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Hepatocytes from the western painted turtle (Chrysemys picta bellii) are capable of a coordinated metabolic suppression of 88% during 10 h of anoxia at 25 degrees C. The energy dependence and role of proteolysis in this suppression were assessed in labile ([3H]Phe-labeled) and stable ([14C]Phe-labeled) protein pools. During anoxia, labile protein half-lives increased from 24.7 +/- 3.3 to 34.4 +/- 3.7 h, with stable protein half-lives increasing from 55.6 +/- 3.4 to 109.6 +/- 7.4 h. The total anoxic mean proteolytic suppression for both pools was 36%. On the basis of inhibition of O2 consumption and lactate production rates by cycloheximide and emetine, normoxic ATP-dependent proteolysis required 11.1 +/- 1.7 mumol ATP.g-1.h-1 accounting for 21.8 +/- 1.4% of total cellular metabolism. Under anoxia this was suppressed by 93% to 0.73 +/- 0.43 mumol ATP.g-1.h-1. Summation of this with protein synthesis ATP turnover rates indicated that under anoxia 45% of total ATP turnover rate was directed toward protein turnover. Studies with inhibitors of energy metabolism indicated that the majority of energy dependence was found in the stable protein pool, with no significant inhibition occurring among the more labile proteins. We conclude that proteolysis is largely energy dependent under normoxia, whereas under anoxia there is a shift to a slower overall proteolytic rate that is largely energy independent and represents loss mostly from the labile protein pool.

Hepatocytes from the western painted turtle (Chrysemys picta bellii) display a profound metabolic suppression under anoxia. Fractional rates of protein synthesis fell by 92% during 12 h anoxia at 25 degrees C and were indistinguishable from the rate obtained with cycloheximide. Normoxic recovery saw protein synthesis increase to 160% of control values and return to normal after 2 h. The GTP-to-GDP ratio, implicated in the control of translation, fell threefold during anoxia. Purine nucleotide phosphate profiles suggest that this change occurs through increasing concentrations of ADP and GDP, with concentrations of ATP and GTP and total purines remaining constant. The normoxic cost for protein synthesis was calculated at 47.6 +/- 6.8 mmol ATP/g protein. Normoxic protein synthesis accounted for 36% of overall ATP turnover rates, close to the extent of O2 consumption inhibitable by cycloheximide (28%). Under anoxia, the proportion of ATP turnover utilized by protein synthesis did not change significantly. ATP turnover rates for urea synthesis reflected a similar pattern, falling 72% under anoxia. These results reflect the cell's ability to suppress protein synthesis under anoxia in a manner that is coordinated with the reduction in total metabolic rate.

Chrysemys picta bellii is well known for its ability to survive extended anoxic periods and has been widely used as a model system to study anoxic metabolism. Described here is a method for the isolation of anoxia-tolerant hepatocytes from this species. Freshly isolated hepatocytes were determined to be viable based on trypan blue exclusion, gluconeogenic capacity from [14C]lactate, responsiveness to epinephrine and glucagon, and maintenance of cellular adenylate concentrations. Under anoxic conditions for 10 h there was no significant increase in cell staining and no decrease in cellular ATP concentration. Furthermore, the addition of cyanide at the 5-h mark did not result in any significant differences in these parameters; however, iodoacetate added at this time caused trypan blue staining to increase and ATP concentrations to fall. The rate of glucose production from the cells was threefold greater under anoxic than normoxic conditions, underscoring the important role of the liver in supplying substrate during anoxia. From the rate of O2 consumption and rate of lactate production under anaerobic conditions, ATP turnover rates were calculated to be 68.4 +/- 7.2 and 6.5 +/- 0.43 mumol ATP.g-1.h-1, respectively; this corresponds to a 90% decrease in metabolic rate during anoxia. Within a cellular system such as this the more complex regulatory mechanisms involved in a large coordinated reduction in metabolism can be probed.