Acute exercise increases the number of plasma membrane glucose transporters in rat skeletal muscle.

To determine whether increased glucose transport following exercise is associated with an increased number of glucose transporters in muscle plasma membranes, the D-glucose inhibitable cytochalasin B binding technique was used to measure glucose transporters in red gastrocnemius muscle from exercised (1 h treadmill) or sedentary rats. Immediately following exercise there was a 2-fold increase in cytochalasin B binding sites, measured in purified plasma membranes enriched 30-fold in 5'-nucleotidase activity. This increase in glucose transporters in the plasma membrane may explain in part, the increase in glucose transport rate which persists in skeletal muscle following exercise. Where these transporters originate, remains to be elucidated.