Regulation of expression of the human fructose transporter (GLUT5) by cyclic AMP

The effect of cyclic AMP on the expression of the fructose transporter, GLUT5, was studied in Caco-2 cells, a human colon cancer cell line that differentiates spontaneously in culture into cells with the properties of small intestine enterocytes. Treatment of differentiated Caco-2 cells with 50 microM forskolin, which stimulates adenylate cyclase and raises intracellular cyclic AMP levels, increased fructose uptake 2-fold and raised GLUT5 protein and mRNA levels 5- and 7-fold respectively. The increased GLUT5 mRNA levels in forskolin-treated cells are a result of stabilization of GLUT5 mRNA in these cells and increased transcription. The effect of cyclic AMP on GLUT5 transcription was assessed by measuring the activity of human GLUT5 promoter-reporter gene constructs in forskolin-treated differentiated Caco-2 cells. The results showed that forskolin stimulated the activity of the GLUT5-reporter gene constructs and this stimulatory effect was mediated by cis-acting regulatory sequences.