Novel role of a triglyceride-synthesizing enzyme: DGAT1 at the crossroad between triglyceride and cholesterol metabolism.

Acyl-CoA:diacylglycerol acyltransferase 1 (DGAT1) is a key enzyme in triacylglycerol (TG) biosynthesis. Here we show that genetic deficiency and pharmacological inhibition of DGAT1 in mice alters cholesterol metabolism. Cholesterol absorption, as assessed by acute cholesterol uptake, was significantly decreased in the small intestine and liver upon DGAT1 deficiency/inhibition. Ablation of DGAT1 in the intestine (I-DGAT1(-/-)) alone is sufficient to cause these effects. Consequences of I-DGAT1 deficiency phenocopy findings in whole-body DGAT1(-/-) and DGAT1 inhibitor-treated mice. We show that deficiency/inhibition of DGAT1 affects cholesterol metabolism via reduced chylomicron size and increased trans-intestinal cholesterol excretion. These effects are independent of cholesterol uptake at the apical surface of enterocytes but mediated through altered dietary fatty acid metabolism. Our findings provide insight into a novel role of DGAT1 and identify a pathway by which intestinal DGAT1 deficiency affects whole-body cholesterol homeostasis in mice. Targeting intestinal DGAT1 may represent a novel approach for treating hypercholesterolemia.

Active autophagy but not lipophagy in macrophages with defective lipolysis.

During autophagy, autophagosomes fuse with lysosomes to degrade damaged organelles and misfolded proteins. Breakdown products are released into the cytosol and contribute to energy and metabolic building block supply, especially during starvation. Lipophagy has been defined as the autophagy-mediated degradation of lipid droplets (LDs) by lysosomal acid lipase. Adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL) is the major enzyme catalyzing the initial step of lipolysis by hydrolyzing triglycerides (TGs) in cytosolic LDs. Consequently, most organs and cells, including macrophages, lacking ATGL accumulate TGs, resulting in reduced intracellular free fatty acid concentrations. Macrophages deficient in hormone-sensitive lipase (H0) lack TG accumulation albeit reduced in vitro TG hydrolase activity. We hypothesized that autophagy is activated in lipase-deficient macrophages to counteract their energy deficit. We therefore generated mice lacking both ATGL and HSL (A0H0). Macrophages from A0H0 mice showed 73% reduced neutral TG hydrolase activity, resulting in TG-rich LD accumulation. Increased expression of cathepsin B, accumulation of LC3-II, reduced expression of p62 and increased DQ-BSA dequenching suggest intact autophagy and functional lysosomes in A0H0 macrophages. Markedly decreased acid TG hydrolase activity and lipid flux independent of bafilomycin A1 treatment, however, argue against effective lysosomal degradation of LDs in A0H0 macrophages. We conclude that autophagy of proteins and cell organelles but not of LDs is active as a compensatory mechanism to circumvent and balance the reduced availability of energy substrates in A0H0 macrophages.

Endoplasmic reticulum stress impairs cholesterol efflux and synthesis in hepatic cells.

Metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes cause hepatic endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, which affects neutral lipid metabolism. However, the role of ER stress in cholesterol metabolism is incompletely understood. Here, we show that induction of acute ER stress in human hepatic HepG2 cells reduced ABCA1 expression and caused ABCA1 redistribution to tubular perinuclear compartments. Consequently, cholesterol efflux to apoA-I, a key step in nascent HDL formation, was diminished by 80%. Besides ABCA1, endogenous apoA-I expression was reduced upon ER stress induction, which contributed to reduced cholesterol efflux. Liver X receptor, a key regulator of ABCA1 in peripheral cells, was not involved in this process. Despite reduced cholesterol efflux, cellular cholesterol levels remained unchanged during ER stress. This was due to impaired de novo cholesterol synthesis by reduction of HMG-CoA reductase activity by 70%, although sterol response element-binding protein-2 activity was induced. In mice, ER stress induction led to a marked reduction of hepatic ABCA1 expression. However, HDL cholesterol levels were unaltered, presumably because of scavenger receptor class B, type I downregulation under ER stress. Taken together, our data suggest that ER stress in metabolic disorders reduces HDL biogenesis due to impaired hepatic ABCA1 function.

Deletion of CGI-58 or adipose triglyceride lipase differently affects macrophage function and atherosclerosis.

Cellular TG stores are efficiently hydrolyzed by adipose TG lipase (ATGL). Its coactivator comparative gene identification-58 (CGI-58) strongly increases ATGL-mediated TG catabolism in cell culture experiments. To investigate the consequences of CGI-58 deficiency in murine macrophages, we generated mice with a targeted deletion of CGI-58 in myeloid cells (macCGI-58(-/-) mice). CGI-58(-/-) macrophages accumulate intracellular TG-rich lipid droplets and have decreased phagocytic capacity, comparable to ATGL(-/-) macrophages. In contrast to ATGL(-/-) macrophages, however, CGI-58(-/-) macrophages have intact mitochondria and show no indications of mitochondrial apoptosis and endoplasmic reticulum stress, suggesting that TG accumulation per se lacks a significant role in processes leading to mitochondrial dysfunction. Another notable difference is the fact that CGI-58(-/-) macrophages adopt an M1-like phenotype in vitro. Finally, we investigated atherosclerosis susceptibility in macCGI-58/ApoE-double KO (DKO) animals. In response to high-fat/high-cholesterol diet feeding, DKO animals showed comparable plaque formation as observed in ApoE(-/-) mice. In agreement, antisense oligonucleotide-mediated knockdown of CGI-58 in LDL receptor(-/-) mice did not alter atherosclerosis burden in the aortic root. These results suggest that macrophage function and atherosclerosis susceptibility differ fundamentally in these two animal models with disturbed TG catabolism, showing a more severe phenotype by ATGL deficiency.

Adipose triglyceride lipase is a TG hydrolase of the small intestine and regulates intestinal PPARα signaling.

Adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL) is the rate-limiting enzyme mediating triglyceride (TG) hydrolysis. The lack of ATGL results in TG accumulation in multiple tissues, underscoring the critical role of ATGL in maintaining lipid homeostasis. Recent evidence suggests that ATGL affects TG metabolism via activation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα). To investigate specific effects of intestinal ATGL on lipid metabolism we generated mice lacking ATGL exclusively in the intestine (ATGLiKO). We found decreased TG hydrolase activity and increased intracellular TG content in ATGLiKO small intestines. Intragastric administration of [(3)H]trioleate resulted in the accumulation of radioactive TG in the intestine, whereas absorption into the systemic circulation was unchanged. Intraperitoneally injected [(3)H]oleate also accumulated within TG in ATGLiKO intestines, indicating that ATGL mobilizes fatty acids from the systemic circulation absorbed by the basolateral side from the blood. Down-regulation of PPARα target genes suggested modulation of cholesterol absorption by intestinal ATGL. Accordingly, ATGL deficiency in the intestine resulted in delayed cholesterol absorption. Importantly, this study provides evidence that ATGL has no impact on intestinal TG absorption but hydrolyzes TGs taken up from the intestinal lumen and systemic circulation. Our data support the role of ATGL in modulating PPARα-dependent processes also in the small intestine.

Cholesteryl ester accumulation and accelerated cholesterol absorption in intestine-specific hormone sensitive lipase-null mice.

Hormone sensitive lipase (HSL) regulates the hydrolysis of acylglycerols and cholesteryl esters (CE) in various cells and organs, including enterocytes of the small intestine. The physiological role of this enzyme in enterocytes, however, stayed elusive. In the present study we generated mice lacking HSL exclusively in the small intestine (HSLiKO) to investigate the impact of HSL deficiency on intestinal lipid metabolism and the consequences on whole body lipid homeostasis. Chow diet-fed HSLiKO mice showed unchanged plasma lipid concentrations. In addition, feeding with high fat/high cholesterol (HF/HC) diet led to unaltered triglyceride but increased plasma cholesterol concentrations and CE accumulation in the small intestine. The same effect was observed after an acute cholesterol load. Gavaging of radioactively labeled cholesterol resulted in increased abundance of radioactivity in plasma, liver and small intestine of HSLiKO mice 4h post-gavaging. However, cholesterol absorption determined by the fecal dual-isotope ratio method revealed no significant difference, suggesting that HSLiKO mice take up the same amount of cholesterol but in an accelerated manner. mRNA expression levels of genes involved in intestinal cholesterol transport and esterification were unchanged but we observed downregulation of HMG-CoA reductase and synthase and consequently less intestinal cholesterol biosynthesis. Taken together our study demonstrates that the lack of intestinal HSL leads to CE accumulation in the small intestine, accelerated cholesterol absorption and decreased cholesterol biosynthesis, indicating that HSL plays an important role in intestinal cholesterol homeostasis.

Lack of acyl-CoA:diacylglycerol acyltransferase 1 reduces intestinal cholesterol absorption and attenuates atherosclerosis in apolipoprotein E knockout mice.

Triacylglycerols (TG) are the major storage molecules of metabolic energy and fatty acids in several tissues. The final step in TG biosynthesis is catalyzed by acyl-CoA:diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT) enzymes. Lack of whole body DGAT1 is associated with reduced lipid-induced inflammation. Since one major component of atherosclerosis is chronic inflammation we hypothesized that DGAT1 deficiency might ameliorate atherosclerotic lesion development. We therefore crossbred Apolipoprotein E-deficient (ApoE(-/-)) mice with Dgat1(-/-) mice. ApoE(-/-) and ApoE(-/-)Dgat1(-/-) mice were fed Western-type diet (WTD) for 9weeks and thereafter examined for plaque formation. The mean atherosclerotic lesion area was substantially reduced in ApoE(-/-)Dgat1(-/-) compared with ApoE(-/-) mice in en face and aortic valve section analyses. The reduced lesion size was associated with decreased cholesterol uptake and absorption by the intestine, reduced plasma TG and cholesterol concentrations and increased cholesterol efflux from macrophages. The expression of adhesion molecules was reduced in aortas of ApoE(-/-)Dgat1(-/-) mice, which might be the reason for less migration capacities of monocytes and macrophages and the observed decreased amount of macrophages within the plaques. From our results we conclude that the lack of DGAT1 is atheroprotective, implicating an additional application of DGAT1 inhibitors with regard to maintaining cholesterol homeostasis and attenuating atherosclerosis.

Intestinal GATA4 deficiency protects from diet-induced hepatic steatosis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: GATA4, a zinc finger domain transcription factor, is critical for jejunal identity. Mice with an intestine-specific GATA4 deficiency (GATA4iKO) are resistant to diet-induced obesity and insulin resistance. Although they have decreased intestinal lipid absorption, hepatic de novo lipogenesis is inhibited. Here, we investigated dietary lipid-dependent and independent effects on the development of steatosis and fibrosis in GATA4iKO mice. METHODS: GATA4iKO and control mice were fed a Western-type diet (WTD) or a methionine and choline-deficient diet (MCDD) for 20 and 3 weeks, respectively. Functional effects of GATA4iKO on diet-induced liver steatosis were investigated. RESULTS: WTD-but not MCDD-fed GATA4iKO mice showed lower hepatic concentrations of triglycerides, free fatty acids, and thiobarbituric acid reactive species and had reduced expression of lipogenic as well as fibrotic genes compared with controls. Reduced nuclear sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1c protein levels were accompanied by lower lipogenic gene expression. Oil red O and Sirius Red staining of liver sections confirmed the observed reduction in hepatic lipid accumulation and fibrosis. Immunohistochemical staining revealed an increased number of jejunal glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) positive cells in GATA4iKO mice. Consequently, we found enhanced phosphorylation of hepatic AMP-activated protein kinase and acetyl-CoA carboxylase alpha. CONCLUSIONS: Our results provide strong indications for a protective effect of intestinal GATA4 deficiency on the development of hepatic steatosis and fibrosis via GLP-1, thereby blocking hepatic de novo lipogenesis.

Enterocyte-specific ATGL overexpression affects intestinal and systemic cholesterol homeostasis.

Enterocytes of the small intestine (SI) play an important role in maintaining systemic lipid levels by regulating dietary lipid absorption and postprandial lipoprotein secretion. An excessive amount of dietary-derived triglycerides (TGs) taken up by the apical side of enterocytes or basolaterally internalized lipoprotein remnants can be transiently stored in cytosolic lipid droplets (cLDs). As mice lacking adipose TG lipase (ATGL) in the SI display massive accumulation of cLDs but also delayed cholesterol absorption, we hypothesized that SI-specific overexpression of ATGL (Atgl iTg) might have beneficial effects on lipid homeostasis in the gut and possibly throughout the body. Here, we demonstrate that Atgl iTg mice had only modestly increased enzymatic activity despite drastically elevated Atgl mRNA levels (up to 120-fold) on chow diet, and was highly induced upon high-fat/high-cholesterol diet (HF/HCD) feeding. Atgl iTg mice showed markedly reduced intestinal TG concentrations after acute and chronic lipid challenge without affecting chylomicron TG secretion. Circulating plasma cholesterol levels were significantly lower in Atgl iTg mice under different feeding conditions, contrasting the accelerated uptake of dietary cholesterol into the circulation after HF/HCD feeding. In the fasted state, gene expression analysis revealed modulation of PPARα and liver X receptor (LXR) target genes by an increased fatty acid release, whereas the decreased plasma cholesterol concentrations in refed mice were more likely due to changes in HDL synthesis and secretion. We conclude that ATGL, in addition to its role in TG catabolism, plays a critical role in whole-body cholesterol homeostasis by modulating PPARα and LXR signaling in intestinal enterocytes.

Loss of intestinal GATA4 prevents diet-induced obesity and promotes insulin sensitivity in mice.

Transcriptional regulation of small intestinal gene expression controls plasma total cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) levels, which are major determinants of metabolic diseases. GATA4, a zinc finger domain transcription factor, is critical for jejunal identity, and intestinal GATA4 deficiency leads to a jejunoileal transition. Although intestinal GATA4 ablation is known to misregulate jejunal gene expression, its pathophysiological impact on various components of metabolic syndrome remains unknown. Here, we used intestine-specific GATA4 knockout (GATA4iKO) mice to dissect the contribution of GATA4 on obesity development. We challenged adult GATA4iKO mice and control littermates with a Western-type diet (WTD) for 20 wk. Our findings show that WTD-fed GATA4iKO mice are resistant to diet-induced obesity. Accordingly, plasma TG and TC levels are markedly decreased. Intestinal lipid absorption in GATA4iKO mice was strongly reduced, whereas luminal lipolysis was unaffected. GATA4iKO mice displayed a greater glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) release on normal chow and even after long-term challenge with WTD remained glucose sensitive. In summary, our findings show that the absence of intestinal GATA4 has a beneficial effect on decreasing intestinal lipid absorption causing resistance to hyperlipidemia and obesity. In addition, we show that increased GLP-1 release in GATA4iKO mice decreases the risk for development of insulin resistance.

ATGL/CGI-58-Dependent Hydrolysis of a Lipid Storage Pool in Murine Enterocytes.

As circulating lipid levels are balanced by the rate of lipoprotein release and clearance from the plasma, lipid absorption in the small intestine critically contributes to the maintenance of whole-body lipid homeostasis. Within enterocytes, excessive triglycerides are transiently stored as cytosolic lipid droplets (cLDs), and their mobilization sustains lipid supply during interprandial periods. Using mice lacking adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL) and its coactivator comparative gene identification-58 (CGI-58) exclusively in the intestine (intestine-specific double KO [iDKO]), we show that ATGL/CGI-58 are not involved in providing substrates for chylomicron synthesis. Massive intestinal cLD accumulation in iDKO mice independent of dietary lipids together with inefficient lipid incorporation into cLDs in the early absorption phase demonstrate the existence of a secretion/re-uptake cycle, corroborating the availability of two diverse cLD pools. This study identified ATGL/CGI-58 as critical players in the catabolism of basolaterally (blood) derived lipids and highlights the necessity to modify the current model of intestinal lipid metabolism.

Pleiotropic regulation of mitochondrial function by adipose triglyceride lipase-mediated lipolysis.

Lipolysis is defined as the catabolism of triacylglycerols (TGs) stored in cellular lipid droplets. Recent discoveries of essential lipolytic enzymes and characterization of numerous regulatory proteins and mechanisms have fundamentally changed our perception of lipolysis and its impact on cellular metabolism. Adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL) is the rate-limiting enzyme for TG catabolism in most cells and tissues. This review focuses on recent advances in understanding the (patho)physiological impact due to defective lipolysis by ATGL deficiency on mitochondrial (dys)function. Depending on the type of cells and tissues investigated, absence of ATGL has pleiotropic roles in mitochondrial function.

Novel amino-ß-lactam derivatives as potent cholesterol absorption inhibitors.

Two new trans-(3R,4R)-amino-ß-lactam derivatives and their diastereoisomeric mixtures were synthesized as ezetimibe bioisosteres and tested in in vitro and in vivo experiments as novel ß-lactam cholesterol absorption inhibitors. Both compounds exhibited low cytotoxicity in MDCKII, hNPC1L1/MDCKII, and HepG2 cell lines and potent inhibitory effect in hNPC1L1/MDCKII cells. In addition, these compounds markedly reduced cholesterol absorption in mice, resulting in reduced cholesterol concentrations in plasma, liver, and intestine. We determined the crystal structure of one amino-ß-lactam derivative to establish unambiguously both the absolute and relative configuration at the new stereogenic centre C17, which was assigned to be S. The pKa values for both compounds are 9.35, implying that the amino-ß-lactam derivatives and their diastereoisomeric mixtures are in form of ammonium salt in blood and the intestine. The IC50 value for the diastereoisomeric mixture is 60 µM. In vivo, it efficiently inhibited cholesterol absorption comparable to ezetimibe.

Xanthohumol ameliorates atherosclerotic plaque formation, hypercholesterolemia, and hepatic steatosis in ApoE-deficient mice.

SCOPE: Xanthohumol (XN), a prenylated antioxidative and anti-inflammatory chalcone from hops, exhibits positive effects on lipid and glucose metabolism. Based on its favorable biological properties, we investigated whether XN attenuates atherosclerosis in western-type diet-fed apolipoprotein-E-deficient (ApoE⁻/⁻) mice. METHODS AND RESULTS: XN supplementation markedly reduced plasma cholesterol concentrations, decreased atherosclerotic lesion area, and attenuated plasma concentrations of the proinflammatory cytokine monocyte chemoattractant protein 1. Decreased hepatic triglyceride and cholesterol content, activation of AMP-activated protein kinase, phosphorylation and inactivation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase, and reduced expression levels of mature sterol regulatory element-binding protein (SREBP)-2 and SREBP-1c mRNA indicate reduced lipogenesis in the liver of XN-fed ApoE⁻/⁻ mice. Concomitant induction of hepatic mRNA expression of carnitine palmitoyltransferase-1a in ApoE⁻/⁻ mice-administered XN suggests increased fatty acid beta-oxidation. Fecal cholesterol concentrations were also markedly increased in XN-fed ApoE⁻/⁻ mice compared with mice fed western-type diet alone. CONCLUSION: The atheroprotective effects of XN might be attributed to combined beneficial effects on plasma cholesterol and monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 concentrations and hepatic lipid metabolism via activation of AMP-activated protein kinase.

Synthetic LXR agonist suppresses endogenous cholesterol biosynthesis and efficiently lowers plasma cholesterol.

The liver X receptors (LXRs) are key regulators of genes involved in cholesterol homeostasis. Natural ligands and activators of LXRs are oxysterols. Numerous steroidal and non-steroidal synthetic LXR ligands are under development as potential drugs for individuals suffering from lipid disorders. N,N-dimethyl-3ß-hydroxycholenamide (DMHCA) is a steroidal ligand of LXRs that exerts anti-atherogenic effects in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice without causing negative side effects such as liver steatosis or hypertriglyceridemia. In this report, we investigated the consequences of DMHCA treatment on cholesterol homeostasis in vivo and in vitro. Despite its hydrophobicity, DMHCA is readily absorbed by C57BL/6 mice and taken up by intestinal cells, the lung, heart and kidneys, but is undetectable in the brain. DMHCA significantly reduces cholesterol absorption and uptake in duodenum and jejunum of the small intestine and in turn leads to a reduction of plasma cholesterol by 24%. The most striking finding of this study is that DMHCA inhibited the enzyme 3ß-hydroxysterol-Δ24-reductase resulting in an accumulation of desmosterol in the plasma and in feces. Thus, the reduction of plasma cholesterol was due to a block in the final step of cholesterol biosynthesis. Taken together, DMHCA is an interesting compound with properties distinct from other LXR ligands and might be used to study desmosterol-mediated effects in cells and tissues.