Molecular Pharmacology, Vol 4, 247-257, Copyright © 1968 by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics

Effect of Adrenergically Reactive Drugs on Peroxisomal Enzymes in Tetrahymena

¹ Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Duke University Medical School, Durham, North Carolina 27706

The effects of several adrenergically reactive drugs and of triiodothyronine on the activities of five enzymes of Tetrahymena have been studied. The isocitrate dehydrogenase amid malate dehydrogenase activities were not altered by exposure to any of the drugs tested. Of three peroxisomal enzymes studied, D-amino acid oxidase activity was not affected, catalase activity was decreased by high concentrations of reserpine but either not changed or slightly increased by the other adrenergic drugs, and isocitrate lyase activity was strongly decreased by those drugs which depleted cell glycogen and slightly increased by aminophylline, which increased cell glycogen content. Thus one effect of the adrenergically reactive drugs in Tetrahymena is to alter the activity of the glyoxylate bypass pathway.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT The author is indebted to Mr. Alvernon Hayes for excellent technical assistance. This work was supported by NSF Grant GB-5617 and NIH Grant 5 Rol HD 01269. The author is the recipient of a Research Career Development Award, 5 K3 GM 2341, from NIH.