Insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of ATP-citrate lyase in isolated hepatocytes. Stoichiometry and relation to the phosphoenzyme intermediate

We have estimated the insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of ATP-citrate lyase by two methods. Isolated hepatocytes incorporate extracellular 32P into [gamma-35P] ATP and immunoprecipitated ATP-citrate lyase to steady state levels by 1 h. The content of acid-stable 32P in hepatocyte ATP-citrate lyase at steady state is 0.33 +/- 0.038 mol of P/mol (tetrameric) holoenzyme. Insulin (1 milliunit/ml) increases the 32P content of immunoprecipitated lyase 2- to 3-fold in 10 min. Over 90% of acid-stable 32P on lyase is 32P-serine in enzyme isolated from both control and insulin-treated cells. ATP-citrate lyase isolated from hepatocytes contains 0.95 +/- 0.1 mol of alkali-labile phosphate/mol of holoenzyme. Insulin treatment of hepatocytes (1 milliunit/ml for 10 min) increases the alkali-labile P content by 45%. Evidence is presented which indicates that the insulin-stimulated phosphorylation does not arise by intramolecular migration from the catalytic phosphoenzyme intermediate. These observations support the conclusion that insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of ATP-citrate lyase is mediated either by an insulin-induced increase in the activity of lyase kinase and/or decrease in a lyase phosphatase. The functional role of the substoichiometric phosphorylation of ATP-citrate lyase remains unknown.