Studies on Acute Phase Proteins of Rat Serum. III. Site of Synthesis of Albumin and α1-Acid Glycoprotein and the Contents of These Proteins in Liver Microsome Fractions from Rats Suffering from Induced Inflammation
Following injection of L-ieucine-3H or D-glucosamine-14C to normal rats or rats suffering from inflammation for 12 h there was a delay of 10–15 min before label appeared in albumin and α1-acid glycoprotein in serum; thereafter, there were rapid increases in specific radioactivities. The specific radioactivity of L-leucine-3H in albumin in serum from normal and experimental animals was not significantly different; however, there was a more rapid increase in specific radioactivities of both labelled compounds in α1-acid glycoprotein isolated from serum from experimental animals. Immunological techniques coupled with radioautography indicated that the microsome fraction of liver was the subcellular site of synthesis of albumin and of carbohydrate and polypeptide moieties of α1-acid glycoprotein in normal and experimental animals. The contents of albumin and α1-acid glycoprotein in liver microsome fractions from normal and experimental animals were determined by application of the quantitative precipitin technique to Lubrol-W extracts of microsome material. Little change in content of albumin associated with microsome material was found as a result of inflammation; however, there was a significant increase in the content of α1-acid glycoprotein in microsome material from experimental animals, reaching a maximum at 8–12 h after inflammation. On the basis of these latter results, it is suggested (1) that there is a fairly rapid stimulation of synthesis of α1-acid glycoprotein by liver in response to inflammation and (2) that the increased content of α1-acid glycoprotein associated with microsome material at short times of exposure to inflammatory agent is responsible for the increased content of this protein found in serum at longer times of exposure to inflammatory agent.