Methionine-containing peptides can be used as methionine sources for protein accretion in cultured C2C12 and MAC-T cells.

Twenty-two methionine-containing di- to octapeptides were evaluated for their ability to be a source of methionine to support protein accretion in C2C12 myogenic and MAC-T bovine mammary epithelial cells. The cell cultures were incubated for 72 h at 37 degrees C in a humidified environment of 90% air: 10% CO2 for C2C12 cells or 95% air: 5% CO2 for MAC-T cells. The basal medium contained methionine-free Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium and 6% desalted fetal bovine serum. Treatments included basal medium, the basal medium supplemented with one of the 22 methionine-containing peptides, or the basal medium supplemented with free L-methionine. Methionine-containing peptides with the exception of glycylmethionine and prolylmethionine in C2C12 cells were able to support protein accretion with responses ranging from 29.1 to 123.3% of the response of L-methionine. Dipeptides with methionine at the N-terminus promoted greater (P < 0.0001) protein accretion than dipeptides with methionine at the C-terminus. Stimulation of protein accretion by seven pairs of dipeptides with methionine at either the C- or the N-terminus was linearly (P < 0.0001) related to the hydrophobicity of the dipeptides. These results indicate that C2C12 myogenic and MAC-T mammary epithelial cells have the ability to utilize methionine-containing peptides as sources of methionine to support protein accretion.