Selective exposure of human proximal tubule cells to gentamicin provides evidence for a basolateral component of toxicity.

The goal of the present study was to determine if cultured human proximal tubule (HPT) cells could provide evidence for a basolateral component of gentamicin toxicity. Six isolates of HPT cells were grown on Millicell filters and exposed to gentamicin either apically, basolaterally, or both apically and basolaterally. Toxicity was determined by the release of lactate dehydrogenase into the growth media. The results clearly demonstrated that basolateral exposure and combined apical and basolateral exposure to gentamicin resulted in significant levels of cell toxicity. In contrast, apical exposure to gentamicin elicited only marginal toxicity. The transepithelial flux of gentamicin was shown to be the same in either the apical to basolateral or the basolateral to apical direction. A two-step mechanism of gentamicin toxicity is proposed in order to integrate basolateral toxicity with known features of aminoglycoside nephrotoxicity.