Background: Metformin has been widely used to alleviate hyperglycemia in patients with type 2 diabetes mainly via suppressing hepatic gluconeogenesis. However, the underlying mechanism remains incompletely clear. Here, we aimed to explore the role of PPP1R3C in metformin-mediated inhibition of hepatic gluconeogenesis. Methods: The differentially expressed genes in primary mouse hepatocytes incubated with 8-Br-cAMP and metformin were analyzed by microarrays. Hepatic glucose production and gluconeogenic gene expressions were detected after adenovirus-mediated overexpression or silence of PPP1R3C in vitro and in vivo. The phosphorylation level and location of transducer of regulated CREB activity 2 (TORC2) were determined by Western blot and immunofluorescence. Results: Metformin and adenovirus-mediated activation of AMPK suppressed 8-Br-cAMP-stimulated Ppp1r3c mRNA expression in primary mouse hepatocytes. Overexpression of PPP1R3C in primary mouse hepatocytes or the livers of wild-type mice promoted hepatic glucose production and gluconeogenic gene expressions. On the contrary, adenovirus-mediated knockdown of PPP1R3C in primary mouse hepatocytes decreased hepatic gluconeogenesis, with the suppression of cAMP-stimulated gluconeogenic gene expressions and TORC2 dephosphorylation. Notably, Ppp1r3c expression was increased in the liver of db/db mice. After PPP1R3C silence in the livers of wild-type and db/db mice, blood glucose levels and hepatic glucose production were markedly lowered, with decreased expressions of key gluconeogenic enzymes and transcript factors as well as liver glycogen content. Conclusion: Metformin-activated AMPK decreases hepatic PPP1R3C expression, leading to the suppression of hepatic gluconeogenesis through blocking cAMP-stimulated TORC2 dephosphorylation. Hepatic specific silence of PPP1R3C provides a promising therapeutic strategy for type 2 diabetes. (C) 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

AIMS:Enhanced hepatic gluconeogenesis is an important cause of hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes. However, the regulatory mechanisms underlying disordered hepatic gluconeogenesis remains largely unclear. In the present study, we investigated the potential role of hepatic neuregulin 4 (Nrg4) in the regulation of gluconeogenesis in mice.MAIN METHODS:Microarray analysis was performed in primary mouse hepatocytes treated with or without 8-Br-cAMP. Primary mouse hepatocytes transfected with Nrg4 overexpressing or shRNA adenovirus were used to detect the expressions of the key gluconeogenic genes and glucose output. Hepatic Nrg4 expression levels were measured in fasted C57/BL6 mice, obese ob/ob mice, diabetic db/db mice and Goto-Kakisaki (GK) rats. Pyruvate tolerance test was performed and gluconeogenic gene expressions were detected 7 days after Nrg4 shRNA adenovirus was injected into male C57BL/6 and db/db mice.KEY FINDINGS:Microarray analysis revealed that Nrg4 expression was significantly induced by 8-Br-cAMP in primary mouse hepatocytes, along with the upregulation of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) and glucose-6-phosphatase (G6Pase). Adenovirus-mediated overexpression or knockdown of Nrg4 in primary mouse hepatocytes increased or decreased PEPCK and G6Pase expressions as well as hepatic glucose production. Hepatic Nrg4 expression was induced by fasting in normal C57/BL6 mice, and markedly upregulated in obese ob/ob mice, diabetic db/db mice and GK rats. Hepatic Nrg4 knockdown in C57BL/6 and db/db mice improved pyruvate tolerance, with the downregulation of PEPCK, G6Pase, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α).SIGNIFICANCE:Hepatic Nrg4 plays a crucial role in the regulation of gluconeogenesis and may be a therapeutic target of type 2 diabetes.

Impaired pancreatic β-cell function is the primary defect in type 2 diabetes. Glucose is an important regulator of β-cell growth and function; however, the mechanisms that are involved in the chronic adaptation of β cells to hyperglycemia remain largely unknown. In the present study, global gene expression patterns revealed that tryptophan hydroxylase 1 (Tph1) was the most profound of genes that are up-regulated in rat islets exposed to high glucose. Calcium and cAMP signals synergistically mediated glucose-stimulated Tph1 transcription in β cells by activating cAMP-responsive element-binding protein and promoting its binding with a Tph1 promoter. Similar to in vitro results, in vivo infusion of high glucose also strongly induced Tph1 expression and serotonin production in rat islets, along with enhanced islet function. Inhibition or knockdown of Tph1 markedly decreased glucose-potentiated insulin secretion. In contrast, overexpression of Tph1 augmented glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in rat islets by up-regulating the expression of genes that are related to islet function. In addition, the long-acting glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist, exendin-4, stimulated Tph1 expression in a glucose-dependent manner. Knockdown of Tph1 inhibited exendin-4-potentiated insulin secretion in rat islets. These findings suggest that Tph1 mediates the compensation of islet function induced by glucose, and that promoting Tph1 expression in pancreatic β cells will provide a new strategy for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus.-Zhang, Y., Deng, R., Yang, X., Xu, W., Liu, Y., Li, F., Zhang, J., Tang, H., Ji, X., Bi, Y., Wang, X., Zhou, L., Ning, G. Glucose potentiates β-cell function by inducing Tph1 expression in rat islets.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been demonstrated to regulate metabolic tissue development and function, including adipogenesis, hepatic lipid metabolism, islet function and energy balance. However, the role of lncRNAs in gluconeogenesis remains completely unknown. Metformin reduces glucose output mainly via the inhibition of gluconeogenesis. In the present study, the lncRNA expression profile of primary mouse hepatocytes exposed to cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), a gluconeogenic stimulus, with or without metformin was analyzed by microarray. Among the 22,016 lncRNAs that were identified, 456 were upregulated and 409 were downregulated by cAMP (fold-change ≥2.0). Furthermore, the cAMP-induced upregulation of 189 lncRNAs and downregulation of 167 lncRNAs was attenuated by metformin. The expression levels of eight lncRNAs were validated by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and the results were consistent with those of the microarray analysis. Among them, two lncRNAs NR_027710 and ENSMUST00000138573, were identified to have an association with two protein coding genes, namely peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1α, a critical transcriptional coactivator in gluconeogenesis, and G protein-coupled receptor 155, respectively. The two protein coding genes exhibited similar expression patterns to their associated lncRNAs. The findings of the present study suggest that lncRNAs are potentially involved in the regulation of gluconeogenesis.

Berberine, one of the major constituents of Chinese herb Rhizoma coptidis, has been demonstrated to lower blood glucose, blood lipid, and body weight in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The anti-obesity effect of berberine has been attributed to its anti-adipogenic activity. However, the underlying molecular mechanism remains largely unknown. In the present study, we found that berberine significantly suppressed the expressions of CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein (C/EBP)α, peroxisome proliferators-activated receptor γ2 (PPARγ2), and other adipogenic genes in the process of adipogenesis. Berberine decreased cAMP-response element-binding protein (CREB) phosphorylation and C/EBPβ expression at the early stage of 3T3-L1 preadipocyte differentiation. In addition, CREB phosphorylation and C/EBPβ expression induced by 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX) and forskolin were also attenuated by berberine. The binding activities of cAMP responsive element (CRE) stimulated by IBMX and forskolin were inhibited by berberine. The binding of phosphorylated CREB to the promoter of C/EBPβ was abrogated by berberine after the induction of preadipocyte differentiation. These results suggest that berberine blocks adipogenesis mainly via suppressing CREB activity, which leads to a decrease in C/EBPβ-triggered transcriptional cascades.

Objective To observe the expression of a two-pore domain K+ channel KCNK16 in rat islets,and to explore its regulation by insulin secretagogues.Methods Real time-PCR and immunohistochemistry were employed to observe the expression of KCNK16 in rat islets and other tissues.Rat islets were exposed to glucose,prolactin,palmitate,and trichostatin A (TSA) for 24 h and KCNK16 expression were determined by realtime-PCR and Western blot.Glucose-and KCl-stimulated insulin secretion were assayed by ELISA after islets were exposed to TSA for 24 h.The dose-and time-dependent effects of TSA on KCNK16 expression in INS1-E cells were determined by RTPCR.Results KCNK16 was highly expressed in rat islets.Glucose,prolactin,and palmitate did not affect the expression of KCNK16 in rat islets.TSA treatment significantly potentiated glucose-and KCl-stimulated insulin secretion in isolated rat islets (P ＜ 0.05),along with decreased KCNK16 mRNA and protein expressions (P ＜ 0.01).TSA inhibited KCNK16 expression in a dose-and time-dependent manner in INS1-E cells (P＜0.05).Conclusion KCNK16 is exclusively and highly expressed in rat islets and its expression can be down-regulated by TSA treatment.It is possible that TSA enhances insulin secretion via decreasing KCNK16 expression.

Quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) is becoming increasingly important in the effort to gain insight into the molecular mechanisms underlying adipogenesis. However, the expression profile of a target gene may be misinterpreted due to the unstable expression of the reference genes under different experimental conditions. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the expression stability of 10 commonly used reference genes during 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation. The mRNA expression levels of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) and transferrin receptor (TFRC) significantly increased during the course of 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation, which was decreased by berberine, an inhibitor of adipogenesis. Three popular algorithms, GeNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper, identified 18 ribosomal RNA and hydroxymethylbilane synthase (HMBS) as the most stable reference genes, while GAPDH and TFRC were the least stable ones. Peptidylprolyl isomerase A [PIPA (cyclophilin A)], ribosomal protein, large, P0 (36-B4), beta-2-microglobulin (B2M), α1-tubulin, hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) and β-actin showed relatively stable expression levels. The choice of reference genes with various expression stabilities exerted a profound influence on the expression profiles of 2 target genes, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)γ2 and C/EBPα. In addition, western blot analysis revealed that the increased protein expression of GAPDH was markedly inhibited by berberine during adipocyte differentiation. This study highlights the importance of selecting suitable reference genes for qRT-PCR studies of gene expression during the process of adipogenesis.

Objective To observe the effect of AGK-2,a specific inhibitor of Sirt2,on insulin secretion of ratislets,and to explore the possible mechanism.Methods The expression of Sirt2 in pancreatic tissue and single primary β cell was observed by immunohistochemistry and immunocytochemistry.After the isolated rat islets in 24-cell plates were incubated with AGK-2 for 1 h in the presence of 2.8 and 16.7 mmol/L glucose,the culture medium was taken for insulin assay with RIA.Protein was extracted from islets for detecting the acetylation of α-tubulin with Western blot.The change of Ca2+ concentration in single pancreatic β cell was detected by ion imaging technology.Results The immunohistochemistry result showed that Sirt2 was largely expressed in cytoplasm of β cell in the islet of pancreas.Sirt2 was mainly located in cytoplasm of β cell.AGK-2 inhibited glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in a dose-dependent manner,without effect on basal insulin secretion.At the concentration of 5 μmol/L,AGK-2 decreased insulin secretion by 75％.The ion imaging technology showed that high glucose-stimulated Ca2+ increase was decreased by AGK-2.Conclusion The specific inhibitor of Sirt2,AGK-2 inhibited glucose-stimulated insulin secretion by decreasing the concentration of Ca2+ in β cells.

Objective To investigate the underlying molecular mechanisms of metformin in inhibiting hepatic gluconeogenesis.Methods Primary hepatocytes of mice were isolated by a modified version of the collagenase method.The effect of metformin on glucose production in primary hepatocytes was detected by glucose oxidation method.The

目的:观察去乙酰化酶HDAC6特异性抑制剂Tubacin对MIN6细胞胰岛素分泌的影响,并探讨其可能机制.方法:用RT-PCR检测去乙酰化酶家族成员在MIN6细胞的表达,用免疫荧光技术观察HDAC6在小鼠胰岛和MIN6细胞内的定位;分别在5.6mmol/L和25mmol/L葡萄糖的DMEM中加和不加10μmol/L Tubacin,用其处理MIN6细胞24h,收集上清,ELISA检测胰岛素浓度.同时用MTT法检测Tubacin对MIN6细胞活力的影响,RT-PCR检测上述处理条件下Insulin基因的表达情况.以Western blot和免疫荧光技术检测Tubacin 对MIN6细胞骨架蛋白α-tubulin乙酰化水平的影响.结果:MIN6细胞中各乙酰化酶家族成员mRNA的表达水平相差较大,其中HDAC6表达相对较高.HDAC6主要表达于小鼠胰岛β细胞及MIN6细胞胞浆中.在5.6mmol/L和25mmol/L葡萄糖条件下,Tubacin处理24h可以显著抑制胰岛素分泌,但不影响MIN6细胞活力.同时,在5.6mmol/L葡萄糖存在条件下Tubacin不影响胰岛素基因表达,在25mmol/L葡萄糖存在条件下Tubacin可轻度上调胰岛素基因表达.Western blot和免疫荧光结果发现,Tubacin抑制胰岛素分泌的同时伴有α-tubulin乙酰化水平增加.结论:HDAC6抑制剂Tubacin可能通过增加MIN6细胞α-tubulin乙酰化水平,改变细胞骨架的活动度而抑制胰岛素分泌.

BACKGROUND:It has been recognized that insulin hypersecretion can lead to the development of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes mellitus. There is substantial evidence demonstrating that thiazolidinediones are able to delay and prevent the progression of pancreatic β-cell dysfunction. However, the mechanism underlying the protective effect of thiazolidinediones on β-cell function remains elusive. METHODS:We synchronously detected the effects of troglitazone on insulin secretion and AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activity under various conditions in isolated rat islets and MIN6 cells. RESULTS:Long-term exposure to high glucose stimulated insulin hypersecretion and inhibited AMPK activity in rat islets. Troglitazone-suppressed insulin hypersecretion was closely related to the activation of AMPK. This action was most prominent at the moderate concentration of glucose. Glucose-stimulated insulin secretion was decreased by long-term troglitazone treatment, but significantly increased after the drug withdrawal. Compound C, an AMPK inhibitor, reversed troglitazone-suppressed insulin secretion in MIN6 cells and rat islets. Knockdown of AMPKα2 showed a similar result. In MIN6 cells, troglitazone blocked high glucose-closed ATP-sensitive K(+) (KATP) channel and decreased membrane potential, along with increased voltage-dependent potassium channel currents. Troglitazone suppressed intracellular Ca(2+) response to high glucose, which was abolished by treatment with compound C. CONCLUSION:Our results suggest that troglitazone provides β-cell "a rest" through activating AMPK and inhibiting insulin hypersecretion, and thus restores its response to glucose. GENERAL SIGNIFICANCE:These data support that AMPK activation may be an important mechanism for thiazolidinediones preserving β-cell function.

Objective To observe the change of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) gene expression during 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation as well as other reference gene expressions.Methods The mRNA expressions of several common reference genes were detected by real time-PCR on day 0,1,3,5,and 7 of 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation.Western blot was used to confirm the protein expressions of three common reference genes.Results (1) GAPDH and transferrin receptor(TFRC) mRNA expressions were significantly increased during adipocyte differentiation.GAPDH mRNA level was increased by 5.7,7.6,22.0,and 24.5 folds on day 1,3,5,and 7 after induction of adipocyte differentiation,but no apparent changes of β-actin,α-tubulin,peptidylprolyl isomerase A (PIPA),and 18S mRNA expressions were detected.The expression changes of key transcript factors for adipocyte differentiation such as PPARγ2,C/EBPα,and C/EBPβ were under-estimated by real time-PCR if GAPDH was chosen as the reference gene.Western blotting results showed that the GAPDH protein level increased gradually during adipocyte differentiation,especially on day 5 and 7 after adipocyte differentiation.There were no obvious changes of β-actin and α-tubulin protein expressions.(2) Berberine significantly inhibited mRNA and protein expressions of GAPDH in the process of adipocyte differentiation.GAPDH mRNA levels were reduced by 68.1％ and 66.3％ on day 5 and 7 after induction of adipocyte differentiation,but with no significant change in other reference genes.Conclusion It is not suitable for GAPDH to be used as an endogenous reference gene during 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation.