Search

Objective: Dietary medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), characterized by chain lengths of 8–12 carbon atoms, have been proposed to have beneficial effects on glucose and lipid metabolism, yet the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. We hypothesized that MCFA intake benefits metabolic health by inducing the release of hormone-like factors. Methods: The effects of chow diet, high-fat diet rich in long-chain fatty acids (LCFA HFD) fed ad libitum or pair-fed to a high-fat diet rich in MCFA (MCFA HFD) on glycemia, hepatic gene expression, circulating fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), and liver fat content in both wildtype and Fgf21 knockout mice were investigated. The impact of a single oral dose of an MCFA-rich oil on circulating FGF21 and hepatic Fgf21 mRNA expression was assessed. In flag-tagged Crebh knockin mice and liver-specific Crebh knockout mice, fed LCFA HFD or MCFA HFD, active hepatic CREBH and hepatic Fgf21 mRNA abundance were determined, respectively. Results: MCFA HFD improves glucose tolerance, enhances glucose clearance into brown adipose tissue, and prevents high-fat diet-induced hepatic steatosis in wildtype mice. These benefits are associated with increased liver expression of CREBH target genes (Apoa4 and Apoc2), including Fgf21. Both acute and chronic intake of dietary MCFAs elevate circulating FGF21. Augmented hepatic Fgf21 mRNA following MCFA HFD intake is accompanied by higher levels of active hepatic CREBH; and MCFA-induced hepatic Fgf21 expression is blocked in mice lacking Crebh. Notably, while feeding male and female Fgf21 wildtype mice MCFA HFD results in reduced liver triacylglycerol (TG) levels, this liver TG-lowering effect is blunted in Fgf21 knockout mice fed MCFA HFD. The reduction in liver TG levels observed with MCFA HFD was independent of weight loss. Conclusions: Dietary MCFAs reduce liver fat accumulation via activation of a CREBH-FGF21 signaling axis.

Macrophages are essential for the proper inflammatory and reparative processes that lead to regeneration of skeletal muscle after injury. Recent studies have demonstrated close links between the function of activated macrophages and their cellular metabolism. Sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 (SREBP1) is a key regulator of lipid metabolism and has been shown to affect the activated states of macrophages. However, its role in tissue repair and regeneration is poorly understood. Here we show that systemic deletion of Srebf1, encoding SREBP1, or macrophage-specific deletion of Srebf1a, encoding SREBP1a, delays resolution of inflammation and impairs skeletal muscle regeneration after injury. Srebf1 deficiency impairs mitochondrial function in macrophages and suppresses the accumulation of macrophages at sites of muscle injury. Lipidomic analyses showed the reduction of major phospholipid species in Srebf1-/- muscle myeloid cells. Moreover, diet supplementation with eicosapentaenoic acid restored the accumulation of macrophages and their mitochondrial gene expression and improved muscle regeneration. Collectively, our results demonstrate that SREBP1 in macrophages is essential for repair and regeneration of skeletal muscle after injury and suggest that SREBP1-mediated fatty acid metabolism and phospholipid remodeling are critical for proper macrophage function in tissue repair.

Background & Aims: cAMP responsive element-binding protein 3 like 3 (CREB3L3) is a membrane-bound transcription factor involved in the maintenance of lipid metabolism in the liver and small intestine. CREB3L3 controls hepatic triglyceride and glucose metabolism by activating plasma fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) and lipoprotein lipase. In this study, we intended to clarify its effect on atherosclerosis. Methods: CREB3L3-deficifient, liver-specific CREB3L3 knockout, intestine-specific CREB3L3 knockout, both liver- and intestine-specific CREB3L3 knockout, and liver CREB3L3 transgenic mice were crossed with LDLR−/− mice. These mice were fed with a Western diet to develop atherosclerosis. Results: CREB3L3 ablation in LDLR−/− mice exacerbated hyperlipidemia with accumulation of remnant APOB-containing lipoprotein. This led to the development of enhanced aortic atheroma formation, the extent of which was additive between liver- and intestine-specific deletion. Conversely, hepatic nuclear CREB3L3 overexpression markedly suppressed atherosclerosis with amelioration of hyperlipidemia. CREB3L3 directly up-regulates anti-atherogenic FGF21 and APOA4. In contrast, it antagonizes hepatic sterol regulatory element-binding protein (SREBP)–mediated lipogenic and cholesterogenic genes and regulates intestinal liver X receptor–regulated genes involved in the transport of cholesterol. CREB3L3 deficiency results in the accumulation of nuclear SREBP proteins. Because both transcriptional factors share the cleavage system for nuclear transactivation, full-length CREB3L3 and SREBPs in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) functionally inhibit each other. CREB3L3 promotes the formation of the SREBP-insulin induced gene 1 complex to suppress SREBPs for ER-Golgi transport, resulting in ER retention and inhibition of proteolytic activation at the Golgi and vice versa. Conclusions: CREB3L3 has multi-potent protective effects against atherosclerosis owing to new mechanistic interaction between CREB3L3 and SREBPs under atherogenic conditions.

Summary: The suppressors of cytokine signaling (SOCS) proteins are negative regulators of cytokine signaling required to prevent excessive cellular responses. In particular, SOCS3 is involved in the regulation of metabolic syndromes, such as obesity and diabetes, by suppressing leptin and insulin signals. SOCS3 also suppresses the inflammatory response associated with metabolic stress, but this specific role remains undefined. Wild-type mice on a high-fat diet (HFD) exhibited only fatty liver, whereas systemic deletion of SOCS3 resulted in excessive myeloid hematopoiesis and hepatic inflammation. In addition, depletion of the gut microbiota resulted in considerable improvement in excess granulopoiesis and splenomegaly, halting the progression of systemic inflammation in SOCS3KO mice on the HFD. This result suggests that intestinal dysbiosis is involved in inflammation associated with SOCS3KO. Although contributing to diet-induced obesity and fatty liver, SOCS3 is nevertheless critical to suppress excess myeloid hematopoiesis and severe systemic inflammation associated with intestinal dysbiosis on HFD.

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), which is mainly synthesized and secreted by the liver, plays a crucial role in systemic glucose and lipid metabolism, ameliorating metabolic diseases. In this study, we screened the WAKANYAKU library derived from medicinal herbs to identify compounds that can activate Fgf21 expression in mouse hepatocyte AML12 cells. We identified Scutellaria baicalensis root extract and one of its components, wogonin, as an activator of Fgf21 expression. Wogonin also enhanced the expression of activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) by a mechanism other than ER stress. Knockdown of ATF4 by siRNA suppressed wogonin-induced Fgf21 expression, highlighting its essential role in wogonin’s mode of action. Thus, our results indicate that wogonin would be a strong candidate for a therapeutic to improve metabolic diseases by enhancing hepatic FGF21 production.

Summary: Mice overexpressing the nuclear form of CREBH mainly in the liver (CREBH-Tg) showed suppression of high-fat high-sucrose (HFHS) diet-induced obesity accompanied by an increase in plasma fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) levels. CREBH overexpression induced browning in inguinal white adipose tissue (WAT) and whole-body energy expenditure, which was canceled in Fgf21−/− mice. Deficiency of FGF21 in CREBH-Tg mice mostly canceled the improvement of obesity, but the suppression of inflammation of epidermal WAT, amelioration of insulin resistance, and improvement of glucose metabolism still sustained. Kisspeptin 1 (Kiss1) was identified as a novel hormone target for CREBH to explain these FGF21-independent effects of CREBH. Knockdown of Kiss1 in HFHS-fed CREBH-Tg Fgf21−/− mice showed partially canceled improvement of glucose metabolism. Taken together, we propose that hepatic CREBH pleiotropically improves diet-induced obesity-mediated dysfunctions in peripheral tissues by improving systemic energy metabolism in FGF21-dependent and FGF21-independent mechanisms. : Obesity Medicine; Molecular Genetics Subject Areas: Obesity Medicine, Molecular Genetics

Cyclic AMP-responsive element-binding protein H (CREBH, encoded by CREB3L3) is a membrane-bound transcriptional factor expressed in the liver and small intestine. The activity of CREBH is regulated not only at the transcriptional level but also at the posttranslational level. CREBH governs triglyceride metabolism in the liver by controlling gene expression, with effects including the oxidation of fatty acids, lipophagy, and the expression of apolipoproteins related to the lipoprotein lipase activation and suppression of lipogenesis. The activation and functions of CREBH are controlled in response to the circadian rhythm. On the other hand, intestinal CREBH downregulates the absorption of lipids from the diet. CREBH deficiency in mice leads to severe hypertriglyceridemia and fatty liver in the fasted state and while feeding a high-fat diet. Therefore, when crossing CREBH knockout (KO) mice with an atherosclerosis model, low-density lipoprotein receptor KO mice, these mice exhibit severe atherosclerosis. This phenotype is seen in both liver- and small intestine-specific CREBH KO mice, suggesting that CREBH controls lipid homeostasis in an enterohepatic interaction. This review highlights that CREBH has a crucial role in systemic lipid homeostasis to integrate cellular functions related to lipid metabolism.

Leptin is an adipokine that regulates adipose tissue mass through membrane-anchored leptin receptor (Ob-R). Extracellular domain of Ob-R in plasma is called soluble leptin receptor (sOb-R), and is the main leptin-binding protein. Based on a previous DNA microarray analysis that showed induction of hepatic Ob-R mRNA in low-protein diet-fed mice, this study aimed to clarify the effect of dietary protein restriction on hepatic Ob-R mRNA and plasma sOb-R levels. First, the effect of protein restriction on hepatic Ob-R mRNA level was examined together with fasting and food restriction using male rats as common experimental model for nutritional research. Hepatic Ob-R mRNA level was increased by feeding low-protein diet for 7 d, although not significantly influenced by 12-h fasting and sixty percent restriction in food consumption. Then, effect of protein restriction on liver Ob-R and plasma sOb-R was investigated using male mice because specific sOb-R ELISA was more available for mice. Hepatic Ob-R mRNA level was also increased in protein restricted-mice although it did not increase in hypothalamus. Hepatic Ob-R protein was decreased, whereas plasma sOb-R was increased by protein restriction. Because the concentration of sOb-R increased without changing plasma leptin concentration, free leptin in plasma was significantly reduced. The direct effect of amino acid deprivation on Ob-R mRNA level was not observed in rat hepatoma cells H4IIE cultured in amino acid deprived medium. In conclusion, dietary protein restriction increased hepatic Ob-R mRNA, resulting in increased plasma sOb-R concentration, which in turn, reduces plasma free leptin level and may modulate leptin activity.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) is a therapeutic target for hyperlipidemia. Pemafibrate (K-877) is a new selective PPARα modulator activating PPARα transcriptional activity. To determine the effects of pemafibrate on diet-induced obesity, wild-type mice were fed a high-fat diet (HFD) containing pemafibrate for 12 weeks. Like fenofibrate, pemafibrate significantly suppressed HFD-induced body weight gain; decreased plasma glucose, insulin and triglyceride (TG) levels; and increased plasma fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21). However, compared to the dose of fenofibrate, a relatively low dose of pemafibrate showed these effects. Pemafibrate activated PPARα transcriptional activity in the liver, increasing both hepatic expression and plasma levels of FGF21. Additionally, pemafibrate increased the expression of genes involved in thermogenesis and fatty acid oxidation, including Ucp1, Cidea and Cpt1b in inguinal adipose tissue (iWAT) and the mitochondrial marker Elovl3 in brown adipose tissue (BAT). Therefore, pemafibrate activates thermogenesis in iWAT and BAT by increasing plasma levels of FGF21. Additionally, pemafibrate induced the expression of Atgl and Hsl in epididymal white adipose tissue, leading to the activation of lipolysis. Taken together, pemafibrate suppresses diet-induced obesity in mice and improves their obesity-related metabolic abnormalities. We propose that pemafibrate may be useful for the suppression and improvement of obesity-induced metabolic abnormalities.

Maintenance of metabolic homeostasis is secured by metabolite-sensing systems, which can be overwhelmed by constant macronutrient surplus in obesity. Not only the uptake processes but also the consumption of energy substrates determine the cellular metabolic burden. We herein describe a novel transcriptional system in this context comprised of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARa), a master regulator for fatty acid oxidation, and C-terminal binding protein 2 (CtBP2), a metabolite-sensing transcriptional corepressor. CtBP2 interacts with PPARa to repress its activity, and the interaction is enhanced upon binding to malonyl-CoA, a metabolic intermediate increased in tissues in obesity and reported to suppress fatty acid oxidation through inhibition of carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1. In line with our preceding observations that CtBP2 adopts a monomeric configuration upon binding to acyl-CoAs, we determined that mutations in CtBP2 that shift the conformational equilibrium toward monomers increase the interaction between CtBP2 and PPARa. In contrast, metabolic manipulations that reduce malonyl-CoA decreased the formation of the CtBP2-PPARa complex. Consistent with these in vitro findings, we found that the CtBP2-PPARa interaction is accelerated in obese livers while genetic deletion of CtBP2 in the liver causes derepression of PPARa target genes. These findings support our model where CtBP2 exists primarily as a monomer in the metabolic milieu of obesity to repress PPARa, representing a liability in metabolic diseases that can be exploited to develop therapeutic approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]