to be active. The stimulation of duodenal calcium absorption in diabetic rats by 1alpha-OHD3, but not by either vitamin D3 or 25-OHD3, is most consistent with a defect in vitamin D metabolism at the 1alpha-hydroxylation step in the kidney.     

Depressed duodenal calcium absorption in the diabetic rat: restoration by Solanum malacoxylon.

Duodenal calcium absorption is depressed in alloxan and streptozotocin diabetic rats taking normal amounts to dietary vitamin D. Depression of absorption appears to be at least in part the result of altered metabolism of vitamin D with failure to form 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol (1,25-(OH)2D3), the vitamin D metabolite that acts directly on duodenum to stimulate calcium absorption. The South American plant Solanum malacoxylon causes extensive soft tissue calcification when ingested by cattle. An extract of this plant restores calcium absorption depressed by dietary strontium blockage of 1,25-(OH)2D3 formation in chicks. We gave an aqueous extract of S. malacoxylon to diabetic rats and restored duodenal calcium absorption to normal. These findings provide further evidence of the ability of a factor in the S. malacoxylon extract to mimic the actions of 1,25-(OH)2D3 on duodenal calcium transport and reinforce the hypothesis that abnormal vitamin D metabolism is an important determinant of depressed duodenal calcium absorption in diabetes.     

Bone mineral homeostasis in spontaneously diabetic BB rats. I. Abnormal vitamin D metabolism and impaired active intestinal calcium absorption

Calcium homeostasis was investigated in male BB rats with a diabetes duration of 3-4 weeks and compared with that in nondiabetic littermates either fed ad libitum or receiving selective semistarvation or an oral Ca supplement to obtain additional weight-matched and Ca intake-matched control groups. Diabetic rats had markedly increased food and Ca intake, so that their net Ca balance remained positive despite a 13-fold increase in urinary Ca excretion and a disappearance of active duodenal Ca absorption. Decreased duodenal Ca uptake correlated with decreased 1,25-(OH)2D3 levels (89 +/- 15 vs. 160 +/- 13 pg/ml in nondiabetic rats), decreased duodenal 9K Ca-binding protein concentrations (10 +/- 1 vs. 21 +/- 2 micrograms/mg protein), and decreased number of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2D3]-binding sites in duodenum, although the binding affinity was above normal. Nondiabetic Ca-supplemented rats exhibited a similar response: decreased 1,25-(OH)2D3 (95 +/- 8 pg/ml) and 9K Ca-binding protein (7 +/- 0.5 micrograms/mg protein) concentrations, decreased active duodenal Ca uptake, increased urinary Ca excretion, and a normal net Ca balance. Plasma vitamin D-binding protein levels were decreased by 62% in diabetic rats, due to a marked decrease in production rate, while the plasma half-time remained normal. The free 1,25-(OH)2D3 index was highest in diabetic rats, suggesting partial vitamin D resistance at the duodenal level. In semistarved rats, 1,25-(OH)2D3 levels and active Ca uptake remained normal, and the free 1,25-(OH)2D3 index was increased, together with suppressed vitamin D-binding protein levels. These studies indicate that nutritional abnormalities may contribute to but cannot totally explain the disturbances in vitamin D metabolism, transport, or action at the intestinal level.     

Responsiveness of the intestinal 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 receptor to magnesium depletion in the rat.

In contrast to man, the rat exhibits hypercalcemia during the course of magnesium depletion. To investigate the role of the vitamin D (D) endocrine system in the induction of hypercalcemia, circulating D metabolites, the binding properties of the duodenal 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2D3] receptor (VDR), and 45Ca transport studies were undertaken in magnesium-replete rats or after 10 days of magnesium depletion in animals presenting the following D status: D depletion and hypo- or normocalcemia (achieved by oral calcium supplementation), D3 or 1,25-(OH)2D3 repletion. Magnesium depletion did not influence serum calcium in hypo- or normocalcemic D depleted rats, but increased serum calcium in animals receiving D3 (P less than 0.002) or 1,25-(OH)2D3 (P less than 0.0001), suggesting that the D3 endocrine system is necessary to mediate the rise in extracellular calcium and that dietary calcium alone is not sufficient to significantly increase extracellular calcium in the hypomagnesemic rat. The data also show that 25-hydroxyvitamin D formation was not perturbed, but circulating 1,25-(OH)2D3 concentrations were reduced by 10 days of magnesium depletion (P less than 0.0001) even in animals infused with 1,25-(OH)2D3, suggesting increased clearance of the hormone. The kinetic data of the duodenal VDR revealed maximum binding sites ranging from 1018-1500 fmol/mg DNA and Kd ranging from 0.17-0.38 nM, with no significant between-group difference in magnesium-sufficient animals. Ten days of magnesium depletion did not significantly influence VDR affinity in any of the groups, but significantly increased receptor number in hypocalcemic D-depleted rats from 1190 +/- 154 to 2748 +/- 430 fmol/mg DNA (P less than 0.004). Calcium transport studies in D-replete animals indicate that intestinal calcium transport is influenced by the progressive depletion in magnesium, with time-related increases coinciding with the in vivo increase in circulating ionized calcium (day 6 of magnesium depletion). However, despite persistent elevated serum ionized calcium, calcium transport declined only to predepletion levels on days 8 and 10 of magnesium depletion. To investigate the influence of the D3 endocrine system on 45Ca absorption, D-depleted rats sufficient or depleted in magnesium were injected with 1,25-(OH)2D3, either acutely (to reveal its membrane effects) or 16 and 5 h before death (to reveal its genomic effect). The data reveal a reduced response in magnesium-depleted rats to acute 1,25-(OH)2D3 injection (P less than 0.0002), but similar responses when the hormone was injected 16 and 5 h before the experiment.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

Calcium transport and vitamin D in three breeds of spontaneously hypertensive rats

Conflicting results have been published by different laboratories comparing the rate of intestinal calcium transport and concentration of circulating 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25-[OH]2D) in the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) and control Wistar-Kyoto rat (WKY): They have been reported to be greater, the same, or lower in the SHR than in the WKY. We tested the possibility that the conflicting results might be breeder-related by measuring 1) the rate of intestinal mucosal calcium transport, 2) the concentration of circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH-D) and 1,25-(OH)2D, and 3) the concentration of intestinal mucosal receptor for 1,25-(OH)2D in the two strains of animals from three different breeders. Sodium and water transport were also measured because of their relevance to hypertension. Blood pressure was always higher and calcium, as well as mean sodium and water transport, was always lower in the SHR than in the WKY. The concentration of 1,25-(OH)2D was the same, higher, or lower in the SHR than in the WKY and was age- and breeder-dependent. Mean mucosal 1,25-(OH)2D receptor concentration was higher in the SHR and was variable, depending on breeder. We conclude that 1) the rate of calcium transport is lower in the SHR than in the WKY and independent of breeder and concentration of 1,25-(OH)2D in serum, 2) the variability in 1,25-(OH)2D concentration among investigators may be breeder-dependent, and 3) the higher receptor concentration in the intestinal mucosa of the SHR could be a compensatory response to the decreased rate of calcium transport. These differences in calcium and sodium transport may be an expression in the enterocyte of factors etiological for hypertension.     

Activation of renal 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 synthesis by phosphate deprivation: evidence for a role for growth hormone

In vitro 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2D3] production in kidney slices from normal intact rats averaged 16 +/- 4 pmol/g . h and was increased about 8-fold by phosphate deprivation and 5-fold by calcium deprivation to levels averaging 128 +/- 12 and 84 +/- 19 pmol/g x h, respectively. Hypophysectomy in phosphate-deprived rats completely abolished any increase in 1 alpha-hydroxylase activity, while calcium deprivation in hypophysectomized (hypox) rats resulted in a 4-fold increase in 1 alpha-hydroxylase activity. Replacement of hypox rats fed a low phosphorus diet with pituitary extracts resulted in a 4-fold stimulation of 1 alpha-hydroxylase activity in response to the hypophosphatemic stimulus. However, replacement of hypox rats fed a normal phosphorus diet with pituitary extract stimulated 1 alpha-hydroxylase activity only 2-fold. Replacement of hypox rats fed a low phosphorus diet with GH resulted in a 3.5-fold elevation in plasma 1,25-(OH)2D3 levels, while no such elevation in plasma 1,25-(OH)2D3 levels was observed in similarly treated animals replaced with PRL, ACTH, TSH, or T3. Replacement of hypox rats eating a normal diet with GH resulted in no significant change in plasma 1,25-(OH)2D3 levels. These results suggest that GH is required for maintenance of elevated plasma 1,25-(OH)2D3 levels during dietary phosphate deprivation and that this effect is mediated by increased renal 1,25-(OH)2D3 synthesis.     

Evidence of an age-related decrease in intestinal responsiveness to vitamin D: relationship between serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and intestinal vitamin D receptor concentrations in normal women.

Although aged rats reportedly have reduced intestinal vitamin D receptor (VDR) concentrations, it is unclear whether an analogous age-related defect occurs in man. Thus, we assessed the interrelationship among serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2D3], calcium absorption and intestinal VDR in 44 healthy, ambulatory women, ages 20-87 yr. Fractional calcium absorption was measured after oral administration of 45Ca (20 mg CaCl2 as carrier); serum 1,25-(OH)2D3, by the calf thymus binding assay; and serum intact PTH, by a two-site immunochemiluminometric assay. Vitamin D receptor concentration was measured, by a new immunoradiometric assay, in biopsy specimens taken from the second part of the duodenum during gastroduodenoscopy in 35 of the women. Despite an age-related increase in serum PTH (r = 0.48; P less than 0.001) and in serum 1,25-(OH)2D3 concentration (r = 0.32; P less than 0.05), intestinal VDR concentration decreased with age (r = -0.38; P = 0.03) and fractional calcium absorption did not change with age. Although a contribution of decreased 25-hydroxyvitamin D 1 alpha-hydroxylase activity to the blunting of the increase in serum 1,25-(OH)2D3 concentration late in life is not excluded, the data are far more consistent with impaired intestinal responsiveness to 1,25-(OH)2D3 action. This defect could lead to compensatory increases in PTH secretion and 1,25-(OH)2D3 production which maintain calcium absorption and serum ionic calcium, but at the expense of increased bone loss.     

Vitamin D and intestinal calcium absorption

The principal function of vitamin D in calcium homeostasis is to increase calcium absorption from the intestine. Calcium is absorbed by both an active transcellular pathway, which is energy dependent, and by a passive paracellular pathway through tight junctions. 1,25Dihydroxyvitamin D(3) (1,25(OH)(2)D(3)) the hormonally active form of vitamin D, through its genomic actions, is the major stimulator of active intestinal calcium absorption which involves calcium influx, translocation of calcium through the interior of the enterocyte and basolateral extrusion of calcium by the intestinal plasma membrane pump. This article reviews recent studies that have challenged the traditional model of vitamin D mediated transcellular calcium absorption and the crucial role of specific calcium transport proteins in intestinal calcium absorption. There is also increasing evidence that 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) can enhance paracellular calcium diffusion. The influence of estrogen, prolactin, glucocorticoids and aging on intestinal calcium absorption and the role of the distal intestine in vitamin D mediated intestinal calcium absorption are also discussed.     

Biological activity of fluorine-substituted 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 in rats, in chicken and in Japanese quails

The biological activity of two fluorinated analogs of 1,25(OH)2D3 was compared with 1,25(OH)2D3 in various vitamin D assays. The effect of 24,24-F2-1,25(OH)2D3 on plasma calcium, bone weight and duodenal calcium binding protein in chicken, on calcium excretion via egg shell in Japanese quails and on mobilization of calcium from the bone in rats was twice as high as the effect of the most potent naturally occurring vitamin D3 metabolite 1,25(OH)2D3. In contrast, 24R-F-1,25(OH)2D3 has less than 50% of the potency of 1,25(OH)2D3. Due to the wider therapeutic dosage range, this compound might be of clinical value.     

Liponomic control of Ca2+ transport: relationship to mechanism of action of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3.

Isolated vesicles prepared from the brush border membranes of chicken duodenal mucosal cells (enterocytes) take up calcium by a passive but saturable process. The rate of uptake (Vmax) is increased 2.5- to 3-fold, with no change in Km, in vesicles prepared from 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2D3]-treated chickens compared to vesicles from vitamin D-deficient controls. Preincubation of vesicles with either cis- or trans-vaccinic acid (cVA or tVA, respectively) or their methyl esters in vitro also alters the rates of calcium transport. Methyl cVA causes an increase in rate of calcium uptake into vesicles from vitamin D-deficient chickens but not in those from 1,25(OH)2D3-treated chickens. This increase is 80-90% of that seen after 1,25(OH)2D3 treatment. Higher concentrations of methyl cVA produce no further increases. Conversely, methyl tVA causes a decrease in rate of calcium uptake in vesicles from 1,25(OH)2D3-treated chickens but no change in vesicles from vitamin D-deficient controls. This decrease reduces the rate of calcium uptake to nearly the same value as seen in vesicles from vitamin D-deficient controls. Higher concentration of methyl tVA produce no further suppression of uptake rate. The changes seen were in the Vmax and not in the Km of the transport process. The fatty acids did not alter the process of Na+-dependent glucose uptake in the same membrane. These data demonstrate that a small alteration in the lipid structure of this membrane can specifically shift the activity of the calcium transport process.     

The duodenal 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 receptor in rats with experimentally induced diabetes

Studies in the rat with streptozotocin-induced diabetes of short and long duration revealed decreased circulating 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,25-(OH)2D] levels and an intact 1,25-(OH)2D3 duodenal cytosolic receptor with a sedimentation coefficient of 3.3S. Whereas no significant alterations in the equilibrium dissociation constant (Kd) were observed in the diabetic animals, the number of 1,25-(OH)2D3-binding sites was increased in the animals with short term (235 +/- 48 vs. 100 +/- 15 fmol/mg protein) and long term (521 +/- 60 vs. 119 +/- 15 fmol/mg protein) diabetes. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that alterations in intestinal calcium absorption previously observed in the diabetic state are due, at least in part, to dynamic relationships between circulating 1,25-(OH)2D concentrations and the number of intestinal 1,25(OH)2D3-binding sites.     

1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3-mediated vesicular calcium transport in intestine: dose-response studies

In order to further test the validity of the vesicular transport model of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25(OH)2D3)-stimulated intestinal calcium absorption, dose-response studies were undertaken. Using previously established methodology for subcellular fractionation following 45Ca absorption from in situ ligated duodenal loops, radionuclide levels were found to increase gradually in endocytic vesicles prepared from 1,25(OH)2D3-treated (+D) chicks relative to controls (-D) achieving a plateau at greater than or equal to 260 pmol seco-steroid. By comparison, lysosomal 45Ca levels increased more readily, having +D/-D ratios of 1.88 +/- 0.35, 2.21 +/- 0.05, 2.17 +/- 0.88, 2.31 +/- 0.25, and 2.15 +/- 0.47 after 0.0104, 0.052, 0.26, 1.3, or 6.5 nmol of 1,25(OH)2D3, respectively. Net intestinal calcium absorption, as judged by appearance of 45Ca in the serum for the same range of doses, rose gradually to a plateau value at greater than or equal to 260 pmol. Since lysosomal 45Ca levels were maximally increased at 1,25(OH)2D3 doses lower than those required for fully stimulated transport, it was concluded that lysosomes are still candidates for cellular calcium carriers, but that other elements of the transport pathway are required. Analyses of gradient fractions for calbindin-D28K (the vitamin D-induced calcium binding protein), and potential 1,25(OH)2D3-mediated changes in vesicular ATPase (microtubule motive power for transcellular delivery of calcium) failed to identify the missing components.     

Vitamin D depletion retards the normal regeneration process after partial hepatectomy in the rat

1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2D3], the hormone of the vitamin D3 (D3) endocrine system, has been shown to influence malignant and normal cell proliferation/differentiation, while insulin (I) is known to be essential for liver growth. To investigate the influence of D3 on liver regeneration, the effect of the D status was studied in D-depleted rats (D-) pretreated with: G1, placebo (D-, hypocalcemic); G2, oral calcium only (D-, normocalcemic); G3, D3; and G4, 1,25-(OH)2D3. Two thirds hepatectomy (HX) or sham operation was performed, and regeneration was studied for 3 weeks. I response to glucose challenge and the hepatic I receptor were also studied. Cell volume, DNA, and RNA were not affected by pretreatment. After HX, the pattern of [3H]thymidine incorporation into DNA (P less than 0.003) and the cell labeling index (P less than 0.0001) were highly influenced by pretreatment and suggestive of an earlier appearance of the S phase of the cell cycle in the 1,25-(OH)2D3-treated compared to the D- hypocalcemic group. Furthermore, the mitotic index revealed a significant effect of pretreatment (P less than 0.01), with peak mitosis 24 h after HX in D3-treated and 1,25-(OH)2D3-treated rats compared to 30-36 h after HX in the D- groups. Liver weight restitution was impaired in D- rats (P less than 0.009) and is illustrated by the estimated time required to achieve 70% recovery of the resected liver mass, which was found to be 186 and 300 h in G1 and G2, and 154 and 107 h in G3 and G4. G1 rats had significantly higher glucose concentrations (fasting as well as after glucose injection) and reduced I secretion when challenged with glucose (P less than 0.001); they also had an upregulation in hepatic I receptor number (P less than 0.005) compared to calcium or D3-treated rats, while 1,25-(OH)2D3 led to a liver I receptor number similar to that found in hypocalcemic D- rats; the affinity of the I receptor was, however, only slightly changed by pretreatment (P less than 0.08). Our data indicate that in D depletion, hypocalcemia retards DNA synthesis and liver mass recovery, while normocalcemia contributes to DNA synthesis, but fails to sustain mitosis and compensatory liver growth to a level comparable to that found after D3 and/or 1,25-(OH)2D3 repletion. The observation that both D3 and 1,25-(OH)2D3 significantly promoted normal liver recovery after partial HX illustrates the role of the D endocrine system in normal cell physiology in vivo.     

Intestinal phosphate and calcium absorption: joint regulation by thyroid hormones and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3

Thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) activate Na+-dependent inorganic phosphate (Pi) transport in organ-cultured embryonic chick small intestine. Induction of transport activity requires intact protein synthesis and can be expressed in enterocytes with varying degrees of differentiation. T3 and T4 exert their effect independent of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25(OH)2D3), which is shown to stimulate Pi uptake only in the final stage of embryonic differentiation. At this time point, a potentiating effect of 1,25(OH)2D3 and T4 on Pi transport in cultured jejunum can be demonstrated. Thyroid hormones appear to stimulate Na+ gradient-driven Pi transport without concomitantly raising (Na+-K+)-ATPase activity. T4 has no influence whatsoever on calcium uptake by cultured embryonic small intestine while 1,25(OH)2D3 is effective at all stages of embryonic development investigated (day 15-20). However, when both hormones were present in the culture medium, the effect of 1,25(OH)2D3 on calcium transport is doubled. Our results suggest that the hyperphosphataemia associated with hyperthyroidism is likely to result, at least in part, from the independent effect of thyroid hormones as well as from their potentiation of the 1,25(OH)2D3 action on Na+-dependent intestinal Pi transport. In addition, their permissive effect on 1,25(OH)2D3-induced calcium absorption provides an explanation for unaltered calcium absorption in a number of hyperthyroid patients, although reduced plasma levels of 1,25(OH)2D3 are generally observed in this condition.     

Effects of dietary sodium chloride loading on parathyroid function, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, calcium balance, and bone metabolism in female rats during chronic prednisolone administration

The effects of dietary sodium chloride supplements (8 g/100 g diet) on parathyroid function, serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,25-(OH)2D], calcium balance, bone metabolism, and bone composition were studied in rats treated with prednisolone (2 mg/kg w X day) for 12 weeks. Animals on a low calcium diet (0.1% Ca) received the following treatments: group 1, control; group 2, NaCl; group 3, prednisolone; group 4, NaCl plus prednisolone. Parathyroid function was assessed indirectly from urinary cAMP excretion: bone resorption was estimated by studying urinary hydroxyproline excretion and mobilization of 45Ca from bone. Dietary salt loading increased the urinary excretion of calcium, 45Ca, cAMP, and hydroxyproline and raised serum 1,25-(OH)2D and net calcium absorption, but lowered calcium retention, femoral calcium, and total body calcium. Prednisolone slowed body growth and lowered net calcium absorption, calcium retention, femoral calcium, and total body calcium. Urinary calcium excretion was higher in rats receiving salt and prednisolone in combination than in animals taking salt without prednisolone, but other responses to salt and prednisolone were independent. Thus, salt and prednisolone each elicit osteopenia, and salt causes bone loss in rats receiving prednisolone. The osteopenic effect of salt is attributed to primary augmentation of urinary calcium excretion and secondary increases in PTH-medicated bone resorption. Although salt-treated rats have higher blood levels of 1,25-(OH)2D, bone loss occurs because alimentary calcium absorption is not elevated sufficiently to offset urinary calcium losses. Prednisolone lowers bone formation and net calcium absorption without lowering serum 1,25-(OH)2D values. The parathyroid-vitamin D axis remains intact in prednisolone-treated rats, as they show increases in PTH and 1,25-(OH)2D after salt treatment.     

Effect of age on calcium uptake in isolated duodenum cells: role of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3

Uptake of Ca2+ in cells isolated from rat duodenum declined in the senescent rats. This age-related change was not due to an alteration in the rate of Ca2+ efflux or in the size of the cell. The decrease appeared specific, as alpha-methyl glucoside uptake was not altered. Cell population, as monitored by sucrase activity for villus cells, was not different between duodenal cells isolated from 6- and 24-month-old rats. Kinetic analysis shows the Vmax, the apparent maximum uptake capacity, decreased in the cells from senescent rats whereas the Km, the apparent affinity to Ca2+, was unchanged. Serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,25-(OH)2D] were determined as a function of age; the levels of 25OHD were not significantly different in 3-, 6-, 12-, and 24-month-old rats. On the other hand, serum 1,25-(OH)2D decreased throughout the age range studied. Since duodenal Ca2+ uptake is closely regulated by 1,25-(OH)2D3, we tested the hypothesis that low serum 1,25-(OH)2D in the senescent rats may have contributed to the decline in duodenal Ca2+ uptake. In vivo administration of 1,25-(OH)2D3 to senescent rats significantly enhanced Ca2+ uptake activity in the isolated duodenal cells. After 1,25-(OH)2D3 treatment, Ca2+ uptake activity in cells isolated from senescent rats was only slightly less than that in cells from adult rats. We conclude that duodenal Ca2+ uptake declined in the senescent rats, and this age-related change was most likely due to the low serum level of 1,25-(OH)2D and not the result of a decrease in any duodenal response to 1,25-(OH)2D3.     

Decreased intestinal calcium absorption in vivo and normal brush border membrane vesicle calcium uptake in cortisol-treated chickens: evidence for dissociation of calcium absorption from brush border vesicle uptake.

The influence of cortisol on intestinal calcium transport was studied in isolated duodenal loops and brush border membrane (BBM) vesicles of vitamin D-deficient or replete chickens. Four- to five-week-old vitamin D-deficient cockerels were dosed intraperitoneally with 1 microgram of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2D3] alone 15 hr before sacrifice or in combination with 1, 3, or 5 mg of cortisol 24 and 48 hr before sacrifice. After a 1-microgram dose of 1,25-)OH)2D3 the in situ intestinal ligated loop technique revealed a 60% increase in calcium absorption compared to control birds (P less than or equal to 0.001). However, the administration of cortisol in various doses (3 and 5 mg) to chickens given 1,25-(OH)2D3 resulted in significant decreases in intestinal calcium transport in vivo (P less than or equal to 0.05; P less than or equal to 0.05). When intestinal BBM vesicles were prepared from birds treated in a manner identical with that described above, there was no observable difference between calcium uptake in BBM vesicles of the 1,25-(OH)2D3-treated birds and that of the cortisol plus 1,25-(OH)2D3-treated birds. 1,25-(OH)2D3-treated and 1,25-(OH)2D3 plus cortisol-treated chicks had intestinal BBM vesicle uptakes that were significantly greater than those of vitamin D-deficient controls (P less than or equal to 0.02; P less than or equal to 0.025). These data show that in vivo intestinal calcium transport may be markedly reduced in the presence of normal intestinal BBM vesicle calcium uptake. This suggest that factors other than BBM calcium uptake (e.g., protein synthesis or contraluminal membrane events) play an important role in the movement of calcium from the intestinal lumen into the bloodstream and extracellular fluid of the organism.     

Effects of the administration of phosphate on nuclear 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 uptake by duodenal mucosal cells of Hyp mice

Effects of the administration of phosphate on nuclear 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2D3] uptake by duodenal mucosal cells of Hyp mice were investigated. In Hyp mice fed a high phosphate diet (1.1% Ca and 2.0% phosphate) for 2 weeks, maximal nuclear 1,25-(OH)2D3 binding by duodenal mucosal cells is significantly increased from 5.01 +/- 0.49 x 10(3) to 8.23 +/- 1.10 x 10(3) sites/cell (P less than 0.05). No significant change was observed in normal mice fed the same diet. The serum phosphate concentration of Hyp mice increased significantly (P less than 0.01), whereas no significant change was found in normal mice. On this regimen, serum calcium, urinary cAMP to creatinine ratio, and cytosolic 1,25-(OH)2D3 receptor number in Hyp mice were not changed significantly. On the basis of these data, we speculate that the recovery of serum phosphate in Hyp mice fed a high phosphate diet affects the recovery of nuclear 1,25-(OH)2D3 uptake by duodenal mucosal cells. The mechanism for this recovery is not related to either the secondary hyperparathyroidism or the change in cytosolic 1,25-(OH)2D3 receptor content but, rather, to increased binding of 1,25-(OH)2D3-receptor complex to nuclei. Hypophosphatemia, therefore, appears to play a role in the vitamin D resistance in Hyp mice.     

Duodenal calcium absorption in vitamin D receptor–knockout mice: Functional and molecular aspects

Rickets and hyperparathyroidism caused by a defective vitamin D receptor (VDR) can be prevented in humans and animals by high calcium intake, suggesting that intestinal calcium absorption is critical for 1,25(OH)(2) vitamin D [1,25(OH)(2)D(3)] action on calcium homeostasis. We assessed the rate of serum (45)Ca accumulation within 10 min of oral gavage in two strains of VDR-knockout (KO) mice (Leuven and Tokyo KO) and observed a 3-fold lower area under the curve in both KO strains. Moreover, we evaluated the expression of intestinal candidate genes involved in transcellular calcium transport. The calcium transport protein1 (CaT1) was more abundantly expressed at mRNA level than the epithelial calcium channel (ECaC) in duodenum, but both were considerably reduced (CaT1>90%, ECaC>60%) in the two VDR-KO strains on a normal calcium diet. Calbindin-D(9K) expression was decreased only in the Tokyo KO, whereas plasma membrane calcium ATPase (PMCA(1b)) expression was normal in both VDR-KOs. In Leuven wild-type mice, a high calcium diet inhibited (>90%) and 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) injection or low calcium diet induced (6-fold) duodenal CaT1 expression and, to a lesser degree, ECaC and calbindin-D(9K) expression. In Leuven KO mice, however, high or low calcium intake decreased calbindin-D(9K) and PMCA(1b) expression, whereas CaT1 and ECaC expression remained consistently low on any diet. These results suggest that the expression of the novel duodenal epithelial calcium channels (in particular CaT1) is strongly vitamin D-dependent, and that calcium influx, probably interacting with calbindin-D(9K), should be considered as a rate-limiting step in the process of vitamin D-dependent active calcium absorption.