The cation transporters rOCT1 and rOCT2 interact with bicarbonate but play only a minor role for amantadine uptake into rat renal proximal tubules.

In renal proximal tubules, the organic cation transporters rOCT1 and rOCT2 are supposed to mediate the first step in organic cation secretion. We investigated whether previously described differences in amantadine and tetraethylammonium (TEA) uptake into isolated renal proximal tubules could be explained by differences in their transport by rOCT1 and rOCT2. By expressing rOCT1 and rOCT2 in Xenopus oocytes and HEK 293 cells, we demonstrated that both transporters translocated amantadine.