Regulation of protein synthesis in lung by amino acids and insulin

Acute effects of amino acid availability and insulin on protein synthesis were investigated in rat lungs perfused in situ with buffer containing either 4.5% fraction V bovine serum albumin (FrV BSA), 4.5% essentially fatty acid-free (FAF) BSA, or 4.5% dextran to maintain colloid osmotic pressure. In the presence of FrV BSA, protein synthesis was unaffected by perfusion for 1 or 3 h with buffer containing no added amino acids (0X), as compared with amino acids at concentrations one (1X) or five (5X) times those in rat plasma. Regardless of the amino acid concentration, addition of insulin was without effect. Likewise, in lungs perfused for 1 h with either FAF BSA or dextran, protein synthesis was insensitive to amino acid availability or to insulin. After 3 h, however, protein synthesis decreased 34 and 37%, respectively, when these lungs were perfused in the absence of both amino acids and insulin. In both cases, the inhibition was prevented by addition of insulin to the perfusate; addition of the hormone to perfusate containing 1X amino acids or elevating perfusate amino acids to 5X did not affect protein synthesis. The deficit in protein synthesis observed in the absence of both amino acids and insulin was not accompanied by ATP depletion or by lower intracellular concentrations of amino acids. Similarly, the effect of insulin was not associated with a general elevation in intracellular amino acid concentrations.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)