Characteristics of the transport of alanine, serine and glutamine across the plasma membrane of isolated rat liver cells.

1. Alanine, glutamine and serine were actively accumulated in liver cells isolated from starved rats. 2. This accumulation was inhibited when either Na+ or HCO3- ions were omitted from the incubation medium. In general the degree of dependence on Na+ was quantitatively similar to that on HCO3-. 3. The apparent Km values for the transport of all three amino acids were in the range 3--5mM with Vmax. values in the range 15--25nmol/min per mg of cell protein at 37 degrees C. 4. Alanine and serine transport were mutually competitive; glutamine inhibited the transport of alanine and serine non-competitively. 5. The initial rate of transport of these amino acids was inhibited when the intracellular content of ATP was decreased. 6. Ouabain inhibited the rate of alanine transport without inhibiting the rate of alanine metabolism. 7. It is concluded that a minimum of three transport systems must be postulated to exist in the liver cell plasma membrane to account for the transport of alanine, serine and glutamine. The rate of transport of these amino acids in isolated hepatocytes is unlikely to limit the rate at which they are metabolized.