The biological conditions of assessment of ethylene glycol-induced inhibition of gap junctional intercellular communication by metabolic cooperation assay
Vítek, J.A.
Folia Biologica 43(3): 109-114
1997
ISSN/ISBN: 0015-5500 PMID: 9338117 Document Number: 479166
Ethylene glycol (EG) has been previously shown to inhibit gap junctional intercellular communication. In this paper we examine conditions under which the effect of EG on gap junctional communication is assessed by metabolic cooperation assay. The later, after the start of metabolic cooperation assay, EG was added, the lower its inhibitory effect was. If treatment with EG began 12 h or even later after plating of cells, no significant effect on gap junctional communication was observed. Short EG treatments (2 - 8 h) induced a reversible inhibition of cell-to-cell communication, provided that the cells could communicate freely after the drug was removed. However, if further cell-to-cell communication was excluded, the effect of short exposures was irreversible. Using Scrape loading method we observed that after a 60 min exposure to EG the standard gap junctional intercellular communication was completely restored in a few hours.