Stimulation of intestinal fructose absorption by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) results from rapid insertion of GLUT2 into the brush-border membrane and correlates with protein kinase C (PKC) II activation. We have therefore investigated the role of phosphatidylinositol 3 (PI3)-kinase and mammalian target of rapamycin in the regulation of fructose absorption by PKC II phosphorylation. In isolated jejunal loops, stimulation of fructose absorption by PMA was inhibited by preperfusion with wortmannin or rapamycin, which blocked GLUT2 activation and insertion into the brushborder membrane. Antibodies to the last 18 and last 10 residues of the C-terminal region of PKC II recognized several species differentially in Western blots. Extensive cleavage of native enzyme (80/78 kDa) to a catalytic domain product of 49 kDa occurred. PMA and sugars provoked turnover and degradation of PKC II by dephosphorylation to a 42-kDa species, which was converted to polyubiquitylated species detected at 180 and 250؉ kDa. PMA increased the level of the PKC II 49-kDa species, which correlates with the GLUT2 level; wortmannin and rapamycin blocked these effects of PMA. Rapamycin and wortmannin inhibited PKC II turnover. PI3-kinase, PDK-1, and protein kinase B were present in the brush-border membrane, where their levels were increased by PMA and blocked by the inhibitors. We conclude that GLUT2-mediated fructose absorption is regulated through PI3-kinase and mammalian target of rapamycin-dependent pathways, which control phosphorylation of PKC II and its substrate-induced turnover and ubiquitin-dependent degradation. These findings suggest possible mechanisms for short term control of intestinal sugar absorption by insulin and amino acids.Intestinal glucose absorption comprises two components (for a review, see Ref. 1). It is well established that one of these is an active component mediated by the Na ϩ /glucose cotransporter, SGLT1. We have proposed that the other is a facilitated component mediated by glucose-dependent activation and recruitment of GLUT2 to the brush-border membrane. GLUT2 recruitment correlates with SGLT1-dependent activation of PKC 1 II (2) so that SGLT1 is now seen to exert an important regulatory role in addition to its established functions as a scavenger and transporter (1). Regulation of the facilitated component may also involve mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase-and PI3-kinase-dependent signaling pathways (3).The K a and J max of the facilitated component are 2-and 3-fold, respectively, of those for SGLT1 in vivo. After a meal, the average concentration across the luminal contents of rat jejunum reaches 48 mM (4), close to the K m of the facilitated component, and much higher concentrations may well be present locally at the brush-border membrane, as a result of the hydrolysis of complex dietary sugars (5). The facilitated component therefore appears to provide the major route by which glucose is absorbed immediately after a meal. Moreover, the activation of GLUT2 and its rapid trafficking to...