Project description:In the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes development of insulin resistance triggers an increase in pancreatic β-cell insulin secretion capacity and β-cell number. Failure of this compensatory mechanism is caused by a dedifferentiation of β-cells, which leads to insufficient insulin secretion and diabetic hyperglycemia. The β-cell factors that normally protect against dedifferentiation remain poorly defined. Here, through a systems biology approach, we identify the transcription factor Klf6 as a regulator of β-cell adaptation to metabolic stress. We show that inactivation of Klf6 in mouse β-cells blunts their proliferation induced by the insulin resistance of pregnancy, high-fat high-sucrose feeding, and insulin receptor antagonism. Transcriptomic analysis showed that Klf6 controls the expression of β-cell proliferation genes and, in the presence of insulin resistance, it prevents the down-expression of genes controlling mature β-cell identity and the induction of disallowed genes that impair insulin secretion; its expression also limits the transdifferentiation of β-cells into alpha cells. Our study identifies a new transcription factor that protects β-cells against dedifferentiation and which may be targeted to prevent diabetes development.
Project description:Dysregulated glucose homeostasis and lipid accumulation characterize non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), but underlying mechanisms are obscure. We report here that Krüppel-like factor 6 (KLF6), a ubiquitous transcription factor that promotes adipocyte differentiation, also provokes the metabolic abnormalities of NAFLD. Mice with either hepatocyte-specific knockdown of KLF6 (DeltaHepKlf6) or global KLF6 heterozygosity (Klf6 +/-) have reduced body fat content and improved glucose and insulin tolerance. Mice with KLF6 depletion, compared to wild type mice, are protected from high fat diet-induced steatosis.
Project description:Dysregulated glucose homeostasis and lipid accumulation characterize non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), but underlying mechanisms are obscure. We report here that Krüppel-like factor 6 (KLF6), a ubiquitous transcription factor that promotes adipocyte differentiation, also provokes the metabolic abnormalities of NAFLD. Mice with either hepatocyte-specific knockdown of KLF6 (DeltaHepKlf6) or global KLF6 heterozygosity (Klf6 +/-) have reduced body fat content and improved glucose and insulin tolerance. Mice with KLF6 depletion, compared to wild type mice, are protected from high fat diet-induced steatosis. Three mice with a hepatocyte-specific knockdown of KLF6 (DeltaHepKlf6) on high fat diet and 3 littermate controls on the same diet were sacrificed after 8 weeks of diet. Liver tissue was preserved in RNAlater® (Ambion, Austin, TX). RNA was isolated from liver tissue and homogenized in TRIzol® reagent (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA). In order to identify potential KLF6 targets that contributed to changes in glucose- and lipid-metabolism, we performed an Affymetrix Exon1 S.T. Genearray® (Affymetrix, Santa Clara, CA).
Project description:Altered cellular metabolism in kidney proximal tubule (PT) cells plays a critical role in the development and progression of acute kidney injury (AKI). The transcription factor Krüppel-like factor 6 (KLF6) is rapidly and robustly induced in the PT after AKI, suggesting an early-inducible injury response gene. PT-specific Klf6 knockdown (Klf6PTKO) are protected from AKI and resulting fibrosis in mice. Combined RNA-sequencing and ChIP-sequencing demonstrated preserved expression of genes encoding branched chain amino acid (BCAA) catabolic enzymes in Klf6PTKO mice, with several of the genes also having KLF6 binding sites close to their transcription start sites. Conversely, inducible KLF6 overexpression suppressed expression of BCAA genes and exacerbated kidney injury and fibrosis in mice. Injured kidney cells could not respond to the BCAA catabolic activator BT2, and injured cells overexpressing KLF6 were less able to utilize BCAA. Thus, targeting KLF6-mediated suppression of BCAA catabolism may serve as key therapeutic target in AKI and kidney fibrosis.
Project description:Cytokines of the IL-1 family are important modulators of obesity-induced inflammation and the development of systemic insulin resistance. Here, we report that IL-37, a newly-described antiinflammatory member of the IL-1 family, affects obesity-induced inflammation and insulin resistance. IL-37 transgenic mice (IL-37tg) did not develop an obese phenotype in response to a high-fat diet (HFD). Unlike WT mice, IL-37tg mice exhibited reduced numbers of adipose tissue macrophages and preserved glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity after 16 weeks of HFD. A short-term HFD intervention revealed that the IL-37-mediated improvement in glucose tolerance is independent of bodyweight. IL-37tg mice manifested a beneficial metabolic profile with higher circulating levels of the anti-inflammatory adipokine adiponectin. In vitro treatment of differentiating adipocytes with recombinant IL-37 reduced adipogenesis. The beneficial effects of recombinant IL-37 involved activation of AMPK signaling. In humans, steady-state IL-37 adipose tissue mRNA levels were positively correlated with insulin sensitivity, lower adipose tissue levels of leptin and a lower inflammatory status of the adipose tissue. These findings reveal IL-37 as an important anti-inflammatory modulator during obesity-induced inflammation and insulin resistance in both mice and humans and suggest that IL-37 is a potential target for the treatment of obesity-induced insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. Gene arrays were performed on epidydimal white adipose tissue samples from wild type and human IL37-overexpressing transgenic mice fed a high fat diet for 16 weeks.
Project description:Gene-expression profiles of liver and hepatocellular carcinoma induced by diethylnitrosamine (DEN) in KLF6 +/- and wild type KLF6 mice. Inactivation of the KLF6 tumor suppressor is common in HCC due to hepatitis C virus (HCV), consistent with its anti-proliferative activity in HCC-derived cell lines and in hepatocytes of transgenic mice. We have evaluated the impact of KLF6 depletion on human HCC and experimental hepatocarcinogenesis. In patients with surgically resected HCC, those with significantly reduced tumor expression of KLF6 had a significantly decreased survival. We modeled this event in KLF6 +/- mice, which displayed significantly more tumorigenicity than KLF6 +/+ animals in response to the hepatic carcinogen DEN, associated with recapitulation of gene signatures in both surrounding tissue and tumors that are associated with aggressive human HCCs. In DNA microarrays, mdm2 mRNA expression was increased in tumors from KLF6 +/- compared to KLF6 +/+ mice, which was validated by realtime qPCR and Western blot in both human HCC and DEN-induced murine tumors. Moreover, chromosomal immunoprecipitation and co-transfection assays established the P2 intronic promoter of mdm2 as a bona fide transcriptional target repressed by KLF6. Whereas KLF6 over-expression in HCC cell lines led to reduced MDM2 levels and increased p53 protein and transcriptional activity, reduction in KLF6 by siRNA led to increased MDM2 and reduced p53. Our findings indicate that KLF6 deficiency contributes significantly to the carcinogenic milieu in human and murine HCC, and uncover a novel tumor suppressor activity of KLF6 in HCC, by linking its transcriptional repression of MDM2 to stabilization of p53. Keywords: Liver, Hepatocellular carcinoma, Expression array, Exon array, Affymetrix KLF6 +/- mice were previously generated by homologous recombination in which exon 2 was targeted using an 11-kb targeting construct, and replaced with neomycin/lacZ cassette. After selection with neomycin, the ES clones were injected into C57BL/6 mouse blastocysts and implanted into pseudo pregnant females; two lines of KLF6 +/- mice were generated from the resulting chimeric animals (Blood 107;1357, Oncogene 26;4428). Whereas KLF6 -/- mice are embryonic lethal, KLF6 +/- animals had no demonstrable abnormalities in the absence of any stressor. Male KLF6 +/- mice were bred with wild type C57BL/6 to generate mixed litters of KLF6 +/- and KLF6 +/+ animals. Progeny were genotyped using PCR-amplified tail DNA, using primers as previously described (Oncogene 26;4428). Amplified fragments were separated on a 2.5% agarose gel, revealing bands of ~200 bp (wild type KLF6) and ~100 bp (Neo), as expected. At 2 weeks of age, KLF6 +/+ and KLF6 +/- mice were injected intraperitoneally with either a single dose of diethyl nitrosamine (DEN), 5 µg/g body weight in 100 µl of saline, or vehicle alone. Vehicle and DEN-treated mice were maintained on standard chow, and then sacrificed 3, 6 or 9 months later. At the time of sacrifice the animals were weighed, and blood and liver samples were harvested for analysis and tumor quantification.
Project description:Gene-expression profiles of liver and hepatocellular carcinoma induced by diethylnitrosamine (DEN) in KLF6 +/- and wild type KLF6 mice. Inactivation of the KLF6 tumor suppressor is common in HCC due to hepatitis C virus (HCV), consistent with its anti-proliferative activity in HCC-derived cell lines and in hepatocytes of transgenic mice. We have evaluated the impact of KLF6 depletion on human HCC and experimental hepatocarcinogenesis. In patients with surgically resected HCC, those with significantly reduced tumor expression of KLF6 had a significantly decreased survival. We modeled this event in KLF6 +/- mice, which displayed significantly more tumorigenicity than KLF6 +/+ animals in response to the hepatic carcinogen DEN, associated with recapitulation of gene signatures in both surrounding tissue and tumors that are associated with aggressive human HCCs. In DNA microarrays, mdm2 mRNA expression was increased in tumors from KLF6 +/- compared to KLF6 +/+ mice, which was validated by realtime qPCR and Western blot in both human HCC and DEN-induced murine tumors. Moreover, chromosomal immunoprecipitation and co-transfection assays established the P2 intronic promoter of mdm2 as a bona fide transcriptional target repressed by KLF6. Whereas KLF6 over-expression in HCC cell lines led to reduced MDM2 levels and increased p53 protein and transcriptional activity, reduction in KLF6 by siRNA led to increased MDM2 and reduced p53. Our findings indicate that KLF6 deficiency contributes significantly to the carcinogenic milieu in human and murine HCC, and uncover a novel tumor suppressor activity of KLF6 in HCC, by linking its transcriptional repression of MDM2 to stabilization of p53. Keywords: Liver, Hepatocellular carcinoma, Expression array, Exon array, Affymetrix
Project description:We examine the role of Klf6 in oligodendrocyte progenitor cells and determine that Klf6 acts in part through direct regulation of gp130 signaling and nuclear import via importin-α5 (Impα5), a key controller of nuclear trafficking. Examination of Klf6 DNA binding in two different stages of differentiation
Project description:Cytokines of the IL-1 family are important modulators of obesity-induced inflammation and the development of systemic insulin resistance. Here, we report that IL-37, a newly-described antiinflammatory member of the IL-1 family, affects obesity-induced inflammation and insulin resistance. IL-37 transgenic mice (IL-37tg) did not develop an obese phenotype in response to a high-fat diet (HFD). Unlike WT mice, IL-37tg mice exhibited reduced numbers of adipose tissue macrophages and preserved glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity after 16 weeks of HFD. A short-term HFD intervention revealed that the IL-37-mediated improvement in glucose tolerance is independent of bodyweight. IL-37tg mice manifested a beneficial metabolic profile with higher circulating levels of the anti-inflammatory adipokine adiponectin. In vitro treatment of differentiating adipocytes with recombinant IL-37 reduced adipogenesis. The beneficial effects of recombinant IL-37 involved activation of AMPK signaling. In humans, steady-state IL-37 adipose tissue mRNA levels were positively correlated with insulin sensitivity, lower adipose tissue levels of leptin and a lower inflammatory status of the adipose tissue. These findings reveal IL-37 as an important anti-inflammatory modulator during obesity-induced inflammation and insulin resistance in both mice and humans and suggest that IL-37 is a potential target for the treatment of obesity-induced insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.