Project description:Hyperglycemia-induced damage to bone formations and function has been recognized.However, as the largest connective tissue organ, whether bone and osteocytes in turn regulate blood sugar and insulin sensitivity has not been addressed. Here we identified a novel protein termed intraflagellar transport 140 with functional importance in regulating osteogenesis, which is also related to the osteoblastic insulin sensitivity. We established Ift140 osteoblastic conditional knockout mice model, and found that blood glucose metabolism could be regulated through osteoblastic IFT140 interacting with O-GlcNAc transferase to regulate insulin signaling. The discovery provides new insight for two-way regulation between bone and glucose metabolism, and also exploring potential new target for blood glucose interventions.
Project description:Hyperglycemia-induced damage to bone formations and function has been recognized.However, as the largest connective tissue organ, whether bone and osteocytes in turn regulate blood sugar and insulin sensitivity has not been addressed. Here we identified a novel protein termed intraflagellar transport 140 with functional importance in regulating osteogenesis, which is also related to the osteoblastic insulin sensitivity. We established Ift140 osteoblastic conditional knockout mice model, and found that blood glucose metabolism could be regulated through osteoblastic IFT140 interacting with O-GlcNAc transferase to regulate insulin signaling. The discovery provides new insight for two-way regulation between bone and glucose metabolism, and also exploring potential new target for blood glucose interventions.
Project description:Study Smoking and COPD are associated with decreased mucociliary clearance and healthy smokers have shorter cilia in the large airway than nonsmokers. Intraflagellar transport (IFT) is the process by which cilia are produced and maintained. We assessed expression of IFT-related genes in smokers and nonsmokers and evaluated cilia length in the large and small airway of nonsmokers, healthy smokers, and smokers with COPD. Methods Airway epithelium was obtained via bronchoscopic brushing. Affymetrix microarrays were used to evaluate IFT gene expression in 2 independent data sets from large and small airway. Cilia length was assessed by measuring 100 cilia (10 cilia on each of 10 cells) per subject. Results All 40 IFT genes were expressed in the human large and small airway epithelium. In the large airway, 10 IFT genes were down-regulated and 1 up-regulated in smokers. In the small airway, 11 genes were down-regulated and 3 up-regulated in smokers. A set of 8 IFT genes was down-regulated in both data sets. In the large and small airway epithelium, cilia were significantly shorter in healthy smokers than nonsmokers, and significantly shorter in COPD smokers than in both healthy smokers and nonsmokers. Answer to the Question These results support the concept that loss of cilia length contributes to defective mucociliary clearance in COPD, and that smoking-induced changes in expression of IFT genes may be one mechanism of abnormally short cilia in smokers. Strategies to normalize cilia length may be an important avenue for novel COPD therapies. Gene expression was assessed for 40 intraflagellar transport related genes in the LAE of nonsmokers (n=21) and healthy smokers (n=31) and the SAE of an independent group of nonsmokers (n=28) and healthy smokers (n=69). Cilia length was assessed in a total of 228 airway epithelium samples, including 120 LAE samples and 108 SAE samples; a subset of the 228 samples is represented among the 149 samples in this Series.
Project description:Cilia are ubiquitous eukaryotic organelles impotant for cellular motility, signaling, and sensory reception. Cilium formation requires intraflagellar transport of structural and signaling components and involves 22 different proteins organized into intraflagellar transport (IFT) complexes IFT-A and IFT-B that are transported by molecular motors. The IFT-B complex constitutes the backbone of polymeric IFT trains carrying cargo between the cilium and the cell body. Currently, high-resolution structures are only available for smaller IFT-B subcomplexes leaving > 50% structurally uncharacterized. Here, we used Alphafold to structurally model the 15-subunit IFT-B complex. The model was validated using cross-linking/mass-spectrometry data on reconstituted IFT-B complexes, X-ray scattering in solution, diffraction from crystals as well as site-directed mutagenesis and protein-binding assays. The IFT-B structure reveals an elongated and highly flexible complex consistent with cryo-electron tomographic reconstructions of IFT trains. The IFT-B complex organizes into IFT-B1 and IFT-B2 parts with binding sites for ciliary cargo and the inactive IFT dynein motor, respectively. Interestingly, our results are consistent with two different binding sites for IFT81/74 on IFT88/70/52/46 suggesting the possibility of different structural architectures for the IFT-B1 complex. Our data present a structural framework to understand IFT-B complex assembly, function, and ciliopathy variants.
Project description:Study Smoking and COPD are associated with decreased mucociliary clearance and healthy smokers have shorter cilia in the large airway than nonsmokers. Intraflagellar transport (IFT) is the process by which cilia are produced and maintained. We assessed expression of IFT-related genes in smokers and nonsmokers and evaluated cilia length in the large and small airway of nonsmokers, healthy smokers, and smokers with COPD. Methods Airway epithelium was obtained via bronchoscopic brushing. Affymetrix microarrays were used to evaluate IFT gene expression in 2 independent data sets from large and small airway. Cilia length was assessed by measuring 100 cilia (10 cilia on each of 10 cells) per subject. Results All 40 IFT genes were expressed in the human large and small airway epithelium. In the large airway, 10 IFT genes were down-regulated and 1 up-regulated in smokers. In the small airway, 11 genes were down-regulated and 3 up-regulated in smokers. A set of 8 IFT genes was down-regulated in both data sets. In the large and small airway epithelium, cilia were significantly shorter in healthy smokers than nonsmokers, and significantly shorter in COPD smokers than in both healthy smokers and nonsmokers. Answer to the Question These results support the concept that loss of cilia length contributes to defective mucociliary clearance in COPD, and that smoking-induced changes in expression of IFT genes may be one mechanism of abnormally short cilia in smokers. Strategies to normalize cilia length may be an important avenue for novel COPD therapies.
Project description:The mechanisms of how highly conserved intraflagellar transport (IFT) protein complexes direct ciliary entry remain unknown. Exploring human ciliopathy genes, including monogenic obesity syndrome genes, has been a rich source of critical ciliary mechanisms. Using AP-MS purification of interactors of the CEP19 monogenic obesity gene, we identify factors and the first known mechanism for triggering ciliary entry of IFT complexes. CEP19 binds the CEP350 and FOP centriolar components and the highly conserved RABL2 GTPase. We discovered that the CEP19-RABL2 complex is first recruited by the centriolar CEP350/FOP complex, concurrently activates nucleotide exchange to capture and release intraflagellar transport B holocomplexes from a large centriolar pool to intraflagellar transport. The CEP19 network of interacting proteins regulates ciliary entry and ciliation, providing a new example of ciliary mechanisms deficient in monogenic obesity syndromes.