|
Advertisement | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 278, Issue 33, 30525-30533, August 15, 2003
Changed Energy State and Increased Mitochondrial
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ABSTRACT |
|---|
|
|
|---|
-regulated fatty acid
catabolism in mitochondria. After dietary treatment of rats with the
hypolipidemic, modified fatty acid, tetradecylthioacetic acid (TTA), the
energy state parameters of the liver were altered at the tissue, cell, and
mitochondrial levels. Thus, the hepatic phosphate potential, energy charge,
and respiratory control coefficients were lowered, whereas rates of oxygen
uptake, oxidation of pyridine nucleotide redox pairs,
-oxidation, and
ketogenesis were elevated. Moderate uncoupling of mitochondria from
TTA-treated rats was confirmed, as the proton electrochemical potential
(
p) was 15% lower than controls. The change affected the 
component only, leaving the
pH component unaltered, suggesting that TTA
causes induction of electrogenic ion transport rather than electrophoretic
fatty acid activity. TTA treatment induced expression of hepatic uncoupling
protein 2 (UCP-2) in rats as well as in wild type and PPAR
-deficient
mice, accompanied by a decreased double bond index of the mitochondrial
membrane lipids. However, changes of mitochondrial fatty acid composition did
not seem to be related to the effects on mitochondrial energy conductance. As
TTA activates PPAR
, we discuss how this subtype might compensate for
deficiency of PPAR
. The overall changes recorded were moderate, making
it likely that liver metabolism can maintain its function within the confines
of its physiological regulatory framework where challenged by a hypolipemic
agent such as TTA, as well as others. | INTRODUCTION |
|---|
|
|
|---|
-oxidation, at the expense of triacylglyceol synthesis.
Simultaneously, there is up-regulation of the inner carnitine
palmitoyltransferase II, 2,4-dienoyl-CoA reductase, and mitochondrial
3-hydroxy-3-methyl-CoA synthase. The outer carnitine palmitoyltransferase-I is
not affected, suggesting that the rate control of
-oxidation and
ketogenesis resides in steps beyond acyl group translocation into the matrix
(46).
Modulation of lipid metabolism with TTA seems at least in part to be related
to the role of TTA as a regulator for members of the peroxisome
proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) family of nuclear receptors. TTA has
been demonstrated to function as a ligand and activator of the PPAR subtypes
PPAR
, PPAR
, and PPAR
(4,
79).
PPAR
is the predominant subtype in the liver where it controls
transcription of genes involved in fatty acid metabolism, such as the genes
for peroxisomal acyl-CoA oxidase and fatty acid transport protein, which are
up-regulated after TTA treatment
(7,
9).
Mitochondrial uncoupling by fatty acids has been widely demonstrated during
the last decades. Energy coupling is impaired when protons and other ions are
allowed to pass through the inner membrane without the production of ATP.
Consequently, the stored energy from the mitochondrial proton gradient
intended for ATP synthesis is converted to heat. Wojtczak et al.
(10) have demonstrated
protonophoric behavior in vitro of high concentrations of 3-thia
fatty acids toward the mitochondrial inner membrane. The concentration range
causing rapid transbilayer movement of acyl chains was on par with that of
normal, unipolar long chain fatty acids like palmitic or oleic acids. A
similar behavior has been shown to apply to other hypolipidemic fatty acid
analogues, such as
,
'-methyl-substitutedhexadecane-
,
-dioic acid
(11). The molecular basis for
fatty acid-mediated uncoupling of respiration remains unclear, but both
passive and protein-mediated mechanisms appear to be involved. Skulachev
(12) introduced the hypothesis
of fatty acid cycling, assuming spontaneous translocation (flip-flop) of the
protonated form of the fatty acid in one direction (toward matrix) and a
transfer of the anionic form in the other direction, mediated by some inner
membrane proteins. Putative candidates for such proteins are the ADP/ATP
antiporter and the uncoupling proteins (UCPs)
(12,
13). UCP homologues form a
family of mitochondrial carriers that are capable of depleting the proton
gradient. The UCP subtypes, UCP-1, UCP-2, and UCP-3, differ in respect to
tissue distribution and probably also function. UCP-1 appears to be solely
expressed in brown adipose tissue where it mediates thermogenesis, whereas
UCP-2 and UCP-3 are more widely expressed. The functions of UCP-2 and UCP-3
are still unclear, but a mild uncoupling of respiration could prevent the
accumulation of oxygen radicals and/or control the NAD+/NADH ratio and
consequently regulate metabolic pathways such as ketogenesis and lipogenesis
(14,
15). The activities of the
UCPs are induced by free fatty acids
(16). Furthermore, mono- and
polyunsaturated fatty acids, but not saturated fatty acids, were found to
increase UCP-2 expression in hepatocytes possibly via a PPAR
-mediated
pathway (17). Others have
found that PPAR
mediates in vivo regulation of hepatic
ucp-2 gene expression and that PPAR
has the same property in
brown adipose tissue (18).
These observations suggest the possibility that PPAR activation and
increased
-oxidation rate in liver mitochondria of rats fed TTA might be
associated with increased proton conductance across the membrane. We have
investigated whether this occurs in vivo after long term feeding of
TTA to rats, by measuring energy state parameters at the tissue level, the
cellular level, as well as at the level of isolated mitochondria, and if so to
assess the extent to which such a mechanism might contribute to increased
fatty acid oxidation.
| EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES |
|---|
|
|
|---|
AnimalsMale Wistar rats were obtained from Møllegaard Breeding Laboratory, Eiby, Denmark. They were housed in pairs in wire cages and maintained on a 12-h cycle of light and dark at 20 ± 3 °C. The rats had free access to pellet food and water, and they were acclimatized to these conditions for at least 1 week prior to the experiment. Each test and control group consisted of at least 4 animals. If not otherwise stated, palmitic acid and TTA were separately dissolved in acetone and sprayed on pellets to an amount of 3 g/kg of pellets, resulting in an approximate daily dose of 300 mg/kg body weight (estimated consumption of pellets per rat, 20 g; body weight near 200 g). At day 7, the rats were subjected to a 12-h fast before termination. The PPAR/ and PPAR+/+ mice (2025 g) were a generous gift from Frank J. Gonzales (National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD) and have been described elsewhere (20). The PPAR/ and PPAR+/+ lines were purebred on a sv129 background. The mice were given a diet consisting of 21.8% casein, 10% soy oil, 17% vitamin/mineral mixture (5.83% vitamin mixture, AIN-93VX, Dyets Inc.; 17.4% mineral mixture, AIN-93G, Dyets Inc.; 11.6% cellulose; 63,9% sucrose; 1.2% cholintartrate) and dextrin (49.551.2%), supplemented with 0.5% fenofibrate (gift from Alan Edgar, Fournier, France) or 1.7% TTA. At termination the animals were anesthetized with a subcutaneous injection of Hypnorm DormicumTM (fentanyl/fluanisone midazol-am, 0.2 ml/100 g body weight). Livers were either immediately removed, placed in ice-cold homogenizing medium and weighed, or freeze-clamped in situ and stored in liquid N2. Cardiac puncture was performed to obtain blood samples in EDTA vacutainers; one aliquot being frozen in liquid N2 for later measurement of blood nucleotides. The Norwegian State Board of Biological Experiments with Living Animals approved the protocol.
Extraction and Measurement of NucleotidesNucleotides,
including NAD+ and NADP+, were extracted with perchloric
acid, whereas pyridine nucleotides in reduced form were obtained by alkaline
extraction according to Williamson and Corkey
(21). Extracted nucleotides
were separated, identified, and quantified on an ion pair reversed-phase
high-performance liquid chromatographic system
(22). Inorganic phosphate was
determined by an assay based on the production of phosphomolybdate, which can
be measured photometrically at 340 nm (Bayer AG, Leverkusen, Germany). The
liver contents of each component were corrected for the amounts due to blood
contaminating the tissue as described by Hohorst et al.
(23), by measurement of the
oxyhemoglobin concentration, in the presence of saponin, of blood and liver
tissue. Tissue energy parameters were calculated as follows: energy charge =
{([ADP] + 2[ATP])/([AMP]+[ADP]+[ATP])} and phosphorylation state =
[ATP]/[ADP][Pi] (nanomoles/g of
tissue)1 (see Ref.
24).
Isolation of Mitochondria and Measurements of Enzyme
Activities The livers of individual animals were homogenized in an
ice-cold medium consisting of 0.25 M sucrose, 10 mM
HEPES buffer, pH 7.4, 1 mM EGTA. The mitochondrial fraction was
obtained by differential centrifugation as described earlier
(25) at 04 °C. The
Bio-Rad protein kit (Bio-Rad) was used for protein determination with bovine
serum albumin (Sigma) as standard. Until used the mitochondrial fractions were
stored at 0 °C at a concentration of 100 mg of protein/ml. Rates of oxygen
consumption were measured polarographically as described earlier
(26), the system being
calibrated with air-saturated distilled water. Measurements were made at 25.0
°C, and where not specified otherwise the medium contained the following
components at the indicated concentrations: 83 mM KCl, 4
mM KH2PO4,20mM K-HEPES buffer, pH
7.4, 1 mM EGTA, 1 mM MgCl2, and 4 mg of
mitochondrial protein, in a total volume of 1.0 ml. Substrates were added as
follows: 240 µM palmitoyl-L-carnitine + 5
mM malate (or 0.5 mM malate as indicated), 210
µM pamlitoyl-CoA + 1 mM L-carnitine + 5 mM
malate (or 0.5 mM malate as indicated), or 5 mM sodium
succinate + 1 µg of rotenone. Where indicated 40 µM FCCP was
added near the end of the experiment. Rates of
-oxidation were
determined by incubating mitochondria at 30 °C with
[1-14C]palmitoyl-L-carnitine or
[1-14C]palmitoyl-CoA + 1 mM L-carnitine, as described in
Ref. 6.
Preparation and Incubation of Primary
HepatocytesHepatocytes were prepared from rats by collagenase
perfusion by a modification
(27) of the method of Berry
and Friend (28). The final
wash of cells in Ca2+-free phosphate-buffered saline, pH
7.4, was performed at 37 °C in the presence of 1 mM L-carnitine
20 min prior to incubation, to compensate for carnitine lost from cells during
preparative procedures (29,
30). Production of
acid-soluble products was measured using fatty acids as substrates. The assay
mixture contained the following components in a total volume of 1.0 ml: 400
µM 1-14C-labeled fatty acid (0.25 µCi/ml) in
Ca2+-free phosphate-buffered saline, pH 7.4, containing
137 mM NaCl, 2.7 mM KCl, 8 mM
Na2HPO4, 1.5 mM KH2PO4,
and 1% (w/v) fatty acid-free bovine serum albumin. Incubation was for 1 h at
30 °C in the presence of 2 x 106 cells. Acid-soluble
products were measured essentially as given by Christiansen et al.
(31). Rates of oxygen uptake
by cells were measured polarographically at 37 °C as given above for
isolated mitochondria, except that the reaction mixture contained in a total
volume of 1.0 ml: 400 µM fatty acid in
Ca2+-free phosphate-buffered saline, pH 7.4, containing
1% fatty acid-free bovine serum albumin and 2 x 106 cells.
The experiment was started with the addition of fatty acid substrate after a
10-min preincubation at 37 °C with an open measuring chamber. Where used,
5 µM FCCP was added near the end of each 10-min experiment.
Rates of
-oxidation were measured as for isolated mitochondria (above)
except that [1-14C]palmitic acid was used as substrate. Production
of ketone bodies was assessed by measuring the amount of
D-
-hydroxybutyrate (Sigma, kit number 310A) present in a
neutralized, perchloric acid extract of the reaction mixture after completion
of the polarographic experiment, and corrected for the contents of that
component in unincubated cells.
Measurement of Protein Motive ForceThe proton
electrochemical potential (
p) were measured by recording the
distribution across the mitochondrial inner membrane of labeled TTP as the
permeant cation and labeled 5,5-dimetyloxazolidine-2,4-dione as the permeant
weak acid, via centrifugation through an oil layer essentially as given by
Dawson et al. (32).
Briefly, the electrical potential difference (
) was measured by
incubating mitochondria in a medium containing the following concentrations of
components: 150 mM KCl, 5 mM K-HEPES, pH 7.4, 2.5
mM Tris phosphate, 0.5 mM malate, 10 mM
5,5-dimetyloxazolidine-2,4-dione, 100 µM inulin, 10
µM TTP, 50 mg of dextran 40 (to facilitate passage of
mitochondria though an oil layer
(33)), 0.18 µCi/ml
[14C]TTP, and 10 mg of mitochondrial protein in a total of 2.0 ml.
Incubation was performed in uncapped tubes at 25 °C. For measurement of
the transmembrane pH difference (
pH), labeled TTP was exchanged for
0.18 µCi of [14C]5,5-dimetyloxazolidine-2,4-dione/ml + 0.6
µCi of [3H]inulin/ml. Experiments were started by addition of
substrate, either 40 nmol of palmitoyl-L-carnitine/mg of
mitochondrial protein, in the presence of 1 mM malate, pH 7.4, or
2.5 mM Tris succinate, pH 7.4, in the presence of 10 µg of
rotenone. At 3 and 5 min appropriate samples were withdrawn and added to tubes
previously charged with a silicon oil layer (
= 1.5) above a layer of 10%
(w/v) perchloric acid (
= 1.8), followed by centrifugation for 1 min at
15,000 rpm (Eppendorf microcentrifuge). For the 
experiments, the
disappearance of [14C] from the upper, incubation medium layer was
recorded by subjecting aliquots of that layer to scintillation counting,
whereas for the
pH experiments, aliquots were withdrawn from both the
upper as well from the bottom (perchloric acid) layers, and subjected to
dual-channel scintillation counting. Determination of intra-mitochondrial
volume was made by recording the transmembrane distributions of
[14C]sucrose and 3H2O
(32). The sucrose impermeable
space of liver mitochondria isolated from animals given dietary palmitate was
1.27 ± 0.11 versus 1.28 ± 0.14 µl/mg of protein for
the TTA-treated ones (n = 12). No correction was applied for possible
overestimation of 
because of passive TTP binding since the
measured 
was always higher than the figure where deviation from
Nernst behavior has been demonstrated
(34). Parallel, polarographic
incubations were used to verify that a steady state rate of oxygen uptake
existed within the time frame of withdrawal of aliquots.
Mitochondrial Fatty Acid CompositionTTA suspended in 0.5% carboxymethylcellulose was administered to rats by orogastric intubation (150 mg/kg body weight) once daily for 10 days. Control animals received carboxymethylcellulose only. PPAR/ and PPAR+/+ mice were given the diet described above. Lipids were extracted from the liver mitochondrial fractions of rats and mice, transesterified with BF3-methanol, and analyzed essentially as described in Ref. 35. The methyl esters of fatty acids were analyzed on a GC 8000 Top gas chromatograph (Carlo Erba Instrument), equipped with a flame ionization detector, programmable temperature of vaporization injector, AS 800 autosampler (Carlo Erba Instrument), and a capillary column (60 m x 0.25 mm) containing a highly polar SP 2340 phase with film thickness 0.20 mm (Supelco). Natural occurring fatty acids were positively identified by comparison to known standards (Larodan Fine Chemicals, Malmö, Sweden) and verified by mass spectrometry. Quantification of the fatty acids was based on heneicosanoic acid (21:0) as an internal standard.
Isolation of mRNA and Quantitation by Real-time PCR Analysis Total RNA was extracted from freeze-clamped liver using TrizolTM reagent (Invitrogen). Quantitative real-time PCR was carried out using ABI PRISMTM 7900 HT sequence detection system (Applied Biosystems, Foster City, CA) with conditions and reagents as recommended by the manufacturer. Each sample was analyzed in triplicate. Sequence-specific PCR primers and TaqMan probes for UCP-2 and the GAPDH cDNAs were designed using Primer Express software (Applied Biosystems). The following primers and probes were used: GAPDH: primers, 5'-TGCACCACCAACTGCTTAGC-3' and 5'-CAGTCTTCTGAGTGGCAGTGATG-3', and probe, 5'-TGGAAGGGCTCATGACCACAGTCCA-3'; UPC-2: primers, 5'-TGGCCTCTACGACTCTGTAAAGC-3' and 5'-CAGGGCACCTGTGGTGCTA-3', and probe, 5-CAAGGGCTCAGAGCATGCAGGCA-3'. The GAPDH was used as endogenous control for normalization of cDNA amounts. This analysis was also performed on isolated hepatocytes (performed as described above) that were purified by centrifugation on a 45% Percoll cushion to minimize the influence from Kuppfer cells (17).
Western AnalysisProtein from extracts were separated by SDS-PAGE and transferred to nitrocellulose membrane (Hybond ECL, Amersham) according to standard techniques. Blots were probed with a polyclonal goat antibody to UCP-2 (sc-6525, Santa Cruz Biotechnology Inc.) and goat horseradish peroxidase-conjugated anti-rabbit antibody (Bio-Rad).
Statistics and Presentation of ResultsThe data are presented as mean ± S.D., and differences were evaluated by a two-sample Student's t test (two-tailed distribution) where relevant. p < 0.05 was regarded as statistical significant.
| RESULTS |
|---|
|
|
|---|
|
Oxidative Capacities of Primary Hepatocytes from TTA-treated
RatsHepatocytes prepared from animals given TTA versus
palmitic acid in their diets would be expected to expose facets of a mechanism
for lowering the liver energy state. Accordingly, a study was undertaken of
cellular production of acid-soluble products from labeled fatty acid
substrates (as a measure of
-oxidation) as well as of fatty
acid-stimulated ketogenesis and respiratory rates. As shown in
Table II, TTA feeding caused
increases in rates of cellular
-oxidation by 1.41.9-fold,
eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) being the better substrate among the fatty acids
supplied. Stimulation by TTA feeding on ketogenesis in cells was more
pronounced for palmitic acid (2-fold) and EPA (1.9-fold) than for
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 1.5-fold) as sources of carbon. The fatty
acid-stimulated rates of oxygen uptake responded similarly (1.3-fold increase)
to TTA feeding of source animals. The oxygen uptake rates measured in the
uncoupled state (preincubation with FCCP) were almost identical with any fatty
acid substrate, regardless of feeding regime, indicating that the capacity of
the mitochondrial respiratory chain had not been altered by the diet
supplement. However, as a consequence there was some indication of a lowering
of energy transducing activity in cells from TTA-treated rats compared with
controls. Thus, respiratory control ratios for all substrates were
significantly lower: from 2.8 to 1.9 for palmitic acid, from 2.8 to 2.0 for
EPA, and from 2.9 to 2.2 for DHA. These changes, mitochondrial in origin, may
plausibly be interpreted as increased proton conductance, leading to lower
rates of ATP production.
|
To test for possible lack of citric acid cycle intermediates in
mitochondria, hepatocytes were preincubated with malate. This addition
affected neither
-oxidation nor oxygen uptake rates with palmitic acid
as substrate but, surprisingly, did cause a stimulation of ketogenesis 7-fold
in cells from palmitic acid-treated rats against 4.4-fold for the TTA-fed rat
cells. As neither O2 uptake rates, nor rates of
-oxidation
were correspondingly elevated in the presence of added malate, carbon from
malate would appear to be channeled to ketone bodies, possibly from pyruvate
via malic enzyme (the precise source of carbon for ketogenesis under these
conditions is under investigation).
Effect of TTA as Diet Supplement on the Energy Metabolism of Isolated
Rat Liver MitochondriaOne probable cause of the low energy state
of the liver in rats subjected to dietary treatment with TTA would be
deficient ATP production. Consequently, liver mitochondria isolated from the
two groups of animals were examined for energy transducing properties. TTA
treatment stimulated the oxygen uptake rates of mitochondria oxidizing
palmitoyl-CoA or palmitoyl-L-carnitine by 25 and 20%, respectively
(Table III). The measured rates
of O2 uptake were not different from those recorded where the
mitochondria had been preincubated with 0.3 nmol of oligomycin/mg of
mitochondrial protein, and were thus regarded as representing state 4.
However, the chosen concentration of added malate (5 mM) may have
been excessive as replenishment of lost citric acid cycle intermediates and
competed with the products of
-oxidation as source of reducing
equivalents for the respiratory chain. Thus, in the presence of 0.5
mM malate O2 uptake rates with fatty acyl substrates
were lower, but stimulation of state 4 in mitochondria from TTA-treated rats
became even more pronounced (50% increase). Oxidation rates with succinate (+
rotenone) were approximately equal with mitochondria from the two groups of
rats. Yet, the overall parameters of energy transduction, respiratory control,
and ADP/O ratios, decreased significantly by 10% with mitochondria from
TTA-treated rats versus controls regardless of the substrate used,
suggesting that an increase in proton conductance had taken place. A similar
effect has been detected in liver mitochondria of mice subjected to long term
dietary treatment with TTA
(36). In parallel experiments,
rates of
-oxidation from palmitoyl-CoA had increased by 40% (not shown)
over controls, in agreement with previous studies
(6,
37).
|
Energy transduction in rat liver mitochondria from the two groups of rats
was investigated by measuring proton electrochemical potentials (
p)
under conditions where O2 uptake rates were in a steady state. From
Fig. 1A it appears
that mitochondria from TTA-treated rats, respiring on succinate (+ rotenone)
or palmitoyl-L-carnitine, maintained a
p 15% lower than that
of control mitochondria. Furthermore, this change affected the 
component only (Fig.
1B), leaving the
pH component unaltered. Thus,
although the O2 uptake rates with fatty acyl substrates had
increased (Table III), this
increase was clearly insufficient to compensate for the loss of 
.
It follows that TTA as a dietary supplement for rats results in an increase in
proton conductance across liver mitochondrial membranes.
|
Also addressed was the question of whether the concentration of
nonesterified TTA, which obtains in the liver under the given feeding
conditions, would be sufficiently high to acutely cause the observed loss of

. According to Ref.
38 rats receiving 300 mg of
TTA/kg of body weight as a dietary supplement yield a total liver
concentration of 20 nmol of nonesterified TTA/g wet tissue. Calculations to
express this figure in terms of nanomoles/mg of mitochondrial protein were as
outlined by Fleischer et al.
(39), using values of 0.12 g
of total protein/g wet liver and 0.25 g of mitochondrial protein/g of total
protein that yields the figure of 30 mg of mitochondrial protein/g wet liver.
The amount of nonesterified TTA in the liver of treated animals would
therefore be of the order of 20/30 = 0.67 nmol/mg of mitochondrial protein. In
accordance with this, experiments were made in which mitochondria from control
animals were preincubated with 0.6 nmol of TTA/mg of protein for 10 min prior
to measurements of energy transduction parameters. As shown in
Table III and
Fig. 1 this amount of TTA did
not measurably affect any parameter, findings that practically exclude the
possibility that the observed lowering of 
was directly effected
by the endogenous, nonesterified TTA present.
Mitochondrial Fatty Acid CompositionTTA can be converted to
CoA thioester-like natural fatty acids
(40) and is incorporated into
different lipid classes including phospholipids
(38,
41). To test the hypothesis
that TTA action on 
could be mediated by alterations of fatty acid
composition, mitochondria were isolated from TTA-treated rats and controls.
The treatment markedly changed the total fatty acid composition in liver
mitochondria (Table IV). TTA
accumulated in the mitochondria while the levels of the saturated fatty acids
14:0, 15:0, and 17:0 decreased. The total amount of monounsaturated fatty
acids was increased, especially the
9-monounsaturated fatty
acids. The
9-desaturated product of TTA was also detected.
TTA treatment altered the levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids of the n-3 and
n-6 families. The amounts of 18:2 n-6, 18:3 n-3, and 20:5 n-3 were
significantly lowered, whereas 18:3 n-6 and 20:3 n-6 were increased.
Altogether, these changes resulted in lowering of the double bond index. It is
worth noting that the levels of mitochondrial arachidonic acid (20:4 n-6) as
well as 22:6 n-3 were unchanged after administration of TTA.
|
Expression of UCP-2Members or the UCP family of proteins are able to deplete the mitochondrial proton gradient by allowing transmembrane proton transfer without the production of ATP. The biochemical activities and biological functions of the recently identified UCP-2 and UCP-3 proteins are not well known, but studies have suggested that they play roles in energy expenditure for adaptation of cellular metabolism to an excessive supply of substrates to regulate the ATP level, NAD+/NADH ratio, and various metabolic pathways. UCP-2 may also exert a protective role against formation of free radicals (15). In light of the hypothesized function of UCP-2 in energy regulation, and the central role of the liver in overall energy metabolism, we proposed that hepatocyte UCP-2 would be regulated by TTA. Indeed, TTA treatment of rats stimulated UCP-2 mRNA expression in the liver (Fig. 2A), whereas expression of UCP-1 was not detected (data not shown). Previously, it has been shown that Kupffer cells are responsible for a major portion of the UCP-2 expression in rat liver (42). We therefore measured the UCP-2 mRNA expression in isolated and purified primary hepatocytes from control rats and TTA-treated rats. According to Armstrong and Towle (17) such a procedure allows us to measure UCP-2 in the hepatocyte. Our results clearly showed that the mRNA level of UCP-2 was elevated in hepatocytes from TTA-treated animals (Fig. 2A). This demonstrates that the enhanced UCP-2 mRNA level observed in liver tissue from animals treated with TTA at least in part can be explained by an increased UCP-2 expression in the hepatocytes. Induction of UCP-2 expression was also found at the protein level in liver from TTA-treated rats (Fig. 2B).
|
Effect of TTA on UCP-2 Expression and Mitochondrial Fatty Acid
Composition in Wild Type and PPAR
-deficient MiceTo
evaluate more conclusively that the effects of TTA are at the level of
PPAR
activation, as opposed to effects because of incorporation into
mitochondrial membrane lipids, a study was performed in wild type and
PPAR
-deficient mice. A non-fatty acid PPAR activator, fenofibrate, was
chosen as a reference control to differentiate effects because of TTA
versus simple PPAR activation.
Fig. 2C shows that
UCP-2 mRNA was increased more than 6-fold in wild type mice given fenofibrate.
This effect was completely abolished in PPAR
-deficient mice,
demonstrating that fenofibrate induce UCP-2 mRNA expression via PPAR
,
confirming the results reported by Kelly et al.
(18). It is noteworthy that
TTA induced UCP-2 expression both in wild type and PPAR
-deficient mice,
suggesting that UCP-2 induction also may be mediated by alternative
pathways.
The effect of TTA on mitochondrial fatty acid composition in wild type and
PPAR
-deficient mice was assessed
(Table V). The treatment
markedly changed the total fatty acid in mitochondria of both mice strains.
TTA and
9-desaturated TTA accumulated in the mitochondria to a much
higher level in PPAR
-deficient mice
(Table V). Thus, the changes in
mitochondrial fatty acid composition in the liver of PPAR
-deficient
mice reflected the changes in the rat, i.e. the total amount of
monounsaturated fatty acids was increased, especially the
9
monounsaturated fatty acids; the amounts of 18:2 n-6 and 20:5 n-3 were
decreased; the amounts of 22:6 n-6 and 20:4 n-6 were unchanged, resulting in
lowering of the double bound index. Differences in fatty acid composition in
mitochondria from rats versus PPAR
-deficient mice were
observed in the level of saturated fatty acids and especially on 20:3 n-6.
|
| DISCUSSION |
|---|
|
|
|---|
The measured phosphorylation state
(Table I) may not be a proper
reflection of the effective "phosphate potential" as it applies to
the mitochondria because of binding of ADP to cytosolic enzymes and protein
structures. Thus, measurements by Veech et al.
(43) of components of the
combined glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase and 3-phosphoglycerate
kinase of rat liver have indicated that [ADP]free is less than 1/20
of the total tissue ADP. These authors also concluded from measurements of the
tissue [pyruvate]/[lactate] that changes in [NAD+]/[NADH] were
consequential to changes in the phosphorylation state, and as the components
of the lactate dehydrogenase and malic enzyme appear to maintain a near
equilibrium the tissue [NADP+]/[NADPH] would be proportional
(24) to the
[NAD+]/[NADH]. In this context, the findings of a lowered
phosphorylation state and a more oxidized state of both pyridine nucleotide
redox pairs in livers of rats receiving TTA would be readily explainable.
Present experiments, performed with 12-h fasted animals, did not examine rates
of gluconeogenesis and it is therefore not known whether the TTA treatment
elevates rates above those of controls although lowered figures for the
calculated energy charge might be indicative of an increase in the rate of ATP
utilization or decreased ATP generation. The marked elevation of the total
tissue contents of pyridine nucleotides could indicate increased biosynthesis
of these components from nicotinamide, and it is tempting to speculate that
this resulted from the TTA-stimulated peroxisomal and mitochondrial
proliferation (44) causing
upregulated expression of enzymes and other proteins that bind pyridine
nucleotides, which might reflect adaptation for increased
-oxidation
flux. The regulation of pyridine nucleotide synthesis in the liver is not
completely understood, but is said to function under hormonal control (see
Ref. 45).
If lowered phosphorylation state of the tissue was caused by impaired
mitochondrial energy transduction, then parameters illustrating this effect
should respond accordingly. Thus, fatty acid-stimulated rates of oxygen uptake
in hepatocytes as well as isolated mitochondria had increased by 30% as a
result of TTA treatment. Simultaneously, mitochondria exhibited lowered
respiratory control- and ADP/O ratios. That the change in state 4 respiration
was a true reflection of altered energy transduction received strong support
from lowered mitochondrial proton electrochemical potentials measured under
steady-state substrate oxidation (Fig.
1), indicative of higher proton conductance in liver mitochondria
of TTA-treated rats. The data presented does not allow a precise prediction of
the mechanism involved. However, liver mitochondria have previously been shown
to exhibit native proton leakage
(46,
47), whereby protons pumped
out of the matrix during substrate oxidation are able to re-enter the matrix
space through conductance paths that evade the ATP synthase. The nature and
properties of the proton leakage, be it uncoupling or electrophoretic ion
exchange, has been intensely investigated in recent years (as reviewed Ref.
32), but discrete mechanisms
remain incompletely understood. One aspect of this leak has been termed
non-ohmic (48) because it is
characterized by non-proportionality between the respiratory rate in state 4
and the corresponding
p under conditions where mitochondria maintain a
high 
. This condition does clearly not apply in the present
experiments, in which the range of measured membrane potentials (90120
mV) was below the threshold value for the non-ohmic leak
(49). Therefore, we do not
consider this a valid explanation for the observed leak rate in liver
mitochondria of TTA-treated animals. At this low level of
p any loss of

should be compensated by a corresponding increase in
pH
unless an electrophoretic mechanism for proton re-entry was brought into
action. We would therefore suggest that the TTA treatment of rats results in
expression of a respiration-dependent electrogenic ion transport system in the
mitochondrial membrane, allowing a moderate degree of uncoupling.
The question of the cause of the increased proton leak in liver
mitochondria of the TTA-treated rats remains. The well known protonophoric
effect of fatty acids on the inner membrane
(14,
50,
51) does not apply to the
uncoupling that is induced by TTA, because only the 
component,
and not
pH, is affected. This is in contrast to what was observed when
TTA was provided at a concentration of 30 nmol/mg of protein to liver
mitochondria in vitro, which affected both components
(10). Calculations (see above)
have shown that the content of nonesterified TTA in the liver after TTA
dietary treatment is
0.7 nmol/mg of mitochondrial protein, probably even
lower because of marked mitochondrial proliferation
(44). Addition of this low
amount of TTA to mitochondria from control animals in vitro failed to
effect any measurable change in energy transduction parameters
(Table III and
Fig. 1).
If dietary treatment with TTA directly inflicts aberrations to
mitochondrial membranes, likely targets would be changes in phospholipid
components. Indeed, TTA and its
9-desaturated product are
incorporated into mitochondrial lipids in rat liver
(Table IV), even into
phospholipids such as phosphatidylethanolamine, cardiolipin, and
phosphatidylcholine.2
According to Brookes et al.
(52) variations in the fatty
acid composition of mitochondrial membrane phospholipids reconstituted in
liposomes did not appear to accommodate large differences in proton
conductance. In isolated mitochondria, however, the same authors found that
proton leak correlated with several phospholipid fatty acid compositional
parameters, including unsaturation index, 14:0, 18:1 n-9, 18:3 n-3, 18:3 n-6,
and percent of monounsaturated fatty acids
(53). Other reports support
the understanding that certain aspects of phospholipid composition appear to
be strongly correlated to proton conductance
(54). Fatty acid composition
in rat liver mitochondria was changed after TTA administration
(Table IV). The mitochondrial
content of 14:0, 17:0, and 20:5 n-3, but not 22:6 n-3, was decreased, probably
because of the increased rate of mitochondrial
-oxidation
(Table II) (5557)
and replacement of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids with TTA and
9-desaturated TTA. This is in agreement with data from
Table II and our earlier
findings that 20:5 n-3 is a better substrate for fatty acid oxidation than
22:6 n-3 (56,
58). Free fatty acids may
uncouple respiration, e.g. via a flip-flop mechanism. The insertion
of sulfur in the hydrocarbon chain of TTA makes the fatty acid more
hydrophilic than a normal fatty acid, which probably restrains flip-flop
across the hydrophobic phase. In support, addition of physiological amounts of
TTA (38) to isolated
mitochondria did not increase state 4 oxygen consumption, indicating that the
mitochondrial membrane proton conductance remained unchanged.
In recent years, protein components, including the novel family of UCPs
(UCP-1, UCP-2, and UCP-3) have become implicated as membrane vehicles for
proton leakage (15,
59). It was of considerable
interest to observe that UCP-2 mRNA and protein levels were increased in the
liver of rats and mice under dietary treatment with TTA
(Fig. 2). UCP-2 expression has
been detected both in Kupffer cells
(42) and in hepatocytes
(17). It was confirmed that
TTA-mediated UCP-2 induction takes place in hepatocytes by assessing the
expression in isolated and purified hepatocytes
(Fig. 2). For EPA (20:5 n-3),
oleic acid (18:1 n-9), and arachidonic acid (20:4 n-6), such behavior involves
regulation through a prostaglandin/PPAR
-mediated pathway
(17). However, in contrast to
the PPAR
selective drug fenofibrate, TTA induced UCP-2 expression to an
equal level in wild type and PPAR
-deficient mice
(Fig. 2) although the
mitochondrial fatty acid composition was differently changed
(Table V), especially
concerning the level of TTA itself, which accumulated to a much higher degree
in mitochondria of PPAR
-deficient than wild type animals. These data
indicate that UCP-2 is up-regulated by TTA through a PPAR
-independent
pathway that is unlikely to involve incorporation of TTA into mitochondrial
lipids and accompanied changes of fatty acid composition. TTA is a ligand for
PPAR
(8,
60) and recently it has been
published that this PPAR subtype might play a role in the regulation of muscle
lipid homeostasis (61). Thus,
it is likely that in liver of PPAR
-deficient mice, the level of
PPAR
can compensate for the deficiency of PPAR
. As mitochondrial
fatty acid metabolizing proteins are encoded by PPAR
, and possibly
PPAR
, target genes, we propose that PPAR
and PPAR
may
play a role in determining the metabolic shift, i.e. increased
-oxidation flux and lowered energy state. Elevated expression of the
hepatic UCP-2 mRNA is of special interest in this context, in light of the
proposal that the UCP-2 protein participates in proton leak mechanisms. The
possibility that UCP-2 is involved in electrogenic ion transport in the
mitochondrial membrane, allowing a moderate degree of uncoupling, should be
considered.
TTA improves insulin sensitivity and reduces adiposity (4, 9). Drainage of fatty acids by the liver, relieving the fatty acid pressure on adipose tissue and muscles when fatty acids inhibit glucose uptake and oxidation, is an important effect of TTA. Uncoupling of hepatocyte mitochondria by long chain fatty acids under ketogenic conditions may allow production of ketone bodies at rates that are not limited by liver ATP consumption and requirements. TTA increased liver fatty acid oxidation and ketogenesis (Table II), accompanied by stimulated UCP-2 expression (Fig. 2). Thus, these results indicate a possible role of liver UCP-2 in the control of energy status. Accordingly, the UCP-2 protein may be involved in adaptation of lipid metabolism to an excessive supply of fatty acids to regulate the ATP level, the NAD+/NADH ratio, and various metabolic pathways such as ketogenesis (15).
It has also been suggested that UCP-2 is involved in regulation of free radical formation within the cell. Induction of UCP-2 might decrease the redox pressure by preventing the escape of reactive oxygen species from the electron transport chain (62). Indeed, TTA is reported to have antioxidant effects in vitro and in vivo, including decrease in plasma lipid peroxides and malondialdehyde (6365). In agreement with other suggestions (63), these observations provide indirect evidence for UCP-2 playing a role in management of redox homeostasis.
In summary, long term dietary treatment of rats with 3-thia fatty acid
results in lowering of the liver energy state while lipid metabolism become
poised toward increased mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation accompanied by
increased rates of ketogenesis and oxygen uptake, over and above that which is
characteristic of the fasted state in control animals. Simultaneously, the
liver mitochondria acquire a definitive proton leakage, characterized by a
partial loss of the proton electrochemical potential maintained during
substrate oxidation in vitro. Whatever the vehicle or mechanism
responsible for membrane leakiness, be it induced ion electrogenic transport,
induced UCP-2 expression, fatty acid-dependent uncoupling, or compositional
change in membrane phospholipids, increased rates of proton re-entry would
support higher rates of
-oxidation. Elevated
-oxidation flux,
aided by up-regulated carnitine palmitoyltransferase-II
(4), would preferentially
channel reducing equivalents to the respiratory chain at the expense of the
citric acid cycle (66,
67). Simultaneously, there is
up-regulation of the mitochondrial hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA synthase,
resulting in a 60% increase in plasma
-hydroxybutyrate
(6), suggesting that the liver
-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase should possess an additional capacity for
re-oxidation of NADH during fatty acid oxidation. The changes in fatty acid
catabolism because of long term dietary treatment with TTA is judged to be
sufficiently moderate to warrant the conclusion that liver lipid metabolism
remains within the confines of its normal regulatory network.
| FOOTNOTES |
|---|
** To whom correspondence should be addressed: Institute of Medicine, Section of Medical Biochemistry, Haukeland University Hospital, N-5021 Bergen, Norway. Tel.: 47-55973098; Fax: 47-55973115; E-mail: rolf.berge{at}med.uib.no.
1 The abbreviations used are: TTA, tetradecylthioacetic acid;
p,
proton electrochemical potential; 
, membrane potential (electrical
potential difference);
pH, pH difference; DHA, docosahexaenoic acid;
EPA, eicosapentaenoic acid; PPAR, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor;
UCP, uncoupling protein; TTP, tetraphenylphosphonium; FCCP, carbonyl cyanide
p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone; GAPDH, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate
dehydrogenase. ![]()
2 H. J. Grav, P. Bohov, E. Hvattum, and R. K. Berge, unpublished
experiments. ![]()
| ACKNOWLEDGMENTS |
|---|
| REFERENCES |
|---|
|
|
|---|
This article has been cited by other articles:
![]() |
A. R. Kennedy, P. Pissios, H. Otu, B. Xue, K. Asakura, N. Furukawa, F. E. Marino, F.-F. Liu, B. B. Kahn, T. A. Libermann, et al. A high-fat, ketogenic diet induces a unique metabolic state in mice Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab, June 1, 2007; 292(6): E1724 - E1739. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
P. O. Iversen, D. R. Sorensen, K. J. Tronstad, O. A. Gudbrandsen, A. C. Rustan, R. K. Berge, and C. A. Drevon A bioactively modified Fatty Acid improves survival and impairs metastasis in preclinical models of acute leukemia. Clin. Cancer Res., June 1, 2006; 12(11): 3525 - 3531. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
A. J. Murray, M. Panagia, D. Hauton, G. F. Gibbons, and K. Clarke Plasma Free Fatty Acids and Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor {alpha} in the Control of Myocardial Uncoupling Protein Levels Diabetes, December 1, 2005; 54(12): 3496 - 3502. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
D. Shen, T. P. Dalton, D. W. Nebert, and H. G. Shertzer Glutathione Redox State Regulates Mitochondrial Reactive Oxygen Production J. Biol. Chem., July 8, 2005; 280(27): 25305 - 25312. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
E. Dyroy, A. Yndestad, T. Ueland, B. Halvorsen, J. K. Damas, P. Aukrust, and R. K. Berge Antiinflammatory Effects of Tetradecylthioacetic Acid Involve Both Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor {alpha}-Dependent and -Independent Pathways Arterioscler. Thromb. Vasc. Biol., July 1, 2005; 25(7): 1364 - 1369. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
X. Sun and M. B. Zemel Calcium and Dairy Products Inhibit Weight and Fat Regain during Ad Libitum Consumption Following Energy Restriction in Ap2-Agouti Transgenic Mice J. Nutr., November 1, 2004; 134(11): 3054 - 3060. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
| All ASBMB Journals | Molecular and Cellular Proteomics |
| Journal of Lipid Research | ASBMB Today |