Endocrinology, Vol 127, 2236-2240, Copyright © 1990 by Endocrine Society

ARTICLES

Altered glucagon- and catecholamine hormone-sensitive adenylyl cyclase responsiveness in rat liver membranes induced by manipulation of dietary fatty acid intake

EM Dax, JS Partilla, MA Pineyro and RI Gregerman
Endocrinology Section, National Institute on Aging, Francis Scott Key Medical Center, Baltimore, Maryland 21224.

Glucagon-stimulated adenylyl cyclase activity has been shown to change in liver membranes manipulated to alter either their fatty acid composition or fluidity. We examined whether membrane alterations induced by dietary manipulation affected receptor function. Glucagon- and beta-adrenergic-stimulated receptor-adenylyl cyclase systems were examined in liver membranes of rats fed diets containing 10% corn oil, 10% coconut oil (essential FFA deficient), or 8.5% coconut oil with 1.5% corn oil (essential FFA repleat). Basal and maximal nonreceptor- mediated adenylyl cyclase activity (stimulated by NaF, guanylylimidodiphosphate, and forskolin) was the same in membranes of each of the dietary groups, suggesting that Gs-protein and the catalytic unit activity per se were unaltered by the manipulations. Glucagon-stimulated adenylyl cyclase activity increased with increasing unsaturation of dietary fatty acids; activity in coconut oil-fed rats was 527 +/- 30 (mean +/- SEM) pmol/mg.10 min, that in coconut/corn oil- fed rats was 752 +/- 74 pmol/mg.10 min, and that in corn oil-fed rats was 981 +/- 94 pmol cAMP/mg.10 min. [125I]Monoiodoglucagon binding did not increase in parallel to the adenylyl cyclase alterations; coconut oil-fed animals (614 fmol/mg) differed from the other groups (450 and 430 fmol/mg). Isoproterenol (beta-adrenergic)-stimulated adenylyl cyclase activity was also highest in the corn oil-fed animals, but was similar in the other dietary groups, with no difference in other characteristics of [125I]iodopindolol binding between the groups. The results demonstrate that alterations in the glucagon-stimulated adenylyl cyclase response are different from those in the beta- adrenergic adenylyl cyclase response. Further, they suggest that although direct activations of the catalytic unit or its interaction with the guanine nucleotide-sensitive protein are apparently not affected, hormone receptor-mediated adenylyl cyclase activity may be altered by these dietary manipulations.