Regulation of white adipocyte guanine nucleotide binding proteins Gs alpha and Gi alpha 1-2 by testosterone in vivo: influence of regional fat distribution.

The influence of the androgenic status on the steady-state amounts of Gi alpha 1-2 and Gs alpha subunits was compared in hamster fat cell membranes from the femoral subcutaneous (FSC) and epididymal (EP) adipose tissues, using immunoblotting experiments. In sham-operated hamsters, Gi alpha 1-2 and Gs alpha steady-state amounts found in FSC fat cells were 38% and 40% reduced, respectively, as compared to EP adipocytes. In EP fat cells, castration induced a down-regulation of both Gi alpha 1-2 (-39%) and Gs alpha (-33%), whereas testosterone replacement restored Gs alpha, but not Gi alpha 1-2 levels, to control values. In contrast, these G protein alpha-subunits were insensitive to the androgenic status in FSC fat cells. These data provide the first evidence that the androgenic status can modulate the expression of both the Gi alpha 1-2 and Gs alpha subunits of the fat cell adenylate cyclase regulatory Gi and Gs proteins and that this modulation depends on the anatomical origin of these cells.