Rat erythrocyte insulin receptors: radioreceptor assay and characterization

Highly specific insulin receptors have been identified on the rat erythrocyte. A radioreceptor assay for the evaluation of these receptors has been developed, and the characteristics of these receptors have been investigated. Insulin receptor binding on the rat erythrocytes was found to be dependent on pH, temperature, time, and ionic strength. When incubated for 3½ hours at 15° C, 5.0 × 10(9) erythrocytes/mL from each of 10 rats were found to bind specifically 7.54 percent (±0.15 SEM) of 40 pg of (125)I-insulin. Specific binding was found to be a function of cell concentration. The pH optima for insulin binding were found to be 7.4 and 7.0 in the absence of cations. The presence of cations not only shifted pH optimum to 7.4 from 7.0, but also increased specific insulin binding.These observations suggest the stabilization of negatively charged groups on ligand and receptor, as well as providing a suitable ionic environment for the hormone-receptor interaction. Based on the resistance of rat erythrocytes to the pH of the external buffer, a simple method for determining the internal pH of rat red- blood cells is described. Scatchard analyses of insulin-binding data yielded curvilinear plots, and the number of receptor sites per cell was found to be 762 (±12.1 SD), as opposed to the large variation (410 ± 260 SD) in normal humans. The rat erythrocytes may serve as a useful, precise, sensitive, and efficient model system for future erythrocytic-receptor studies that would be difficult to obtain from human subjects.