Project description:The effects of adiponectin on hepatic glucose and lipid metabolism at transcriptional level are largely unknown. We profiled hepatic gene expression in adiponectin knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) mice by RNA-Seq. Comparing to WT mice, adiponectin KO mice exhibited decreased mRNA expression of rate-limiting enzymes in several important glucose and lipid metabolic pathways including glycolysis, TCA cycle, fatty-acid activation and synthesis, triglyceride synthesis and cholesterol synthesis. In addition, binding of the transcription factor Hnf4a to DNAs encoding several key metabolic enzymes was reduced in KO mice, suggesting that adiponectin might regulate hepatic gene expression via Hnf4a. Phenotypically, adiponectin KO mice possessed smaller epididymal fat pads and showed reduced body weights comparing to WT mice. When fed a high fat diet, adiponectin KO mice showed significantly reduced lipid accumulation in the livers. These lipogenic defects are consistent with the downregulation of lipogenic genes in the KO mice.
Project description:The effects of adiponectin on hepatic glucose and lipid metabolism at transcriptional level are largely unknown. We profiled hepatic gene expression in adiponectin knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) mice by RNA-Seq. Comparing to WT mice, adiponectin KO mice exhibited decreased mRNA expression of rate-limiting enzymes in several important glucose and lipid metabolic pathways including glycolysis, TCA cycle, fatty-acid activation and synthesis, triglyceride synthesis and cholesterol synthesis. In addition, binding of the transcription factor Hnf4a to DNAs encoding several key metabolic enzymes was reduced in KO mice, suggesting that adiponectin might regulate hepatic gene expression via Hnf4a. Phenotypically, adiponectin KO mice possessed smaller epididymal fat pads and showed reduced body weights comparing to WT mice. When fed a high fat diet, adiponectin KO mice showed significantly reduced lipid accumulation in the livers. These lipogenic defects are consistent with the downregulation of lipogenic genes in the KO mice. Mice were fasted overnight before euthanization. Liver tissues from WT or adiponectin KO male mice (n = 9-10) at 12 weeks of age were harvested and subjected to total RNA extraction using an RNeasy Plus Mini Kit (Qiagen, Valencia, CA). Total RNA from nine to ten mice of the same strain was pooled together as one biological sample. The mRNA sequencing samples were prepared using the Illumina sample preparation protocol (RS-930-1001, Illumina, Inc. San Diego, CA). The cDNA fragments of 200–250 bp were purified on an agarose gel and then enriched by PCR with Phusion polymerase. The cDNA libraries were sequenced by an Illumina Genome analyzer II at the Whitehead Genome Technology Core.
Project description:Activation of protein kinase C epsilon (PKCε) in the liver has been widely associated with hepatic insulin resistance. PKCε is proposed to inhibit insulin signalling through phosphorylation of the insulin receptor. We have tested this directly by breeding PKCε floxed mice with mice expressing Cre recombinase under the control of the cytomegalovirus, albumin or adiponectin promoters to generate global, liver- and adipose tissue-specific PKCε knockout (KO) mice. Global deletion of PKCε recapitulated the benefits for diet-induced glucose intolerance that we previously described using conventional PKCε KO mice. However, we did not detect PKCε-dependent alterations in hepatic insulin receptor phosphorylation. Furthermore, liver-specific KO mice were not protected against diet-induced glucose intolerance or insulin resistance determined by euglycemic clamp. In contrast, adipose tissue-specific KO mice exhibited improved glucose tolerance and mildly increased hepatic triglyceride storage, but no change in liver insulin sensitivity. Phosphoproteomic analysis of insulin signalling in PKCε KO adipocytes revealed no defect in the canonical INSR/AKT/mTOR pathways. However, PKCε KO resulted in changes in phosphorylation of several proteins associated with the endosome and cell junctions suggesting regulation in secretory pathways and a potential role of PKCε in endocrine function. Indeed, RNA-seq analysis revealed adipose-tissue PKCε-dependent changes in the hepatic expression of several genes linked to glucose homeostasis and hepatic lipid metabolism. The primary effect of PKCε on glucose homeostasis is therefore not exerted directly in the liver as currently assumed. However, PKCε in adipose tissue modulates glucose tolerance and is involved in crosstalk with the liver that affects gene expression and lipid accumulation.
Project description:Mediator complex function as an integrative hub for transcriptional regulation. Here we show that Mediator subunit MED23 regulate glucose and lipid metabolism via FOXO1 in liver. Here, we have generated a liver-specific Med23-knockout (LMKO) mouse and found that Med23-deletion in liver improved glucose and lipid metabolism, as well as insulin responsiveness, and prevented diet-induced obesity. Mechanistically, MED23 participated in gluconeogenesis and cholesterol synthesis by interacting with FOXO1. Disruption of this interaction by hepatic Med23-deletion impaired the Mediator and RNAP II recruitment and partially reduced the expression of the FOXO1 target genes. Remarkably, acute hepatic Med23 knockdown in db/db mice significantly improved insulin sensitivity. Overall, our data revealed Mediator MED23 as a critical regulator of glucose and lipid metabolism, suggesting novel therapeutic strategies against metabolic diseases.
Project description:The ketogenic diet has been successful in promoting weight loss among patients that have struggled with weight gain. This is due to the cellular switch in metabolism that utilizes liver-derived ketone bodies for the primary energy source rather than glucose. Fatty acid transport protein 2 (FATP2) is highly expressed in liver, small intestine, and kidney where it functions in both the transport of exogenous long chain fatty acids (LCFA) and in the activation to CoA thioesters of very long chain fatty acids (VLCFA). We have completed a multi-omic study of FATP2-null (Fatp2-/-) mice maintained on a ketogenic diet (KD) or paired control diet (CD), with and without a 24-hour fast (KD-fasted and CD-fasted) to address the impact of deleting FATP2 under high-stress conditions. Control (wt/wt) and Fatp2-/- mice were maintained on their respective diets for 4-weeks. Afterwards, half the population was sacrificed while the remaining were fasted for 24-hours prior to sacrifice. We then performed paired-end RNA-sequencing on the whole liver tissue to investigate differential gene expression. The differentially expressed genes mapped to ontologies such as the metabolism of amino acids and derivatives, fatty acid metabolism, protein localization, and components of the immune system’s complement cascade, and were supported by the proteome and histological staining.
Project description:Introgressed variants from other species can be an important source of genetic variation because they may arise rapidly, can include multiple mutations on a single haplotype, and have often been pretested by selection in the species of origin. Although introgressed alleles are generally deleterious, several studies have reported introgression as the source of adaptive alleles-including the rodenticide-resistant variant of Vkorc1 that introgressed from Mus spretus into European populations of Mus musculus domesticus. Here, we conducted bidirectional genome scans to characterize introgressed regions into one wild population of M. spretus from Spain and three wild populations of M. m. domesticus from France, Germany, and Iran. Despite the fact that these species show considerable intrinsic postzygotic reproductive isolation, introgression was observed in all individuals, including in the M. musculus reference genome (GRCm38). Mus spretus individuals had a greater proportion of introgression compared with M. m. domesticus, and within M. m. domesticus, the proportion of introgression decreased with geographic distance from the area of sympatry. Introgression was observed on all autosomes for both species, but not on the X-chromosome in M. m. domesticus, consistent with known X-linked hybrid sterility and inviability genes that have been mapped to the M. spretus X-chromosome. Tract lengths were generally short with a few outliers of up to 2.7 Mb. Interestingly, the longest introgressed tracts were in olfactory receptor regions, and introgressed tracts were significantly enriched for olfactory receptor genes in both species, suggesting that introgression may be a source of functional novelty even between species with high barriers to gene flow.