Contraluminal transport of hexoses in the proximal convolution of the rat kidney in situ

In order to study contraluminal hexose transport, concentration and time-dependent influx of³H-2-deoxy-d-glucose from the interstitium into cortical tubular cells has been measured. The influx curves fit to a two parameter kinetics (K_m 1.3±0.2 mmol/l,J_max 0.67±0.16 pmol/s · cm) plus an additional diffusion term (withP=6·10^–8 cm²/s) and a distribution ratio extracellular to intracellular amount of 2-deoxy-d-glucose of 10.6. Since the extracellular to intracellular free water space as estimated from morphological data was 12, one must conclude that glucose has only free access to 1/3 of the cell water. The intracellularly accessible space was augmented when the tubules were preperfused for 10 s with hypotonic saline. Thereby an increase of the compartment into which diffusion occurs was revealed and a final rupture of this intracellular compartment at 1/4 isotonic solutions was observed. Total replacement of ions in the peritubular perfusate by mannitol did not change 2-deoxy-d-glucose influx, indicating that it is Na⁺-independent. By adding isotonic concentrations of the respective sugars to the capillary perfusate, three degrees of inhibition of 2-deoxy-d-glucose influx could be revealed: strong inhibition byd-glucose, methyl--d-glucoside,d-mannose, 3-O-methyl-d-glucose, 2-deoxy-d-galactose, methyl--d-galactoside and 6-deoxy-d-glucose, moderate inhibition byd-galactose,l-glucose,l-mannose andd-fructose, no or borderline inhibition by methyl -d-glucoside, 2-deoxy-methyl--d-galactoside, 1-thio--d-glucose, 1-thio--d-galactose, 5-thio--d-glucose, myo-inositol and mannitol. The contraluminal 2-deoxy-d-glucose influx was also inhibited by phloretin, chlormerodrin and preperfusion with cytochalasin B. Starvation as well as streptozotocin diabetes has no influence on contraluminal 2-deoxy-d-glucose transport. Thus, in contrast to the luminal hexose transport system the contraluminal system is Na⁺-independent, does not require on OH-group at C-atom 2, acceptsl-glucose and fructose, but not an -methyl group at C-atom 1.