Vertical sleeve gastrectomy-derived gut metabolite licoricidin activates beige fat thermogenesis to combat obesity.

Obesity is a chronic metabolic disease, affecting individuals throughout the world. Bariatric surgery such as vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) provides sustained weight loss and improves glucose homeostasis in obese mice and humans. However, the precise underlying mechanisms remain elusive. In this study, we investigated the potential roles and the mechanisms of action of gut metabolites in VSG-induced anti-obesity effect and metabolic improvement. Methods: High-fat diet (HFD)-fed C57BL/6J mice were subjected to VSG. Energy dissipation in mice was monitored using metabolic cage experiments. The effects of VSG on gut microbiota and metabolites were determined by 16S rRNA sequencing and metabolomics, respectively. The metabolic beneficial effects of the identified gut metabolites were examined in mice by both oral administration and fat pad injection of the metabolites. Results: VSG in mice greatly increased thermogenic gene expression in beige fat, which was correlated with increased energy expenditure. VSG reshaped gut microbiota composition, resulting in elevated levels of gut metabolites including licoricidin. Licoricidin treatment promoted thermogenic gene expression in beige fat by activating the Adrb3-cAMP-PKA signaling pathway, leading to reduced body weight gain in HFD-fed mice. Conclusions: We identify licoricidin, which mediates the crosstalk between gut and adipose tissue in mice, as a VSG-provoked anti-obesity metabolite. Identification of anti-obesity small molecules should provide new insights into treatment options for obesity and its associated metabolic diseases.

Role of the CLOCK protein in liver detoxification.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Whether and how circadian clock proteins regulate drug detoxification are not known. Here, we have assessed the effects of CLOCK (a core circadian clock protein) on drug metabolism and detoxification. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: Regulation by CLOCK protein of drug-metabolizing enzymes was assessed using Clock knockout (Clock-/- ) mice and Hepa-1c1c7/AML-12 cells. The relative mRNA and protein levels were determined by qPCR and Western blotting respectively. Toxicity and pharmacokinetic experiments were performed with Clock-/- and wild-type mice after intraperitoneal injection of coumarin or cyclophosphamide. Transcriptional gene regulation was investigated using luciferase reporter, mobility shift, and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays. KEY RESULTS: Clock deletion disrupted hepatic diurnal expressions of a number of drug-metabolizing enzymes in mice. In particular, CYP2A4/5 expressions were markedly down-regulated, whereas CYP2B10 was up-regulated. Positive regulation of Cyp2a4/5 and negative regulation of Cyp2b10 by CLOCK were confirmed in Hepa-1c1c7 and AML-12 cells. Based on a combination of luciferase reporter, mobility shift, and ChIP assays, we found that CLOCK activated Cyp2a4/5 transcription via specific binding to E-box elements in promoter region and repressed Cyp2b10 transcription through REV-ERBα/ß (two target genes of CLOCK and transcriptional repressors of Cyp2b10). Furthermore, Clock ablation sensitized mice to coumarin toxicity by down-regulating CYP2A4/5-mediated metabolism (a detoxification pathway) and to cyclophosphamide toxicity by up-regulating CYP2B10-mediated metabolism (generating the toxic metabolite 4-hydroxycyclophosphamide). CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS: CLOCK protein regulates metabolism by the cytochrome P450 family and drug detoxification. The findings improve our understanding of the crosstalk between circadian clock and drug detoxification.

In Vitro Study of SnS2, BiOCl and SnS2-Incorporated BiOCl Inorganic Nanoparticles Used as Doxorubicin Carrier.

Inorganic nanoparticles have been widely used in biomedical field. In this paper, we try to study the use of three types of inorganic nanoparticles (i.e., SnS2, BiOCl and SnS2-incorporated BiOCl (SnS2/BiOCl)) as doxorubicin (DOX) carriers. Firstly, SnS2, BiOCl and SnS2/BiOCl were synthesised, then were characterized by TEM, nanoparticles size and zeta potential. Next the drug release and cell viability test were carried out. The cell viability test indicated that the drug carriers can effectively kill HeLa cells while maintaining low cytotoxicity against normal cells-fibroblasts. The results show the potential of SnS2/BiOCl nanoparticles for antitumor applications.