PGE2 production by glomeruli is increased in a variety of glomerular diseases. Potentially, this process may affect mesangial cell protein synthesis and mesangial cell growth. Thus studies have been undertaken, using cultured human mesangial cells, to assess the effects of PGE2 on proline uptake, protein synthesis and cell proliferation. In the presence of 140 mM NaCl, incubation of mesangial cells with 0.01 to 1 microM PGE2 for 72 hours resulted in a marked decrease of 14C proline uptake, but did not modify 14C leucine uptake. Substitution of choline to sodium inhibited 14C proline uptake by 85% which became independent of PGE2, indicating that this PG specifically altered sodium-dependent proline uptake. Inhibition of this component reached 35 to 50% with 1 microM PGE2. The inhibitory effect of PGE2 on sodium-dependent proline uptake required a lag time of 48 hours, and was suppressed by ouabain, an inhibitor of Na+, K+ ATPase activity. PGE2 did not modify the Vmax of the transport system (1.007 vs. 1.023 nmol/mg/min) but increased (P less than 0.01) its Km (1.179 vs. 0.823 mM). 8-bromo-cyclic AMP also inhibited sodium-independent proline uptake, and PGE2 markedly increased cyclic AMP production. Taken together, these results suggested that PGE2 acted via cyclic AMP stimulation. PGE2 under identical conditions (1 microM, 72 hr incubation) produced a decrease in collagen synthesis estimated by the relative rate of collagen production after incubation of mesangial cells with 14C proline (percentage of 14C radioactivity in collagenase-sensitive proteins over total proteins). PGE2 also diminished the intracellular free proline pool. More generally, PGE2 inhibited cell proliferation and cell total proteins.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)