Effects of in vivo and in vitro alcohol administration on insulin binding and glycogenesis in isolated rat hepatocytes.

Chronic alcohol ingestion was accompanied by a mild decrease in insulin binding (from 11.7 to 8.9% per 1 X 10(6) cells) that was accounted for by changes in the dissociation constant of insulin's binding sites.

Lysosomal and non-lysosomal pathways of intracellular insulin degradation in isolated rat hepatocytes.

The amount of 125I-insulin associated with freshly isolated hepatocytes was increased 50% in the presence of 0.2 mM chloroquine (CQ) after 2 h of incubation. The degradation of insulin by the hepatocytes incubated with CQ was significantly diminished as compared with control cells.