Ultrastructural demonstration of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity in steroid-secreting cells

The ultrastructural localization of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (NADP-linked) has been attempted in steroid-secreting cells. Rat adrenocortical cells and newt testicular glandular cells were fixed in an ice-cold mixture of 1% methanol-free formaldehyde and 0.25% glutaraldehyde. Potassium ferricyanide was used as the final electron acceptor. After incubation, the final copper ferrocyanide precipitate is exclusively observed in the hyaloplasm of these cells, provided that an electron carrier (1.0 mM PMS) has been added to the medium in order to by-pass the tissue "diaphorase" (NADPH-ferricyanide reductase) reaction. No precipitate appears in the absence of glucose-6-phosphate (substrate). Incubation in a medium devoid of PMS results in an exclusively mitochondrial reaction; the latter is that of the "diaphorase", which in these cells is mitochondrial. These results prove the importance of utilizing exogenous electron carriers (such as PMS) in coenzyme-linked dehydrogenase cytochemistry. Although polyvinyl alcohol was included in the washing and incubation media, in order to increase their viscosity, problems still exist concerning ultracytochemical localization of this "soluble" enzyme; these problems are discussed in the paper.