Key Insulin Signaling Molecules Research Articles

Hepatic microRNAs in Type II Diabetes Pathogenesis

Background/Objective: 
 Diabetes mellitus is a disease with increasing incidence worldwide affecting more than 435 million patients, most of whom have Type II diabetes (T2D). Of the many organs affected by T2D, the liver is responsible for much of the dysregulated metabolic pathways in response to insulin signaling. These include, but are not limited to gluconeogenesis, glycogen storage, fatty acid and cholesterol biosynthesis and transport, and fatty acid oxidation. Recent studies show significant differences in miRNA expression profiles between healthy and disease states of T2D. This implicates an important role of miRNAs in T2D pathogenesis and makes miRNAs an attractive therapeutic target and diagnostic marker for T2D patients. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the hepatic miRNAs relevant to T2D pathogenesis. 
 
 Methods: 
 We compiled and reviewed articles from the PubMed database that were relevant to miRNAs and T2D pathogenesis in the liver. 
 
 Results: 
 We found that hepatic miRNAs affect most if not all dysregulated metabolic pathways in T2D pathogenesis, which we categorized into carbohydrate metabolism, lipid metabolism, and insulin signaling. The miRNAs that are most represented in our literature include miR-122, miR-33a/b, miR-29, and miR-21. These miRNAs target a variety of molecules, including transcription factors that are master regulators of metabolic pathways (FOXO1, HNF4α), lipid transporters (ABCA1, ABCG1), or key insulin signaling molecules (IRS1/2, caveolin-1). In addition, circulating miR-122 is associated with the risk of developing metabolic syndrome and T2D in the general population. 
 
 Conclusion and Potential Impact: 
 Multiple miRNAs are dysregulated in the liver of animal models of T2D. Administration of miRNA mimics or antagomirs to correct aberrant miRNA expression improved the pathophysiology in vivo. miRNAs are also promising tools as markers for disease development. Ultimately, the identification of miRNAs can guide future research to facilitate the diagnosis and improve the treatment of T2D.

Biologically anchored knowledge expansion approach uncovers KLF4 as a novel insulin signaling regulator.

One of the biggest challenges in analyzing high throughput omics data in biological studies is extracting information that is relevant to specific biological mechanisms of interest while simultaneously restricting the number of false positive findings. Due to random chances with numerous candidate targets and mechanisms, computational approaches often yield a large number of false positives that cannot easily be discerned from relevant biological findings without costly, and often infeasible, biological experiments. We here introduce and apply an integrative bioinformatics approach, Biologically Anchored Knowledge Expansion (BAKE), which uses sequential statistical analysis and literature mining to identify highly relevant network genes and effectively removes false positive findings. Applying BAKE to genomic expression data collected from mouse (Mus musculus) adipocytes during insulin resistance progression, we uncovered the transcription factor Krueppel-like Factor 4 (KLF4) as a regulator of early insulin signaling. We experimentally confirmed that KLF4 controls the expression of two key insulin signaling molecules, the Insulin Receptor Substrate 2 (IRS2) and Tuberous Sclerosis Complex 2 (TSC2).

Transient Hyperglycemia Alters Pancreatic Function and Peripheral Insulin Signaling in Preterm Baboons

Background: Premature infants develop transient hyperglycemia and insulin resistance. Hyperglycemia is not treated by intensivists to avoid caloric restriction and promote growth. Objective: To determine the effects of transient hyperglycemia on endocrine pancreas, skeletal muscle and liver at early stages of development in preterm baboons. Methods: Baboons were delivered prematurely (67% gestation; n=6) via c-section and ventilated for 14 days or sacrificed immediately after birth (n=6). Preterm ventilated animals were randomly assigned to tight glucose control (EUG; serum glucose 50-100mg/dL) or hyperglycemia (HYPER; serum glucose 150-250 mg/dL) from day of life (DOL) 0-5; tight glucose control thereafter. Hyperglycemic (HG) clamps were performed on DOL6 and DOL14. IHC was done for α-β-δ cells in pancreas tissue. Muscle and liver mRNA expression and protein content of key insulin signaling molecules were measured. Results: HYPER baboons had higher serum glucose compared to EUG (183±61 vs. 69±24 mg/dL, p<0.01) from DOL 0-5, and similar glucose from DOL 6-14. During the HG clamps, HYPER baboons had abnormally increased insulin secretion (2.7 fold, p<0.05) on DOL6, but normalized by DOL14. C-peptide was abnormally increased (3.3 fold, p<0.05) on DOL6; by DOL14 the same HYPER animals had a 38% decrease in c-peptide as compared to EUG (p=0.07). The α/β cell area was decreased in HYPER animals. Akt content was increased in the liver of HYPER baboons (2.8 fold, p<0.01) whereas IR/IRS and PEPCK-C didn’t change. Skeletal muscle GLUT1 was 70% decreased in HYPER animals (p<0.01); INSR, IRS-1, Akt and mitochondrial oxygen consumption were similar. Conclusion: Premature baboons exposed to transient hyperglycemia have an initial abnormal increase in insulin/c-peptide secretion followed by a decrease in c-peptide secretion a week later; alterations in α and β cell percent area are found at necropsy. Insulin signaling molecules are altered in liver/skeletal muscle of HYPER preterm baboons. Disclosure C. Blanco: None. A. Quinn: None. L.A. Winter: None. J. Valentine: None. N. Musi: None. R.A. DeFronzo: Speaker's Bureau; Self; AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk Inc.. Advisory Panel; Self; AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk Inc., Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Elcelyx Therapeutics, Inc., Intarcia Therapeutics, Inc.. Research Support; Self; AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc..

Palmitate induces insulin resistance in human HepG2 hepatocytes by enhancing ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation of key insulin signaling molecules

Obesity-associated insulin resistance is a major pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus and is characterized by defects in insulin signaling. High concentrations of plasma free fatty acids (FFAs) are involved in the etiology of obesity-associated insulin resistance. However, the detailed mechanism by which FFAs contribute to the development of insulin resistance is not yet fully understood. We investigated the molecular basis of insulin resistance elicited by FFAs using the human hepatocyte cell line HepG2. Among major human FFAs, palmitate markedly inhibited insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of key insulin signaling molecules such as insulin receptor, insulin receptor substrate-1, and Akt, indicating that palmitate is the principal inducer of insulin resistance. We revealed that palmitate facilitates ubiquitination of the key insulin signaling molecules, and subsequently elicits their proteasomal degradation. Furthermore, we demonstrated that inhibition of ubiquitination by the ubiquitin-activating enzyme E1 inhibitor PYR41 significantly prevents palmitate-inducible insulin resistance but not by the proteasome inhibitor MG132, implying that ubiquitinated signaling molecules may be dysfunctional. In conclusion, inhibition of ubiquitination of the key insulin signaling molecules may be a potential strategy for preventing and treating obesity-associated insulin resistance.

Leucine modulates dynamic phosphorylation events in insulin signaling pathway and enhances insulin-dependent glycogen synthesis in human skeletal muscle cells

BackgroundBranched-chain amino acids, especially leucine, are known to interact with insulin signaling pathway and glucose metabolism. However, the mechanism by which this is exerted, remain to be clearly defined. In order to examine the effect of leucine on muscle insulin signaling, a set of experiments was carried out to quantitate phosphorylation events along the insulin signaling pathway in human skeletal muscle cell cultures. Cells were exposed to insulin, leucine or both, and phosphorylation events of key insulin signaling molecules were tracked over time so as to monitor time-related responses that characterize the signaling events and could be missed by a single sampling strategy limited to pre/post stimulus events.ResultsLeucine is shown to increase the magnitude of insulin-dependent phosphorylation of protein kinase B (AKT) at Ser473 and glycogen synthase kinase (GSK3β) at Ser21-9. Glycogen synthesis follows the same pattern of GSK3β, with a significant increase at 100 μM leucine plus insulin stimulus. Moreover, data do not show any statistically significant increase of pGSK3β and glycogen synthesis at higher leucine concentrations. Leucine is also shown to increase the magnitude of insulin-mediated extracellularly regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation; however, differently from AKT and GSK3β, ERK shows a transient behavior, with an early peak response, followed by a return to the baseline condition.ConclusionsThese experiments demonstrate a complementary effect of leucine on insulin signaling in a human skeletal muscle cell culture, promoting insulin-activated GSK3β phosphorylation and glycogen synthesis.

Restoration of Euglycemia After Duodenal Bypass Surgery Is Reliant on Central and Peripheral Inputs in Zucker fa/fa Rats

Gastrointestinal bypass surgeries that result in rerouting and subsequent exclusion of nutrients from the duodenum appear to rapidly alleviate hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia independent of weight loss. While the mechanism(s) responsible for normalization of glucose homeostasis remains to be fully elucidated, this rapid normalization coupled with the well-known effects of vagal inputs into glucose homeostasis suggests a neurohormonally mediated mechanism. Our results show that duodenal bypass surgery on obese, insulin-resistant Zucker fa/fa rats restored insulin sensitivity in both liver and peripheral tissues independent of body weight. Restoration of normoglycemia was attributable to an enhancement in key insulin-signaling molecules, including insulin receptor substrate-2, and substrate metabolism through a multifaceted mechanism involving activation of AMP-activated protein kinase and downregulation of key regulatory genes involved in both lipid and glucose metabolism. Importantly, while central nervous system–derived vagal nerves were not essential for restoration of insulin sensitivity, rapid normalization in hepatic gluconeogenic capacity and basal hepatic glucose production required intact vagal innervation. Lastly, duodenal bypass surgery selectively altered the tissue concentration of intestinally derived glucoregulatory hormone peptides in a segment-specific manner. The present data highlight and support the significance of vagal inputs and intestinal hormone peptides toward normalization of glucose and lipid homeostasis after duodenal bypass surgery.

High expression of liver histone deacetylase 3 contributes to high-fat-diet-induced metabolic syndrome by suppressing the PPAR-γ and LXR-α-pathways in E3 rats

In the previous experiment, we found that there was a different response between E3 rats and DA.1U rats to high-fat-diet-induced metabolic syndrome (HFD–MetS). The aim of this study was to explore the cause and molecular mechanism of the genetic difference in susceptibility to metabolic syndrome in E3 rats as compared with DA.1U rats. Firstly, a 12-week HFD–MetS model in E3 and DA.1U rats was carried out and assessed. Then, the expression of key insulin signaling molecules, metabolic nuclear receptors, metabolic key enzymes and histone deacetylases (Hdacs) was determined by different methods. Finally, the effects of overexpression and disruption of Hdac3 on metabolic nuclear receptors were analyzed in CBRH-7919 cells and primarily-hepatic cells from DA.1U and E3 rats. We found that E3 rats were susceptible, while DA.1U rats were resisted to HFD–MetS. The expression of liver X receptor α,β ( LXR-α,β), farnesoid X receptor ( FXR), peroxisome proliferator activated receptor γ ( PPAR-γ) and cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase ( CYP7A1) increased markedly in DA.1U rat liver, whereas they decreased significantly in E3 rats. The expression of Hdac3 increased by HFD treatment in both E3 and DA.1U rat livers, but the constitutive Hdac3 expression was lower in DA.IU rat liver than in E3 rat liver. Importantly, overexpression of Hdac3 could downregulate the expression of LXR-α, PPAR-γ and CYP7A1 in both CBRH-7919 cells and primarily cultured hepatic cells from DA.IU rats. On the contrary, disruption of Hdac3 by shRNA upregulated the expression of LXR-α, PPAR-γ and CYP7A1 in both CBRH-7919 cells and primarily cultured hepatic cells from E3 rats. The results suggested that a high constitutive expression of Hdac3 inhibiting the expression of PPAR-γ, LXR-α and CYP7A1 in liver contributes to HFD–MetS in E3 rats.

Genetic ablation or chemical inhibition of phosphatidylcholine transfer protein attenuates diet-induced hepatic glucose production

Phosphatidylcholine transfer protein (PC-TP, synonym StARD2) is a highly specific intracellular lipid binding protein that is enriched in liver. Coding region polymorphisms in both humans and mice appear to confer protection against measures of insulin resistance. The current study was designed to test the hypotheses that Pctp-/- mice are protected against diet-induced increases in hepatic glucose production and that small molecule inhibition of PC-TP recapitulates this phenotype. Pctp-/- and wildtype mice were subjected to high-fat feeding and rates of hepatic glucose production and glucose clearance were quantified by hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp studies and pyruvate tolerance tests. These studies revealed that high-fat diet-induced increases in hepatic glucose production were markedly attenuated in Pctp-/- mice. Small molecule inhibitors of PC-TP were synthesized and their potencies, as well as mechanism of inhibition, were characterized in vitro. An optimized inhibitor was administered to high-fat-fed mice and used to explore effects on insulin signaling in cell culture systems. Small molecule inhibitors bound PC-TP, displaced phosphatidylcholines from the lipid binding site, and increased the thermal stability of the protein. Administration of the optimized inhibitor to wildtype mice attenuated hepatic glucose production associated with high-fat feeding, but had no activity in Pctp-/- mice. Indicative of a mechanism for reducing glucose intolerance that is distinct from commonly utilized insulin-sensitizing agents, the inhibitor promoted insulin-independent phosphorylation of key insulin signaling molecules. These findings suggest PC-TP inhibition as a novel therapeutic strategy in the management of hepatic insulin resistance.

A novel non-alcoholic steatohepatitis animal model featured with insulin resistance, hepatic inflammation and fibrosis

Objective. There is no animal model that displays the features of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) characterized by insulin resistance (IR) and fibrosing steatohepatitis. This study aimed to develop a novel IR-associated rat model of NASH. Material and methods. Male Sprague–Dawley rats were fed with the high-fat diet (HFD) supplemented with 0.25% propylthiouracil for 2, 4, 6, 8 and 12 weeks. The IR-associated metabolic parameters, histological assessment and the expression of key insulin signaling molecules were determined. The circulating and tissue pro-inflammatory factors and adipocytokines were examined. Results. In the HFD-fed rats, the systemic and multiple-organ IR was developed after 4 weeks, whereas the histological changes characterized by steatohepatitis, inflammatory response in the visceral adipose tissue and proliferative pancreatic islet β-cells appeared after 6 weeks, concomitant with altered expression of key insulin signaling molecules. In addition, the elevated levels of serum tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), soluble TNF receptor2, interleukin (IL)-6, CC-chemokine ligand (CCL)2 and resistin were parallel with the severity of hepatic inflammation, while the levels of serum adiponectin, leptin and TNF-α, but not resistin, were correlated with IR. Conclusions. We have developed a systemic IR-associated NASH model of rats, with impaired insulin signaling, systemic inflammation and appropriate pathology characterized by human NASH, and provided a realistic experimental model for elucidating the association between IR and the pathogenesis of NASH.

New insights in covalent modifications of proteins and lipids: phosphorylation and beyond

this issue of the American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism contains the second of four review articles addressing covalent modifications of proteins and lipids, their influence on the regulation of multiple signal transduction pathways, and their potential implication in the