HMG CoA reductase inhibitors affect Na(+)-H+ antiport activity in human lymphoblasts

The Na(+)-H+ antiport is a membrane-bound glycoprotein that extrudes intracellular acid loads and regulates cellular volume. Cellular synthesis of the oligosaccharide side chains of glycoproteins is dependent on a supply of mevalonate, itself a product of the rate-limiting enzyme of cholesterol synthesis 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG CoA) reductase. The effect of two HMG CoA reductase inhibitors (simvastatin and 25-hydroxycholesterol) on intracellular pH and Na(+)-H+ exchange was therefore studied. Inhibition of the Na(+)-H+ antiport by these agents led to a fall in intracellular pH but did not impair the regulatory volume increase response to a hypertonic stimulus. The inhibitory effect of simvastatin was prevented by mevalonate but not dolichol or squalene. The effect of 25-hydroxycholesterol was more complex and not easily reversed. Thus HMG CoA reductase inhibitors reduced the ability of human lymphoblasts to expel an intracellular acid load via the Na(+)-H+ antiport, although the response of the antiport to an osmotic stimulus was preserved.