Significance of 3HOH generation from D-[2-3H]glucose.

The significance of 3HOH generation by cells exposed to D-[2-3H]glucose is reevaluated. It is proposed that such a metabolic variable, rather than being taken as an index of D-glucose phosphorylation, may provide information on the extent of D-glucose 6-phosphate and D-fructose 6-phosphate interconversion in the reaction catalyzed by phosphoglucoisomerase. In order to reach such an information, the total production of 3HOH from D-[2-3H]glucose needs to be corrected for that attributable to either the catabolism of D-[1-3H]fructose 1,6-bisphosphate or the circulation of D-[2-3H]glucose 6-phosphate in the pentose phosphate pathway. A method is introduced which allows for such a correction.