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J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 282, Issue 44, 31835-31843, November 2, 2007
Glucose Regulates Diacylglycerol Intracellular Levels and Protein Kinase C Activity by Modulating Diacylglycerol Kinase Subcellular Localization* 1 1![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() 2
From the
Received for publication, March 22, 2007 , and in revised form, August 1, 2007.
Although chronic hyperglycemia reduces insulin sensitivity and leads to impaired glucose utilization, short term exposure to high glucose causes cellular responses positively regulating its own metabolism. We show that exposure of L6 myotubes overexpressing human insulin receptors to 25 mM glucose for 5 min decreased the intracellular levels of diacylglycerol (DAG). This was paralleled by transient activation of diacylglycerol kinase (DGK) and of insulin receptor signaling. Following 30-min exposure, however, both DAG levels and DGK activity returned close to basal levels. Moreover, the acute effect of glucose on DAG removal was inhibited by >85% by the DGK inhibitor R59949. [GenBank] DGK inhibition was also accompanied by increased protein kinase C- (PKC ) activity, reduced glucose-induced insulin receptor activation, and GLUT4 translocation. Glucose exposure transiently redistributed DGK isoforms and , from the prevalent cytosolic localization to the plasma membrane fraction. However, antisense silencing of DGK , but not of DGK expression, was sufficient to prevent the effect of high glucose on PKC activity, insulin receptor signaling, and glucose uptake. Thus, the short term exposure of skeletal muscle cells to glucose causes a rapid induction of DGK, followed by a reduction of PKC activity and transactivation of the insulin receptor signaling. The latter may mediate, at least in part, glucose induction of its own metabolism.
Prolonged hyperglycemia is a key contributor in development and progression of diabetic complications (1). It has also been established that chronically elevated glucose levels may worsen insulin sensitivity and impair insulin control of glucose metabolism (2). This is due, at least in part, to persistent activation of conventional isoforms of the protein kinase C (PKC),3 which in turn, down-regulate insulin signaling either by direct phosphorylation of insulin receptor (IR) and insulin receptor substrates (IRSs) or by indirect mechanisms (3–5). The latter include regulation of gene expression and stress-related responses (6, 7). Increased activity of the conventional PKC and elevated levels of diacylglycerol (DAG), the main endogenous activator, have also been documented in several tissues from animal models and diabetic individuals (4, 8–10). On the other hand, evidence exists indicating that glucose acutely activates its own utilization, both in vitro and in vivo (11–13). In vivo, these regulatory actions have been attributed to the mass action effect of glucose (14). Subsequently, it has been shown that acute hyperglycemia per se may increase muscle membrane content of GLUT4 (12, 15).
Although several studies have investigated the chronic effect of high glucose concentrations on PKC activity (2–4), the molecular mechanisms of the short term autoregulatory effect have been only partially elucidated. In a previous work we have shown that, in a skeletal muscle cell model, acute exposure to increasing glucose concentrations determined a parallel increase in glucose uptake and its intracellular metabolism (13). Glucose autoregulation involves PKC
The differences in the regulatory domains of the various sub-types, together with the differential tissue expression pattern of the different isoforms suggest that the regulation of DGKs varies among cell types and/or in response to different stimuli and that the DGK isoforms serve distinct although related functions (23, 24). DGK may serve as an off switch controlling PKC activation, thereby mediating the acute glucose regulation of its own metabolism. In the present work we have investigated the mechanism involved in acute regulation of PKC
Materials—Media and sera for tissue culture and the transfection reagent, N-[1-(2,3-diomeoyloxy)propyl]-N,N,N-trimethylammonium chloride/dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine, were purchased from Invitrogen. Electrophoresis reagents were from Bio-Rad. Protein A-Sepharose beads was from Pierce. Radiochemicals, Western blot, ECL reagents, and the DAG quantification test kit and the PKC enzyme assay system were purchased from Amersham Biosciences. Polyclonal GLUT4 antibody was from Biogenesis (Sandown, NH). Polyclonal antibody toward PKC was from Invitrogen. Polyclonal antibodies toward DGK and DGK have been previously generated and characterized (25, 26). DGK antibody was purchased from Santa Cruz Biotechnology (Santa Cruz, CA). All other reagents, including the DGK inhibitor R59949
[GenBank]
, were from Sigma. Cell Culture—The L6 cell clones expressing the wild-type human insulin receptors have been previously characterized and described (13). Cells were grown in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium containing 25 mM glucose and supplemented with 2% fetal bovine serum as described previously (13) and used at the myotube stage of differentiation. Determination of DAG Cellular Content—DAG content was quantified radioenzymatically by incubating aliquots of the lipid extract with DAG kinase and [32P]ATP, as described by Preiss et al. (27). The manufacturer's instructions for the commercially available DAG test kit were followed. The 32P-labeled PA was purified using chloroform/methanol/acetic acid (65: 15:5, v/v) as a solvent system and quantified with a Storm 860 PhosphorImager (Amersham Biosciences). Western Blot Analysis—Western blot analysis was performed as previously reported (12, 28). Briefly, cells were rinsed and incubated in glucose-free buffer (20 mM Hepes, pH 7.8, 120 mM NaCl, 5 mM KCl, 2.5 mM MgSO4, 10 mM NaHCO3, 1,3 mM CaCl2, 1.2 mM KH2PO4, 0.25% bovine serum albumin) for 3 h. The cells were subsequently incubated for 5 and 30 min in the same buffer supplemented with the indicated concentrations of glucose or R59949 [GenBank] , as indicated. Then the cells were solubilized in lysis buffer (50 mM HEPES, pH 7.5, 150 mM NaCl, 10 mM EDTA, 10 mM Na2P2O7, 2 mM Na3VO4, 100 mM NaF, 10% glycerol, 1% Triton X-100, 1 mM phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, 10 µg/ml aprotinin) for 2 h at 4°C. Cell lysates were clarified by centrifugation at 5000 x g for 20 min, separated by SDS-PAGE, and transferred into 0.45-µm Immobilon-P membranes (Millipore, Bedford, MA). Upon incubation with primary and secondary antibodies, immunoreactive bands were detected by ECL according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Purified Plasma Membrane Preparations—Purified plasma membrane preparations were obtained as in Caruso et al. (13) with slight modifications. Briefly, the cells, after exposure to glucose or R59949
[GenBank]
for the indicated times, were further incubated for 10 min in glucose-free buffer, washed in ice-cold phosphate-buffered saline, and homogenized in 500 µl of ice-cold fractionation buffer (20 mM HEPES-NaOH, pH 7.4, 250 mM sucrose, 25 mM sodium fluoride, 1 mM sodium pyrophosphate, 0.1 mM sodium orthovanadate, 2 µM microcystin LR, 1 mM benzamidine) by passing them 10 times through a 22-gauge needle. The cell lysates were centrifuged at 800 x g for 5 min at 4 °C. Supernatants were further centrifuged at 100,000 x g for 20 min at 4 °C. The final supernatants were collected and used as the cytosolic fraction. The membrane pellet was solubilized in Buffer A containing 1% Triton X-100 by bath sonication and centrifuged at 12,000 x g for 10 min at 4 °C, and the supernatant was used as the membrane fraction. Cytosolic and membrane fractions were then analyzed by Western blot. Purity (>90%) of the subcellular fractions was assessed by immunoblot with antibody against the Determinations of 2-Deoxy-D-glucose Uptake—For 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG) uptake studies, cells were rinsed and incubated in glucose-free buffer (20 mM Hepes, pH 7.8, 120 mM NaCl, 5 mM KCl, 2.5 mM MgSO4, 10 mM NaHCO3, 1,3 mM CaCl2, 1.2 mM KH2PO4, 0.25% bovine serum albumin) for 3 h. The cells were subsequently incubated for 3 min in the same buffer supplemented with the indicated concentrations of glucose or/and R59949 [GenBank] , washed again, and incubated for further 10 min in glucose-free buffer containing 2-DG (final concentration, 0.15 mM) and 0.5 µCi/assay [14C]2-DG (13). The cells were finally lysed, and 2-DG uptake was determined by liquid scintillation counting.
Protein Kinase C Assays—Determination of PKC activity was achieved with a commercially available kit (Invitrogen, catalogue number 13161-013). This assay kit is based on measurement of phosphorylation of the synthetic peptide from myelin basic protein Ac-MBP (4–14) by PKC (in the presence of activators) as described by Yasuda et al. (29). PKC specificity is confirmed by using the PKC pseudosubstrate inhibitor peptide. For analyzing PKC activity, L6 cells were deprived from serum and glucose as described above and then exposed to 25 mM glucose as indicated. PKC activity was then quantitated in total cell lysates or cell fractions or in immunoprecipitates as previously reported (30) and according to the manufacturer's instructions. Briefly, cells were solubilized in the extraction buffer (20 mM Tris, pH 7.5, 0.5 mM EDTA, 0.5 mM EGTA, 0.5% Triton X-100, 25 mg/ml aprotinin, and 25 mg/ml leupeptin) and then clarified by centrifugation at 10,000 x g for 15 min at 4 °C. Upon protein quantitation, equal aliquots of the extract were added to the lipid activators (10 µM phorbol 12-myristate,13-acetate, 0.28 mg/ml phosphatidylserine, and 4 mg/ml dioleine, final concentrations) and the 32P-substrate solution (50 mM Ac-MBP (4–14), 20 µM ATP, 1 mM CaCl2, 20 mM MgCl2, 4 mM Tris, pH 7.5, and 10 mCi/ml (3,000 Ci/mM) [
DGK Antisense silencing—For antisense studies, a phosphorothioate DGK
DGK Enzymatic Assays—DGK activity was assayed in vitro as previously described (31). Briefly, octylglucoside/DAG-mixed micelles were prepared as follows: a mixture of 0.25 mM DAG, 55 mM octylglucoside, and phosphatidylserine (either 1 mM, resulting in 1.8 mol% in micelles, or 5 mM, resulting in 8.3 mol% in micelles) was resuspended in 1 mM diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, pH 7.4, by vortex-mixing and sonication until the suspension appeared clear. 20 µl of mixed micelles was added to 70 µl of reaction mix (final concentration: 100 µM diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, pH 7.4, 50 mM imidazole-HCl, 50 mM NaCl, 12.5 mM MgCl2, 1 mM EGTA, 1 mM dithiothreitol, 1 mM [
Glucose Effect on DAG Levels in L6 Skeletal Muscle Cells—We investigated whether the intracellular levels of DAG were changed by exposure of L6hIR myotubes to high glucose concentrations. The L6hIR (L6 Cl Wt1 and Wt2) are clones of L6 cells overexpressing human insulin receptors and have been previously generated and characterized (13). In both clones of L6hIR myotubes, incubation with 25 mM glucose for 5 min induced a decrease in DAG levels of 2-fold as compared with untreated cells (p < 0.001). Prolonging glucose exposure at 30 and 60 min, DAG levels were increased by 1.4- and 1.6-fold over basal levels, respectively (Fig. 1). To evaluate the specificity of glucose effect, DAG levels were measured in the same cells treated with 25 mM xylose. No variation occurred in DAG levels after xylose treatment (Fig. 1). In addition, acute glucose exposure of the cells following preincubation with 25 mM pyruvate in the glucose-free medium elicited similar effects (Fig. 1), indicating that glucose effect was not due to changes in osmolarity or to energy depletion. Glucose Effect on DGK Activity in L6 Myotubes—To investigate the mechanism by which glucose regulates DAG levels, we measured cellular DGK activity in L6hIR (L6 Cl Wt1 and Wt2) myotubes after exposure to 25 mM glucose for 5 and 30 min. After 5 min of glucose stimulation, the levels of PA were increased by 12-fold (p < 0.001) (Fig. 2A). However, PA levels returned close to basal levels by prolonging the incubation with high glucose concentrations for up to 30 min. In addition, pharmacological inhibition of DGK with a well characterized non-isoform specific inhibitor, R59949 [GenBank] (1 mM), prevented the acute glucose-dependent increase in PA levels, suggesting that this increase was due to DGK activation. We next analyzed the effect of R59949 [GenBank] on the glucose-induced decrease in DAG levels (Fig. 2B). Interestingly, in the presence of the DGK inhibitor, DAG levels were slightly increased by glucose stimulation for 5 min, compared with basal levels. Thus, glucose-induced reciprocal changes of PA and DAG were largely prevented by DGK inhibition.
Effect of DGK Inhibition on Glucose-induced PKC Activity and Translocation—To investigate the role of DGK in glucose regulation of the DAG/PKC pathway, we evaluated the effect of DGK inhibition on PKC activity and translocation to the plasma membrane after exposure to 25 mM glucose. As previously shown (13), incubation of L6hIR myotubes with 25 mM glucose for 5 min induced a 2-fold decrease in PKC activity (Fig. 3A). Inhibition of DGK activity with R59949
[GenBank]
prevented the negative effect of glucose on PKC activity, which, instead, was increased by 1.5-fold over basal levels after 5 min of high glucose stimulation. Incubation with PA did not affect PKC activity in in vitro assays, suggesting that its accumulation was not responsible for PKC inhibition (data not shown). Treatment with R59949
[GenBank]
also prevented glucose-induced cytosolic retrotranslocation of PKC (Fig. 3B), indicating that DGK is involved in acute glucose regulation of PKC activity and translocation.
PKC may directly regulate DGK activity and modify intracellular DAG concentration (29). We therefore measured DAG levels in L6hIR cells after treatment with 100 nM bisindolylmaleimide, an inhibitor of the conventional PKC isoforms. In L6hIR myotubes, bisindolylmaleimide, although strongly reducing PKC activity (Fig. 3A), did not alter the glucose-induced decrease in DAG levels (Fig. 3C). Similarly, antisense inhibition of PKC did not significantly change the detection of cellular DAG (data not shown).
Effect of DGK Inhibition on Glucose Uptake and GLUT4 Recruitment on the Plasma Membrane—To investigate the role of DGK in regulation of glucose disposal, we analyzed glucose uptake in L6 myotubes upon blocking DGK with R59949
[GenBank]
(Fig. 4A). Exposure of L6 cells to 25 mM glucose for 5 min was paralleled by 2.3-fold increase in 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) uptake (p < 0.001). Preincubation of the cells with R59949
[GenBank]
or with the PI3K inhibitor LY294002 (100 µM) resulted in a >80% decrease in glucose-stimulated 2-DG uptake. In parallel with glucose uptake, the exposure to high glucose for 5 min increased GLUT4 content on the plasma membrane by
Glucose Activation of DGK Isoforms—Several DGK isoforms have been identified to date (19–21). To identify that responsible for acute glucose effect on DAG/PKC pathway, protein lysates of L6hIR myotubes were analyzed by Western blotting with isoform-specific DGK antibodies. We found that three isoforms of DGK (DGK- , - , and - ) were preferentially expressed in these cells (Fig. 5A). Translocation to the plasma membrane regulates DGK activity and isoform-specific functions (19). Thus, L6hIR cells were stimulated with 25 mM glucose for 5 and 30 min, and subcellular fractionation experiments were performed (Fig. 5B). In unstimulated myotubes, DGK and - were mainly cytosolic. After acute glucose exposure, DGK and - isoforms were rapidly (5 min) recruited to the plasma membrane. Membrane expression of both isoforms was then reduced after 30 min, returning to basal levels. Moreover, glucose effect was neither mimicked by 2-DG (Fig. 5C), nor by pyruvate (data not shown). At variance with the other isoforms, DGK remained largely cytosolic both in basal conditions and after glucose exposure (data not shown). Moreover, stimulation with 25 mM glucose for 5 min induced a 6-fold increase of DGK -specific activity (Fig. 6). The activity of DGK was still higher than basal after 30 min (difference not statistically significant), but 3-fold reduced, compared with the earlier time.
Effect of DGK and DGK Antisense on Glucose-regulated DAG Levels and PKC Activation—Next, we used specific DGK and DGK phosphorothioate antisense oligonucleotides (DGKAS and DGKAS ). Treatment of L6hIR myotubes with DGKAS or DGKAS led to a selective 70% reduction of the cellular content of DGK and DGK expression, respectively (Fig. 7A). The expression levels of both DGK isoforms were not affected by transfecting the nonspecific scrambled phosphorothioate oligonucleotides (PO and PO ). Interestingly, inhibition of DGK with the specific antisense oligonucleotides prevented the negative effect of glucose on PKC activation, which was actually increased by 3-fold over basal levels after 5 min of high glucose stimulation (Fig. 7B). At variance, inhibition of DGK had no effect on PKC activation. No changes of PKC expression were observed, however. Glucose-stimulated 2-DG uptake was also reduced by 80%, upon antisense inhibition of DGK , but not of DGK (Fig. 7C). Moreover, consistent with a negative regulation of insulin signaling, glucose-induced activation of insulin receptor, IRS2 tyrosine phosphorylation and protein kinase B/Akt activation were strongly reduced upon R59949
[GenBank]
and DGK-AS treatment of the cells (Fig. 8).
The ability of glucose to regulate its own metabolism has been extensively investigated (1–15). Although chronic exposure to high glucose concentrations, in vivo and in isolated cells, leads to inhibition of insulin sensitivity (2, 3) and glucotoxicity (32, 33), short term hyperglycemia induces glucose utilization (11–13) and may affect the utilization of other energy sources as well (14, 15, 34). For instance, hyperglycemia very rapidly induces insulin secretion by pancreatic cells (35). This plays an important role in regulating whole body glucose utilization (36). Nevertheless, peripheral tissues, including skeletal muscle, may contribute to glucose disposal by insulin-independent mechanisms (11–13). However, the molecular events responsible for the latter effect have been only partially defined. Our previous studies provided evidence that, in cultured skeletal muscle cells, high glucose concentrations transiently transactivate the insulin receptor kinase (13). In particular, we have shown that PKC is constitutively associated to the insulin receptor. Acute exposure of the cells to high glucose causes cytosolic translocation of PKC and induces its dissociation from the insulin receptor. This is followed by the removal of a tonic inhibitory constraint on the receptor tyrosine kinase, thereby promoting activation of downstream molecules and stimulation of the glucose uptake (13). In the present work we have further investigated the molecular mechanism by which glucose regulates PKC activity. DAG is the key lipid physiologically regulating PKC (14). We report that, at variance with chronic hyperglycemia (3), glucose treatment acutely reduces DAG levels. DAG metabolism is generally controlled by distinct pathways: (i) DAG lipase-mediated hydrolysis of fatty acyl chain to generate a monoacylglycerol and a free fatty acid; (ii) addition of CDP-choline or -ethanolamine to form phosphatidylcholine or phosphatidylethanolamine, or (iii) DGK-mediated phosphorylation of the free hydroxyl group to produce PA (22). Although we cannot exclude the former two possibilities, we show that acute glucose exposure induces DGK activation concomitantly to a reduction in PKC activity and its cytosolic translocation. The finding that the nonspecific DGK inhibitor R59949
[GenBank]
prevents glucose effect on its own uptake further supports the hypothesis that DGK activity plays a crucial role in glucose autoregulatory functions. Recently, another inhibitory compound, R59022
[GenBank]
, has been shown to stimulate glucose uptake in C2C12 skeletal muscle cells via a p38-mediated pathway (37). However, this stimulatory effect occurs upon 24 h incubation with the compound and may reflect cellular adaptation. Alternatively, different DGK isoforms might be independently involved.
Ten mammalian DGK isoforms have been identified to date (19, 20, 22). Except for DGK and - , all mammalian isoforms are highly expressed in the brain. DGKs are also highly expressed in muscle, with DGK and - mainly expressed in striated muscle and DGK and - in cardiac muscle (38). Here we show that DGK ,- , and - are expressed in L6 cells, and their total content is not regulated by glucose. At variance, acute glucose exposure induces DGK and - to selectively translocate to the plasma membrane and induces a specific increase of DGK- activity. Stronger evidence indicates that DGK , rather than DGK , is necessary for glucose to exert its function on PKC activity and cytosolic translocation. Indeed, selective silencing of DGK is sufficient to prevent glucose effect on PKC . These data are also in agreement with recent evidence indicating that DGK null mice feature increased PKC activity (39). Other groups have demonstrated that DGK activation is regulated by insulin, at least in the brain (40, 41), and Src-mediated phosphorylation at Tyr-334 is responsible for membrane translocation (40). In our experimental conditions, we failed to measure DGK activity, possibly due to technical limitation of the precipitating antibody. However, antisense inhibition of DGK in L6 myotubes did not produce effects on glucose-mediated PKC activation. Collectively, our data suggest that DGK is the major candidate for mediating glucose regulation of its own uptake. In this regard, lower doses of DGK antisense oligonucleotides reduced DGK intracellular levels to a lesser extent and were still capable of reducing PKC activation (data not shown). In addition, inhibition of DGK leads to a paradoxical glucose-induced increase of DAG levels (data not shown) and PKC activity (Fig. 7). Thus, the rapid and transient translocation of DGK on the plasma membrane may mediate the acute removal of DAG, preceding the sustained increase of DAG intracellular concentration which occurs after prolonged exposure to glucose.
It is possible that intermediate products of glucose metabolism or changes in lipid composition may lead to plasma membrane recruitment of DGK . However, our data indicate that neither 2-DG, a glucose analogue that is phosphorylated and not further metabolized, nor pyruvate mimic glucose action on DGK . It was reported that DGK is translocated from the cytoplasm to the plasma membrane by phorbol ester (DAG analogue) (42). Thus, it is possible that DAG concentration is quickly (within seconds) increased upon acute glucose load, but its detection is negligible because DGK consumes DAG immediately after its translocation.
We and others have previously shown that inhibition of PKC increases the activity of several tyrosine kinase receptors, including the insulin receptor (13, 39, 43). The reduction of PKC
In conclusion, our data indicate that glucose activates DGK, followed by reduction in intracellular DAG levels and removal of PKC
* This work was supported by the European Community's FP6 EUGENE2 (Grant LSHM-CT-2004-512013), by grants from the Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro (to F. B. and P. F.), by the Ministero dell'Università e della Ricerca Scientifica (Grant FIRB RBNE0155LB to F. B. and P. F.), and by Telethon-Italy. The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. This article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.
1 Both authors contributed equally to this work. 2 To whom correspondence should be addressed. Tel.: 39-081-746-3608; Fax: 39-081-746-3235; E-mail: fpietro{at}unina.it.
3 The abbreviations used are: PKC, protein kinase C; DAG, diacylglycerol; DGK, diacylglycerol kinase; PA, phosphatidic acid; 2-DG, 2-deoxyglucose; IR, insulin receptor; IRS, IR substrate.
We thank Dr. J. J. Rochford (University of Cambridge, UK) and Prof. G. Portella (Dipartimento di Biologia e Patologia Cellulare e Molecolare, Federico II University of Naples) for providing important reagents and very helpful discussion.
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