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Effect of Growth Factors and Methionine on Glycolysis and Methionine Transport in Rat Fibroblasts and Fibroblasts Transfected with myc and ras Genes¹

Section of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology, Division of Biological Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853

The inhibition of glycolysis in tumor cells by methionine requires that the cells be incubated with methionine for several hours in the presence of serum. We now show that in the case of confluent rat-1 fibroblasts transfected with the ras gene the serum can be substituted by insulin and insulin-like growth factor I or II. No other growth factor tested was effective. In subconfluent ras cells additional growth factors (transferrin and high density lipoproteins) were required for maximal inhibition of glycolysis by methionine. Exploration of the mechanism of action of methionine revealed that the accumulation of [³⁵S]methionine into rat-1 fibroblasts was only marginally increased by insulin. We propose that methionine inhibits an adenosine triphosphatase activity because addition of low concentrations of Nonidet P-40 greatly enhanced glycolysis even in the presence of methionine, suggesting that it did not affect the glycolytic enzymes directly. Methionine also affected growth both in monolayer and soft agar. Rat-1 fibroblasts transfected with the ras gene were markedly more sensitive to methionine than cells transfected with the myc gene.

¹ This investigation was supported by USPHS Grant CA-08964 awarded by the National Cancer Institute, Department of Health and Human Services.

² To whom requests for reprints should be addressed, at Section of Biochemistry, Wing Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853.

Received 8/19/85. Revised 12/12/85. Accepted 1/ 3/86.