Isolation and characterization of hexose transport mutants in L6 rat myoblasts

A method for the selection and isolation of hexose transport mutants in undifferentiated rat myoblast L6 cells is reported; 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DOG)-and 2-deoxy-2-fluoro-D-glucose (2FG)-resistant mutants were selected after mutagenization of L6 cells with ethyl methanesulfonate. Of these, D18 and D23 (selected with 0.1 mM 2-DOG) and F72 and F76 (selected with 0.1 mM 2FG) exhibited the lowest hexose transport activity. Uptake of 0.06 mM 2-DOG, 2FG, or 3-O-methyl-D-glucose (3-OMG) by mutants grown in fructose medium supplemented with 0.05 mM 2FG was about four- to five-fold lower than the parental L6 cells. These mutants contain normal levels of ATP and glycolytic enzyme activities. They also exhibit normal transport activities for alpha-aminoisobutyric acid and fructose. Furthermore, hexose transport was observed to be decreased in plasma membrane vesicles prepared from these mutants. Kinetic analysis of 2-DOG and 3-OMG transport in mutant F72 demonstrated that the Vmax for 2-DOG uptake was significantly reduced, whereas the Vmax for 3-OMG transport was not affected. In all cases, the affinity for these hexose analogues was unaffected. In addition mutant F72 was found to be only slightly affected by treatment with various energy inhibitors and sulfhydryl reagents. The results suggest that this mutant is defective in, or has low levels of, a plasma membrane component(s) involved in the high-affinity hexose transport system.