The pore-forming subunit MCU of the mitochondrial Ca2+ uniporter is required for normal glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in vitro and in vivo in mice.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Mitochondrial oxidative metabolism is central to glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS). Whether Ca2+ uptake into pancreatic beta cell mitochondria potentiates or antagonises this process is still a matter of debate. Although the mitochondrial Ca2+ importer (MCU) complex is thought to represent the main route for Ca2+ transport across the inner mitochondrial membrane, its role in beta cells has not previously been examined in vivo. METHODS: Here, we inactivated the pore-forming subunit of the MCU, encoded by Mcu, selectively in mouse beta cells using Ins1Cre-mediated recombination. Whole or dissociated pancreatic islets were isolated and used for live beta cell fluorescence imaging of cytosolic or mitochondrial Ca2+ concentration and ATP production in response to increasing glucose concentrations. Electrophysiological recordings were also performed on whole islets. Serum and blood samples were collected to examine oral and i.p. glucose tolerance. RESULTS: Glucose-stimulated mitochondrial Ca2+ accumulation (p< 0.05), ATP production (p< 0.05) and insulin secretion (p< 0.01) were strongly inhibited in beta cell-specific Mcu-null (ßMcu-KO) animals, in vitro, as compared with wild-type (WT) mice. Interestingly, cytosolic Ca2+ concentrations increased (p< 0.001), whereas mitochondrial membrane depolarisation improved in ßMcu-KO animals. ßMcu-KO mice displayed impaired in vivo insulin secretion at 5 min (p< 0.001) but not 15 min post-i.p. injection of glucose, whilst the opposite phenomenon was observed following an oral gavage at 5 min. Unexpectedly, glucose tolerance was improved (p< 0.05) in young ßMcu-KO (<12 weeks), but not in older animals vs WT mice. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: MCU is crucial for mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake in pancreatic beta cells and is required for normal GSIS. The apparent compensatory mechanisms that maintain glucose tolerance in ßMcu-KO mice remain to be established.

Selective disruption of Tcf7l2 in the pancreatic ß cell impairs secretory function and lowers ß cell mass.

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is characterized by ß cell dysfunction and loss. Single nucleotide polymorphisms in the T-cell factor 7-like 2 (TCF7L2) gene, associated with T2D by genome-wide association studies, lead to impaired ß cell function. While deletion of the homologous murine Tcf7l2 gene throughout the developing pancreas leads to impaired glucose tolerance, deletion in the ß cell in adult mice reportedly has more modest effects. To inactivate Tcf7l2 highly selectively in ß cells from the earliest expression of the Ins1 gene (∼E11.5) we have therefore used a Cre recombinase introduced at the Ins1 locus. Tcfl2(fl/fl)::Ins1Cre mice display impaired oral and intraperitoneal glucose tolerance by 8 and 16 weeks, respectively, and defective responses to the GLP-1 analogue liraglutide at 8 weeks. Tcfl2(fl/fl)::Ins1Cre islets displayed defective glucose- and GLP-1-stimulated insulin secretion and the expression of both the Ins2 (∼20%) and Glp1r (∼40%) genes were significantly reduced. Glucose- and GLP-1-induced intracellular free Ca(2+) increases, and connectivity between individual ß cells, were both lowered by Tcf7l2 deletion in islets from mice maintained on a high (60%) fat diet. Finally, analysis by optical projection tomography revealed ∼30% decrease in ß cell mass in pancreata from Tcfl2(fl/fl)::Ins1Cre mice. These data demonstrate that Tcf7l2 plays a cell autonomous role in the control of ß cell function and mass, serving as an important regulator of gene expression and islet cell coordination. The possible relevance of these findings for the action of TCF7L2 polymorphisms associated with Type 2 diabetes in man is discussed.

LKB1 and AMPK differentially regulate pancreatic ß-cell identity.

Fully differentiated pancreatic ß cells are essential for normal glucose homeostasis in mammals. Dedifferentiation of these cells has been suggested to occur in type 2 diabetes, impairing insulin production. Since chronic fuel excess ("glucotoxicity") is implicated in this process, we sought here to identify the potential roles in ß-cell identity of the tumor suppressor liver kinase B1 (LKB1/STK11) and the downstream fuel-sensitive kinase, AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). Highly ß-cell-restricted deletion of each kinase in mice, using an Ins1-controlled Cre, was therefore followed by physiological, morphometric, and massive parallel sequencing analysis. Loss of LKB1 strikingly (2.0-12-fold, E<0.01) increased the expression of subsets of hepatic (Alb, Iyd, Elovl2) and neuronal (Nptx2, Dlgap2, Cartpt, Pdyn) genes, enhancing glutamate signaling. These changes were partially recapitulated by the loss of AMPK, which also up-regulated ß-cell "disallowed" genes (Slc16a1, Ldha, Mgst1, Pdgfra) 1.8- to 3.4-fold (E < 0.01). Correspondingly, targeted promoters were enriched for neuronal (Zfp206; P = 1.3 × 10(-33)) and hypoxia-regulated (HIF1; P = 2.5 × 10(-16)) transcription factors. In summary, LKB1 and AMPK, through only partly overlapping mechanisms, maintain ß-cell identity by suppressing alternate pathways leading to neuronal, hepatic, and other characteristics. Selective targeting of these enzymes may provide a new approach to maintaining ß-cell function in some forms of diabetes.

LKB1 deletion with the RIP2.Cre transgene modifies pancreatic beta-cell morphology and enhances insulin secretion in vivo.

The tumor suppressor liver kinase B1 (LKB1), also called STK11, is a protein kinase mutated in Peutz-Jeghers syndrome. LKB1 phosphorylates AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and several related protein kinases. Whereas deletion of both catalytic isoforms of AMPK from the pancreatic beta-cell and hypothalamic neurons using the rat insulin promoter (RIP2).Cre transgene (betaAMPKdKO) diminishes insulin secretion in vivo, deletion of LKB1 in the beta-cell with an inducible Pdx-1.CreER transgene enhances insulin secretion in mice. To determine whether the differences between these models reflect genuinely distinct roles for the two kinases in the beta-cell or simply differences in the timing and site(s) of deletion, we have therefore created mice deleted for LKB1 with the RIP2.Cre transgene. In marked contrast to betaAMPKdKO mice, betaLKB1KO mice showed diminished food intake and weight gain, enhanced insulin secretion, unchanged insulin sensitivity, and improved glucose tolerance. In line with the phenotype of Pdx1-CreER mice, total beta-cell mass and the size of individual islets and beta-cells were increased and islet architecture was markedly altered in betaLKB1KO islets. Signaling by mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) to eIF4-binding protein-1 and ribosomal S6 kinase was also enhanced. In contrast to Pdx1-CreER-mediated deletion, the expression of Glut2, glucose-induced changes in membrane potential and intracellular Ca(2+) were sharply reduced in betaLKB1KO mouse islets and the stimulation of insulin secretion was modestly inhibited. We conclude that LKB1 and AMPK play distinct roles in the control of insulin secretion and that the timing of LKB1 deletion, and/or its loss from extrapancreatic sites, influences the final impact on beta-cell function.

Animal models of GWAS-identified type 2 diabetes genes.

More than 65 loci, encoding up to 500 different genes, have been implicated by genome-wide association studies (GWAS) as conferring an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D). Whilst mouse models have in the past been central to understanding the mechanisms through which more penetrant risk genes for T2D, for example, those responsible for neonatal or maturity-onset diabetes of the young, only a few of those identified by GWAS, notably TCF7L2 and ZnT8/SLC30A8, have to date been examined in mouse models. We discuss here the animal models available for the latter genes and provide perspectives for future, higher throughput approaches towards efficiently mining the information provided by human genetics.