Transport of p-aminohippurate, tetraethylammonium and D-glucose in renal brush border membranes from rats with acute renal failure.

Transport of D-glucose, p-aminohippurate and tetraethylammonium has been studied using renal brush border membrane vesicles isolated from rats with uranyl nitrate-induced acute renal failure (ARF). Initial rate and overshoot magnitude of Na+ gradient-dependent D-glucose uptake were decreased in brush border membrane vesicles from ARF rats compared with normal rats, although there was no significant difference on D-glucose uptake in the presence of equilibrated Na+ between normal and ARF rats. Uptake of p-aminohippurate by membrane vesicles from ARF rats did not differ from normal membrane vesicles. Uptake of tetraethylammonium with or without an H+ gradient was decreased in membrane vesicles from ARF rats compared with normal rats. Dissipation rate of H+ gradient across brush border membranes did not differ between both groups. In vitro incubation of normal brush border membrane vesicles with uranyl nitrate caused no alteration in any substrate transport. However, enzyme activities such as (Na+ + K+)-adenosine triphosphatase in renal cortical homogenate were inhibited markedly in the presence of uranyl nitrate. These results suggest that uranyl nitrate-induced ARF caused alterations in the transport properties of renal brush border membranes and that these transport dysfunctions were not due to the direct effect of uranyl nitrate, but could be secondarily induced after the impairment of the integrity for tubular cells.