Use of adult rat cardiomyocytes to study cardiac glycogen metabolism.

The use of adult rat cardiomyocytes to model cardiac glycogen metabolism was investigated by monitoring the response of glycogen phosphorylase and glycogen synthase to epinephrine and insulin treatment. Cardiomyocytes derived from normal rats respond to epinephrine in the range of 1 X 10(-7) to 5.5 X 10(-6) M epinephrine with an increase in the percent of phosphorylase in the AMP-independent form from 11.5 to 24.8%. In the same cells, insulin in the range of 10(-9) to 10(-7) M increased the glucose 6-phosphate independent form of glycogen synthase from 30.5 to 40.5%. Cells derived from alloxan-diabetic hearts exhibit a hypersensitive phosphorylase activation and a refractile synthase inactivation in response to epinephrine treatment. This pattern is similar to that recorded using perfused heart preparations. The data presented suggests that adult rat cardiomyocytes represent a valid model of glycogen metabolism in both the normal and alloxan-diabetic rat.