title: Glucose-6-phosphatase activity in the retina of the awake rat.
abstract: In the 2-deoxyglucose technique, the rate of glucose utilization in small areas of the central nervous system is measured using a standard operational equation that assumes negligible glucose-6-phosphatase activity. Hoping to apply this technique in the mammalian retina, we sought to identify the extent of this enzyme's activity in vivo. [2-3H] glucose but not [U-14C] glucose loses its label during metabolism and returns to the glucose precursor pool in the presence of glucose-6-phosphatase. Accordingly, a decline of 3H/14C in the retinal glucose pool with time indicates glucose-6-phosphatase activity. We injected a mixture of [2-3H] glucose and [U-14C] glucose into the internal carotid artery of 10 awake rats via a previously inserted catheter. Plasma samples were collected and the eyes enucleated at timed intervals. The eyes were immediately frozen, freeze-dried and dissected to obtain retina. Radiolabeled glucose was separated using ion exchange and paper chromatography prior to scintillation counting. The 3H/14C ratio was found to decline at a statistically significant rate of about 2.5% per minute, indicating glucose-6-phosphatase activity. However, an estimate of the turnover of retinal glucose suggests that glucose-6-phosphatase dephosphorylates a minimal percentage of the glucose entering the glycolytic pathway, allowing application of the standard operational equation to the mammalian retina in vivo.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Retinal Circulation and Metabolism, UIC Eye Center, University of Illinois, Chicago College of Medicine.
authors.forename: N P
authors.initials: NP
authors.lastname: Blair
authors.forename: W E
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Shaw
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yue
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005952:Glucose-6-Phosphatase / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012160:Retina / Q000201:enzymology*; D014851:Wakefulness
chemical_list: D005952:Glucose-6-Phosphatase