Search

We have examined the effects of increasing membrane polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) on adenosine receptor function in intact N1E-115 neuroblastoma cells. Addition of linoleic acid to the culture medium for 48 h resulted in an approximate threefold increase in the amount of omega 6 fatty acids esterified to membrane phospholipids. Basal cAMP accumulation was significantly higher in the PUFA-enriched cells than in controls, although the differences could be diminished by approximately 75% by treatment of the cells with adenosine deaminase or 8-phenyltheophylline. Exposure of the cultures to the stable adenosine analogue 5'-N-ethylcarboxyamide adenosine (NECA) resulted in concentration-dependent increases in cAMP accumulation. Data from saturation experiments indicated that the maximum amount of cAMP that could be formed in response to NECA in the PUFA-enriched cells was twice that in control cells. Also, the amount of agonist required to elicit half maximal stimulation in the supplemented cells was significantly less than in the control cells (mean values for EC50, 0.85 and 1.43 microM, respectively). The results of this study demonstrate that membrane PUFA have the ability to modify interactions between adenosine receptors and adenylate cyclase in neural cells, a fact that is of potential importance in considering the central role that adenosine plays as a neuromodulator in the nervous system.