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THE EFFECT OF OCTANOATE ON THE CARBOHYDRATE METABOLISM OF MYOMETRIUM FROM THE PREGNANT RHESUS MONKEY

Summary.: The intermediary metabolism of myometrial slices from pregnant rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) was investigated in an effort to evaluate the relative importance of lipid and carbohydrate as substrates for this tissue. The effects of a high level of free fatty acid on glucose uptake and utilization, such as are known to occur in diabetes mellitus and starvation, were also studied.

Myometrial slices from pregnant rhesus monkeys were incubated in medium containing [U-¹⁴C]glucose or [1-¹⁴C]octanoate in the presence and in the absence of 0·4 to 4·0 mM-octoanate. The uptake of [¹⁴C]octanoate increased from 50±3 S.E.M. to 187±10 S.E.M. µmol/g non-collagenous protein nitrogen/hr when the octanoate concentration in the medium was raised from 0·4 to 4·0 mM. About 30% of the total CO₂ was derived from this labelled substrate at both octanoate concentrations. Three to 5% of the label from the octanoate uptake appeared in the lipid fraction at 0·4 and 4·0 mM-octanoate; 35 and 6% of the label appeared in the CO₂ fraction at these respective concentrations. In spite of the extensive utilization of octanoate, this free fatty acid (1·0 and 4·0 mM) had no effect on the [¹⁴C]glucose uptake and [¹⁴C]lactate production although there was a marked decrease in [¹⁴C]glucose conversion to ¹⁴CO₂. Both octanoate concentrations increased glycogen breakdown and total lactate production. No change in O₂ consumption occurred with 1 mM-octanoate, but a 4·0 mM concentration caused a small decrease in QO₂.