Biochemistry of growth inhibition by ammonium ions in mammalian cells

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Abstract
The intracellular pool of UDP-N-acetylglucosamine and UDP-N-acetylgalactosamine has been shown to act as a central target during the inhibitory action of ammonium ions in vitro cultivated mammalian cell cultures. This pool has been demonstrated to be elevated at the end of a batch cultivation and very quickly as a response to exogenously applied ammonium chloride by using four different cell lines (hybridoma, BHK, CHO, and Ltk−929). The amount of enlarged UDP aminohexoses is correlated to the inhibitor concentration and additionally dependent on the cell line. The formation of the UDP sugars is associated with a transient reduction of the UTP pool. Moreover, the quick formation of UDP-GNAc is strictly dependent on the presence of glucose and ammonium. Both metabolites act as biochemical precursors. Additionally, the formation of UDP-GNAc after ammonium application has been shown to increase with an elevated cultivation pH and to be independent of the inhibition of transcription and translation processes. The intracellular amount of UDP-GNAc correlates with the level of growth inhibition in mammalian cell lines. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.