We characterized the insulin receptors in skeletal muscle from several fish species with different nutritional preferences: brown trout (Salmo trutta fario), gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata), tilapia (Tilapia mossambica), and carp (Cyprinus carpio), semipurified by affinity chromatography (wheat germ agglutinin-agarose). Total specific binding and number of receptors per unit weight of piscine white skeletal muscle were lower than those values found in mammalian skeletal muscle. The same parameters in carp muscle receptor preparations were severalfold higher than in trout muscle (binding capacity 440 +/- 47 fmol/mg glycoprotein in carp and 82 +/- 23 fmol/mg glycoprotein in trout). Piscine insulin receptors phosphorylated exogenous substrate poly(Glu,Tyr) but less so than mammalian receptors. Tyrosine kinase activity of receptors, calculated as percent of P-32 incorporated into substrate in the presence of insulin compared with basal incorporation, was also highest in carp (210 +/- 4%) and lowest in trout (150 +/- 2%). In both trout and carp deprived of food for 15 days, specific binding of insulin decreased. Nevertheless, differences between the two species were retained. Our results demonstrate that particular properties of insulin receptors in fish skeletal muscle may be related to nutritional preferences. This finding coincides with the phenomenon of differential glucose tolerance in fish: carnivorous fish, such as trout, are less tolerant, whereas omnivorous fish, such as carp, readily utilize a carbohydrate-rich diet.
