A substantial part of GLUT-1 in crude membranes from muscle originates from perineurial sheaths

The distribution of GLUT-1 and GLUT-4 in cryosections of rat skeletal muscles was investigated immunocytochemically. Intense labeling of GLUT-1 was found in the perineurial sheaths of intramuscular nerves, whereas only a very faint signal was associated with the sarcolemma, and labeling of extraneural vessels was not detectable. The majority of the GLUT-4 reactivity was located at the periphery of muscle cells in nonuniform patches, and GLUT-4 was absent in vessels and nerves. In sections of femoral nerve GLUT-1 was confined to the perineurial sheath and endoneurial vessels. The contribution of GLUT-1 from intramuscular perineurial sheaths to total GLUT-1 in a muscle was determined from immunoblots of crude membranes isolated from mixtures of homogenates of excised nerves and muscles. The recovery of GLUT-1 increased linearly with the amount of nerve added, and it was calculated that GLUT-1 from intramuscular perineurial sheaths accounted for approximately 60% of the GLUT-1 content in a membrane fraction from soleus muscle or red gastrocnemius. The remaining 40% of GLUT-1 is likely to originate from the sarcolemma.