Glucose metabolism and effect of acetate in ovine adipocytes

Isolated ovine adipocytes were incubated in vitro with specifically labeled 14C-glucose in the presence or absence of acetate. The flux patterns of glucose carbon through major metabolic pathways were estimated. When glucose was added as the sole substrate, approximately equal portions of glucose carbon (10%) were oxidized to CO2 in the pentose phosphate pathway, in the pyruvate dehydrogenase reaction and in the citrate cycle. Fifteen percent of the glucose carbon was incorporated into fatty acids and 43% was released as lactate and pyruvate. Addition of acetate to the medium increased glucose carbon uptake by 1.5-fold. Most of this increase was accounted for by a sevenfold increase in the activity of the pentose phosphate pathway. Acetate increased glucose carbon fluxes via pentose phosphate pathway to triose phosphates, from triose phosphate to pyruvate, into glyceride glycerol, into lactate and pyruvate and into pyruvate dehydrogenase and citrate cycle CO2. Glucose carbon incorporated into fatty acids was decreased 50% by acetate while, carbon fluxes through the phosphofructokinase-aldolase reactions were not significantly increased. Results of this study suggest that, when glucose is the sole substrate, the conversion of glucose to fatty acids in ovine adipocytes may not be limited by the maximum capacity of hexokinase, the pentose phosphate pathway or enzymes involved in the conversion of triose phosphates to pyruvate and of pyruvate to fatty acid. Acetate increased glucose utilization apparently by increasing activity of the pentose phosphate pathway as a result of enhanced NADPH utilization for fatty acid synthesis.