Intracisternal A-particles in genetically diabetic mice: identification in pancreas and induction in cultured beta cells.

Authors

E H. LeiterFollow
H G. Bedigian

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1979

Keywords

Cellular-Inclusions: en, ul, Diabetes-Mellitus: fg, pa, DNA-Polymerases: an, Female, Genotype, In-Vitro, Islands-of-Langerhans: pa, ul, Male, Mice, Mice-Inbred-C57BL, SUPPORT-U-S-GOVT-P-H-S

First Page

175

Last Page

185

JAX Source

Diabetologia. 1979 Sep; 17(3):175-85.

Abstract

Sucrose density gradient analysis of purified pancreatic homogenates from glycaemic C57BL/Ks diabetes (db/db) mice and their normoglycaemic controls have revealed the presence in the diabetics of increased Mg++-dependent RNA-directed DNA polymerase activity sedimenting with a density of approximately 1.21 g/cm3. Electron microscopy revealed that this fraction contained typical intracisternal A-particles. Purified cultures of pancreatic islet cells 4--7 day old postnatal "misty diabetic: mice and normal siblings were established and then maintained in Eagle's minimal essential medium without serum. Under these conditions, the presence of intracisternal A-particles in beta cells of both mutant and control genotypes was very rare. No change in numbers of intracisternal A-particles was seen after 2--4 days of incubation in Dulbecco's-modified minimal essential medium containing 5.5 mmol/l glucose. However, when the glucose concentration of Dulbecco's medium was elevated to 16.5 mmol/l, ultrastructural changes specific to the beta cell population occurred that were reminiscent of those alterations observed in situ. Intracisternal A-particles were commonly seen in cultured beta cells showing hypersecretion-stress morphology. Since equal numbers of intracisternal A-particles were present in cultured beta cells from normal and mutant mice, it was concluded that the db gene itself was not required for intracisternal A-particle expression. The cell culture results suggest that elevated intracisternal A-particle activity observed in vivo may be produced directly or indirectly by the ambient high blood glucose levels characteristic of this mutant.

Recommended Citation

Leiter EH, Bedigian HG. Intracisternal A-particles in genetically diabetic mice: identification in pancreas and induction in cultured beta cells. Diabetologia. 1979 Sep; 17(3):175-85.