More on glucose transporters: The acinar organization for hepatic glucose transport

Abstract

The “erythroid/brain” glucose transporter (GT) isoform is expressed only in a subset of hepatocytes, those forming the first row around the terminal hepatic venules, while the “liver” GT is expressed in all hepatocytes. After 3 d of starvation, a three- to fourfold elevation of expression of the erythroid/brain GT mRNA and protein is detected in the liver as a whole; this correlates with the expression of this GT in more hepatocytes, those forming the first three to four rows around the hepatic venules. Starvation-dependent expression of the erythroid/brain GT on the plasma membrane of these additional hepatocytes is lost within 3 h of glucose refeeding; however, by immunoblotting we show that the protein is still present. Its loss from the surface is possibly explained by internalization.