Diabetes, Vol 36, Issue 3 310-314, Copyright © 1987 by American Diabetes Association
Identification of a major defect in insulin-resistant tissues of genetically obese (fa/fa) rats. Impaired protein kinase C
G van de Werve, D Zaninetti, U Lang, MB Vallotton and B Jeanrenaud
In perfused lean rat hearts, the activator of protein kinase C phorbol
myristate acetate (PMA), when present alone, stimulates glucose transport
but inhibits the insulin stimulation of this transport. PMA also
inactivates glycogen synthase in hepatocytes. In contrast, none of these
effects are observed in hearts and hepatocytes of obese animals, indicating
an impaired protein kinase C activation in these tissues, which are insulin
resistant. Direct measurements of protein kinase C activity in lean rat
hearts revealed that PMA provokes a translocation of the enzyme from a
soluble to a particulate fraction. In obese rat hearts, the basal
distribution of protein kinase C is altered (more activity is found in the
soluble and less in the particulate fraction), and the translocation
induced by PMA is impaired. Pretreatment of lean rats with PMA in vivo,
aimed at downregulating protein kinase C, induces the same defects (i.e.,
insulin resistance and unresponsiveness to PMA) as those observed in hearts
of untreated obese animals. The results indicate that part of the insulin
resistance might be the consequence of altered modulation of insulin action
by protein kinase C.