Glucose regulates enzymatic sources of mitochondrial NADPH in skeletal muscle cells; a novel role for glucose‐6‐phosphate dehydrogenase

Reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADPH) is a functionally important metabolite required to support numerous cellular processes. However, despite the identification of numerous NADPH-producing enzymes, the mechanisms underlying how the organellar pools of NADPH are maintained remain elusive. Here, we have identified glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) as an important source of NADPH in mitochondria. Activity analysis, submitochondrial fractionation, fluorescence microscopy, and protease sensitivity assays revealed that G6PDH is localized to the mitochondrial matrix. 6-ANAM, a specific G6PDH inhibitor, depleted mitochondrial NADPH pools and increased oxidative stress revealing the importance of G6PDH in NADPH maintenance. We also show that glucose availability and differences in metabolic state modulate the enzymatic sources of NADPH in mitochondria. Indeed, cells cultured in high glucose (HG) not only adopted a glycolytic phenotype but also relied heavily on matrix-associated G6PDH as a source of NADPH. In contrast, cells exposed to low-glucose (LG) concentrations, which displayed increased oxygen consumption, mitochondrial metabolic efficiency, and decreased glycolysis, relied predominantly on isocitrate dehydrogenase (ICDH) as the principal NADPH-producing enzyme in the mitochondria. Culturing glycolytic cells in LG for 48 h decreased G6PDH and increased ICDH protein levels in the mitochondria, further pointing to the regulatory role of glucose. 2-Deoxyglucose treatment also prevented the increase of mitochondrial G6PDH in response to HG. The role of glucose in regulating enzymatic sources of mitochondrial NADPH pool maintenance was confirmed using human myotubes from obese adults with a history of type 2 diabetes mellitus (post-T2DM). Myotubes from post-T2DM participants failed to increase mitochondrial G6PDH in response to HG in contrast to mitochondria in myotubes from control participants (non-T2DM). Hence, we not only identified a matrix-associated G6PDH but also provide evidence that metabolic state/glucose availability modulate enzymatic sources of NADPH.