Effect of lindane upon the β-adrenergic stimulation of cyclic AMP accumulation in rat renal cortical tubules caused by alterations in membrane fluidity

The influence of lindane (gamma-hexachlorocyclohexane) on fludity and lipid composition in rat renal cortical tubules has been investigated. Lindane increased membrane fluidity as measured by a fluorescence polarization technique using the probe diphenylhexatriene. This effect was dose-dependent and was accompanied by a 70% inhibition of the β-adrenergic stimulatory activity upon cyclic AMP accumulation after 30 min of preincubation with lindane at 25°C. Experiments with increasing concentrations of isoproterenol indicated that the efficacy, but not the potency, of the β-adrenergic effect upon cyclic AMP accumulation was affected by lindane. Lindane toxicity could also be associated with variations in the incorporation of acetate into various lipid classes. Lindane increased acetate incorporation into phospholipids and decreased that into cholestorol.