Project description:Free fatty acids (FFAs) are often stored in lipid droplet (LD) depots for eventual metabolic and/or synthetic use in many cell types, such a muscle, liver, and fat. In pancreatic islets, overt LD accumulation was detected in humans but not mice. LD buildup in islets was principally observed after roughly 11 years of age, increasing throughout adulthood under physiologic conditions, and also enriched in type 2 diabetes. To obtain insight into the role of LDs in human islet β cell function, the levels of a key LD scaffold protein, perilipin2 (PLIN2), were manipulated by lentiviral-mediated knock-down (KD) or over-expression (OE) in EndoCβH2-Cre cells, a human cell line with adult islet β-like properties. Glucose stimulated insulin secretion was blunted in PLIN2KD cells and improved in PLIN2OE cells. An unbiased transcriptomic analysis revealed that limiting LD formation induced effectors of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress that compromised the expression of critical β cell function and identity genes. These changes were essentially reversed by PLIN2OE or using the ER stress inhibitor, tauroursodeoxycholic acid. These results strongly suggest that LDs are essential for adult human islet β cell activity by preserving FFA homeostasis.
Project description:Melanoma exhibits numerous transcriptional cell states including neural crest-like cells as well as pigmented melanocytic cells. How these different cell states relate to distinct tumorigenic phenotypes remains unclear. Here, we use a zebrafish melanoma model to identify a transcriptional program linking the melanocytic cell state to a dependence on lipid droplets, the specialized organelle responsible for lipid storage. Single-cell RNA-sequencing of these tumors show a concordance between genes regulating pigmentation and those involved in lipid and oxidative metabolism. This state is conserved across human melanoma cell lines and patient tumors. This melanocytic state demonstrates increased fatty acid uptake, an increased number of lipid droplets, and dependence upon fatty acid oxidative metabolism. Genetic and pharmacologic suppression of lipid droplet production is sufficient to disrupt cell cycle progression and slow melanoma growth in vivo. Because the melanocytic cell state is linked to poor outcomes in patients, these data indicate a metabolic vulnerability in melanoma that depends on the lipid droplet organelle.
Project description:Free fatty acids (FFAs) are often stored in lipid droplet (LD) depots for eventual metabolic and/or synthetic use in many cell types, such a muscle, liver, and fat. In pancreatic islets, overt LD accumulation was detected in humans but not mice. LD buildup in islets was principally observed after roughly 11 years of age, increasing throughout adulthood under physiologic conditions, and also enriched in type 2 diabetes. To obtain insight into the role of LDs in human islet β-cell function, the levels of a key LD scaffold protein, perilipin 2 (PLIN2), were manipulated by lentiviral-mediated knockdown (KD) or overexpression (OE) in EndoCβH2-Cre cells, a human cell line with adult islet β-like properties. Glucose-stimulated insulin secretion was blunted in PLIN2KD cells and improved in PLIN2OE cells. An unbiased transcriptomic analysis revealed that limiting LD formation induced effectors of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress that compromised the expression of critical β-cell function and identity genes. These changes were essentially reversed by PLIN2OE or using the ER stress inhibitor, tauroursodeoxycholic acid. These results strongly suggest that LDs are essential for adult human islet β-cell activity by preserving FFA homeostasis.
Project description:Liver regeneration is an well orchestrated compensatory process that regulated by multiple factors. We recently reported the importance of chromatin protein, a high-mobility group box 2 (HMGB2) in mouse liver regeneration, however, it’s molecular mechanism is not yet understood. In this study, we aimed to study how HMGB2 regulates hepatocyte proliferation during liver regeneration. Wild-type (WT) and HMGB2-knockout (KO) mice were 70% partial hepatectomized (PHx), and liver tissues were analyzed by microarray, immunohistochemistry, qPCR and western blotting. In vivo experimental findings were confirmed by in vitro experiments using HMGB2 gene knockdown in combination with de novo lipogenesis model. In WT mouse, HMGB2-positive hepatocytes were co-localized with cell proliferation markers, whereas, hepatocyte proliferation was significantly decreased in HMGB2-KO mice. Oil red-O staining detected the transient accumulation of lipid droplets at 12-24 h in WT mouse livers, however, decreased amount of lipid droplets were found in HMGB2-KO mouse livers, and it was prolonged until 36 h. Microarray, immunohistochemistry and qPCR results were demonstrated that lipid metabolism related genes were significantly decreased in HMGB2-KO mouse livers. In vitro experiments demonstrated that decreased lipid droplets in HMGB2-knockdown cells correlated with decreased cell proliferation activity. HMGB2 is involved in the regulation of liver regeneration through transient accumulation of lipid droplets in hepatocytes.
Project description:Decreasing the activation of pathology-activated microglia is crucial to prevent chronic inflammation and tissue scarring. In this study, we used a stab wound injury model in zebrafish and identified an injury-induced microglial state characterized by the accumulation of lipid droplets and TAR DNA-binding protein of 43 kDa (TDP-43)+ condensates. Granulin-mediated clearance of both lipid droplets and TDP-43+ condensates was necessary and sufficient to promote the return of microglia back to the basal state and achieve scarless regeneration. Moreover, in postmortem cortical brain tissues from patients with traumatic brain injury, the extent of microglial activation correlated with the accumulation of lipid droplets and TDP-43+ condensates. Together, our results reveal a mechanism required for restoring microglia to a nonactivated state after injury, which has potential for new therapeutic applications in humans.
Project description:Palm and coconut oils are linked to cardiovascular disease and diabetes because of their high saturated fatty acid (SFA) content but exactly how exogenous SFAs, but not unsaturated fatty acids (UFA), are toxic to cells remains unknown. In insulin-producing, β-cells of the Islets of Langerhans, loss of which exacerbates diabetes, we found that SFAs but not UFAs were toxic because they disable a highly conserved lipid droplet biogenesis machinery. We show that palmitate (a major SFA of these oils), but not palmitoleic or oleic, S-acylates the highly conserved ER-resident FITM2 protein, required for lipid coalescence and droplet budding from the ER. The S-acylation marks FITM2 for ubiquitination and proteosomal degradation, leaving SFAs within the ER instead safe sequestration within lipid droplets. ER-stress ensues with rapid induction of ER stress leading to β-cell apoptosis. Specific deletion of FITM2 in β-cells disrupts calcium signaling and key β-cell TFs and exacerbates high fat diet-induced ER stress and diabetes. Rescue by overexpression ameliorates ER-stress and β-cell apoptosis thus demonstrating an important link between lipid species and cell ability to sequester them away from the ER in the form of lipid droplets.
Project description:Lipid droplets (LDs) store lipids for metabolic energy and are central to cellular lipid homeostasis. The mechanisms coordinating lipid storage in LDs with cellular metabolism are unclear but relevant to obesity-related diseases. Here we utilized genome-wide screening to identify genes that modulate lipid storage in human macrophages, a cell type relevant to metabolic diseases. Among ~550 genes regulating lipid storage, we identify MLX, a basic helix-loop-helix leucine-zipper transcription factor that regulates multiple metabolic processes. We show that MLX and family members MLXIP/MondoA and MLXIPL/ChREBP bind LDs via C-terminal amphipathic helices. When LDs increase in cells, LD binding of MLX, MLXIP/MondoA, and MLXIPL/ChREBP reduces their transcriptional activity, whereas the absence of LDs results in hyperactivation. Our findings uncover an unexpected component to a lipid storage response, in which binding of MLX transcription factors to the LD surface modulates their activity, adjusting the expression of metabolic genes to lipid storage levels.