Project description:The physiological functions of supersulfides, inorganic and organic sulfides with sulfur catenation, have been thoroughly studied. Cysteinyl-tRNA synthetase (CARS2) is the principal supersulfide-producing enzyme. We investigated the role of supersulfides in joint homeostasis and bone regeneration.
Project description:Giardia lamblia is an important causative agent of persistent diarrhea in humans, domestic animals, and cattle. Basic research is usually performed with the strain WBC6 and includes genetic manipulations such as transfections. Here, we investigate how transfection with a plasmid causing stable expression of a foreign gene affects the whole proteome pattern. Using shotgun mass spectrometry, we compare the proteomes of untransfected trophozoites to trophozoites transfected with Escherichia coli glucuronidase A (GusA). Besides GusA, which is detected in the transfected trophozoites only, the proteomes of untransfected and transfected trophozoites differ by 132 differentially expressed proteins. In particular, transfection induces antigenic variation. Since transfection causing stable expression affects the proteome pattern, transfection experiments should take into account this effect. Due to a unique peptide panel, GusA is an example for a suitable internal standard for experiments involving transfected cells.
Project description:Targeting transcriptional regulatory complex is a promising strategy to activate thermogenic fat and treat obesity. In this study, we focus on identifying critical and special metabolic pathways enriched during brown adipocyte differentiation. By analyzing metabolomics and RNA sequencing results from precursor and mature brown and white adipocytes, we revealed cysteine catabolism pathway is a unique metabolic process that is exclusively increased in the brown adipocyte differentiation. Then, we demonstrated cysteine persulfidation synthase CarS2 is directly induced by EBF2 and mediates cysteine catabolism to produce cysteine persulfide and triggers brown fat protein persulfidation in vitro and in vivo. Loss of CarS2 in thermogenic fat blocks brown and beige fat formation and reduced thermogenesis and energy expenditure in mice. More importantly, CarS2 generates cysteine persulfide and its derivative H2S cell autonomously induces brown adipogenesis and enhances uncoupled respiration by persulfidating EBF2. Mechanistically, the persulfidated EBF2 facilitates its interaction with PPARγ and enhanced the recruitment of the EBF2-PPARγ complex on browning gene promoter, thus driving brown fat development and boosting thermogenic function. Furthermore, the treatment of CarS2 coenzyme PLP or H2S donor elevates brown adipocyte function and ameliorates obesity progression in mice under HFD feeding, indicating a novel metabolite-based strategy for the obesity treatment.
Project description:Targeting transcriptional regulatory complex is a promising strategy to activate thermogenic fat and treat obesity. In this study, we focus on identifying critical and special metabolic pathways enriched during brown adipocyte differentiation. By analyzing metabolomics and RNA sequencing results from precursor and mature brown and white adipocytes, we revealed cysteine catabolism pathway is a unique metabolic process that is exclusively increased in the brown adipocyte differentiation. Then, we demonstrated cysteine persulfidation synthase CarS2 is directly induced by EBF2 and mediates cysteine catabolism to produce cysteine persulfide and triggers brown fat protein persulfidation in vitro and in vivo. Loss of CarS2 in thermogenic fat blocks brown and beige fat formation and reduced thermogenesis and energy expenditure in mice. More importantly, CarS2 generates cysteine persulfide and its derivative H2S cell autonomously induces brown adipogenesis and enhances uncoupled respiration by persulfidating EBF2. Mechanistically, the persulfidated EBF2 facilitates its interaction with PPARγ and enhanced the recruitment of the EBF2-PPARγ complex on browning gene promoter, thus driving brown fat development and boosting thermogenic function. Furthermore, the treatment of CarS2 coenzyme PLP or H2S donor elevates brown adipocyte function and ameliorates obesity progression in mice under HFD feeding, indicating a novel metabolite-based strategy for the obesity treatment.
Project description:Targeting transcriptional regulatory complex is a promising strategy to activate thermogenic fat and treat obesity. In this study, we focus on identifying critical and special metabolic pathways enriched during brown adipocyte differentiation. By analyzing metabolomics and RNA sequencing results from precursor and mature brown and white adipocytes, we revealed cysteine catabolism pathway is a unique metabolic process that is exclusively increased in the brown adipocyte differentiation. Then, we demonstrated cysteine persulfidation synthase CarS2 is directly induced by EBF2 and mediates cysteine catabolism to produce cysteine persulfide and triggers brown fat protein persulfidation in vitro and in vivo. Loss of CarS2 in thermogenic fat blocks brown and beige fat formation and reduced thermogenesis and energy expenditure in mice. More importantly, CarS2 generates cysteine persulfide and its derivative H2S cell autonomously induces brown adipogenesis and enhances uncoupled respiration by persulfidating EBF2. Mechanistically, the persulfidated EBF2 facilitates its interaction with PPARγ and enhanced the recruitment of the EBF2-PPARγ complex on browning gene promoter, thus driving brown fat development and boosting thermogenic function. Furthermore, the treatment of CarS2 coenzyme PLP or H2S donor elevates brown adipocyte function and ameliorates obesity progression in mice under HFD feeding, indicating a novel metabolite-based strategy for the obesity treatment.