Combined micro-osmotic pump infusion and intracerebroventricular injection to study FGF1 signaling pathways in the mouse brain.

Intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) elicits remission of diabetic hyperglycemia in rodent models of type 2 diabetes. Here, we present an optimized protocol to study the intracellular signaling pathways underlying the FGF1-induced sustained glucose lowering in the mouse brain. This protocol combines icv injection of FGF1 and osmotic mini-pump infusion of U0126, an inhibitor of MAPK/ERK signaling. We describe the surgical procedure and verification of U0126 inhibition of FGF1-stimulated hypothalamic MAPK/ERK signaling via western blot. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Brown et al. (2021).

Sustained inhibition of NPY/AgRP neuronal activity by FGF1.

In rodent models of type 2 diabetes (T2D), central administration of FGF1 normalizes elevated blood glucose levels in a manner that is sustained for weeks or months. Increased activity of NPY/AgRP neurons in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC) is implicated in the pathogenesis of hyperglycemia in these animals, and the ARC is a key brain area for the antidiabetic action of FGF1. We therefore sought to determine whether FGF1 inhibits NPY/AgRP neurons and, if so, whether this inhibitory effect is sufficiently durable to offer a feasible explanation for sustained diabetes remission induced by central administration of FGF1. Here, we show that FGF1 inhibited ARC NPY/AgRP neuron activity, both after intracerebroventricular injection in vivo and when applied ex vivo in a slice preparation; we also showed that the underlying mechanism involved increased input from presynaptic GABAergic neurons. Following central administration, the inhibitory effect of FGF1 on NPY/AgRP neurons was also highly durable, lasting for at least 2 weeks. To our knowledge, no precedent for such a prolonged inhibitory effect exists. Future studies are warranted to determine whether NPY/AgRP neuron inhibition contributes to the sustained antidiabetic action elicited by intracerebroventricular FGF1 injection in rodent models of T2D.

Role of hypothalamic MAPK/ERK signaling and central action of FGF1 in diabetes remission.

The capacity of the brain to elicit sustained remission of hyperglycemia in rodent models of type 2 diabetes following intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) is well established. Here, we show that following icv FGF1 injection, hypothalamic signaling by extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1 and 2 (ERK1/2), members of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family, is induced for at least 24 h. Further, we show that this prolonged response is required for the sustained antidiabetic action of FGF1 since it is abolished by sustained (but not acute) pharmacologic blockade of hypothalamic MAPK/ERK signaling. We also demonstrate that FGF1 R50E, a FGF1 mutant that activates FGF receptors but induces only transient hypothalamic MAPK/ERK signaling, fails to mimic the sustained glucose lowering induced by FGF1. These data identify sustained activation of hypothalamic MAPK/ERK signaling as playing an essential role in the mechanism underlying diabetes remission induced by icv FGF1 administration.

Hypothalamic perineuronal net assembly is required for sustained diabetes remission induced by fibroblast growth factor 1 in rats.

We recently showed that perineuronal nets (PNNs) enmesh glucoregulatory neurons in the arcuate nucleus (Arc) of the mediobasal hypothalamus (MBH)1, but whether these PNNs play a role in either the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes (T2D) or its treatment remains unclear. Here we show that PNN abundance within the Arc is markedly reduced in the Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF) rat model of T2D, compared with normoglycaemic rats, correlating with altered PNN-associated sulfation patterns of chondroitin sulfate glycosaminoglycans in the MBH. Each of these PNN-associated changes is reversed following a single intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) at a dose that induces sustained diabetes remission in male ZDF rats. Combined with previous work localizing this FGF1 effect to the Arc area2-4, our finding that enzymatic digestion of Arc PNNs markedly shortens the duration of diabetes remission following icv FGF1 injection in these animals identifies these extracellular matrix structures as previously unrecognized participants in the mechanism underlying diabetes remission induced by the central action of FGF1.

Transcriptomic analysis links diverse hypothalamic cell types to fibroblast growth factor 1-induced sustained diabetes remission.

In rodent models of type 2 diabetes (T2D), sustained remission of hyperglycemia can be induced by a single intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1), and the mediobasal hypothalamus (MBH) was recently implicated as the brain area responsible for this effect. To better understand the cellular response to FGF1 in the MBH, we sequenced >79,000 single-cell transcriptomes from the hypothalamus of diabetic Lepob/ob mice obtained on Days 1 and 5 after icv injection of either FGF1 or vehicle. A wide range of transcriptional responses to FGF1 was observed across diverse hypothalamic cell types, with glial cell types responding much more robustly than neurons at both time points. Tanycytes and ependymal cells were the most FGF1-responsive cell type at Day 1, but astrocytes and oligodendrocyte lineage cells subsequently became more responsive. Based on histochemical and ultrastructural evidence of enhanced cell-cell interactions between astrocytes and Agrp neurons (key components of the melanocortin system), we performed a series of studies showing that intact melanocortin signaling is required for the sustained antidiabetic action of FGF1. These data collectively suggest that hypothalamic glial cells are leading targets for the effects of FGF1 and that sustained diabetes remission is dependent on intact melanocortin signaling.

The Hypothalamic Arcuate Nucleus-Median Eminence Is a Target for Sustained Diabetes Remission Induced by Fibroblast Growth Factor 1.

In rodent models of type 2 diabetes (T2D), sustained remission of diabetic hyperglycemia can be induced by a single intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1). To identify the brain areas responsible for this effect, we first used immunohistochemistry to map the hypothalamic distribution of phosphorylated extracellular signal-related kinase 1/2 (pERK1/2), a marker of mitogen-activated protein kinase-ERK signal transduction downstream of FGF receptor activation. Twenty minutes after icv FGF1 injection in adult male Wistar rats, pERK1/2 staining was detected primarily in two hypothalamic areas: the arcuate nucleus-median eminence (ARC-ME) and the paraventricular nucleus (PVN). To determine whether an action of FGF1 localized to either the ARC-ME or the PVN is capable of mimicking the sustained antidiabetic effect elicited by icv FGF1, we microinjected either saline vehicle or a low dose of FGF1 (0.3 µg/side) bilaterally into either the ARC-ME area or PVN of Zucker Diabetic Fatty rats, a model of T2D, and monitored daily food intake, body weight, and blood glucose levels over a 3-week period. Whereas bilateral intra-arcuate microinjection of saline vehicle was without effect, remission of hyperglycemia lasting >3 weeks was observed following bilateral microinjection of FGF1 into the ARC-ME. This antidiabetic effect cannot be attributed to leakage of FGF1 into cerebrospinal fluid and subsequent action on other brain areas, since icv injection of the same total dose was without effect. Combined with our finding that bilateral microinjection of the same dose of FGF1 into the PVN was without effect on glycemia or other parameters, we conclude that the ARC-ME area (but not the PVN) is a target for sustained remission of diabetic hyperglycemia induced by FGF1.

Perineuronal Net Formation during the Critical Period for Neuronal Maturation in the Hypothalamic Arcuate Nucleus.

In leptin-deficient ob/ob mice, obesity and diabetes are associated with abnormal development of neurocircuits in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC)1, a critical brain area for energy and glucose homeostasis2,3. As this developmental defect can be remedied by systemic leptin administration, but only if given before postnatal day 28, a critical period (CP) for leptin-dependent development of ARC neurocircuits has been proposed4. In other brain areas, CP closure coincides with the appearance of perineuronal nets (PNNs), extracellular matrix specializations that restrict the plasticity of neurons that they enmesh5. Here we report that in humans as well as rodents, subsets of neurons in the mediobasal aspect of the ARC are enmeshed by PNN-like structures. In mice, these neurons are densely-packed into a continuous ring that encircles the junction of the ARC and median eminence, which facilitates exposure of ARC neurons to the circulation. Most of the enmeshed neurons are both GABAergic and leptin receptor-positive, including a majority of Agrp neurons. Postnatal formation of the PNN-like structures coincides precisely with closure of the CP for Agrp neuron maturation and is dependent on input from circulating leptin, as postnatal ob/ob mice have reduced ARC PNN-like material that is restored by leptin administration during the CP. We conclude that neurons crucial to metabolic homeostasis are enmeshed by PNN-like structures and organized into a densely packed cluster situated circumferentially at the ARC-ME junction, where metabolically-relevant humoral signals are sensed.

Peripheral Mechanisms Mediating the Sustained Antidiabetic Action of FGF1 in the Brain.

We recently reported that in rodent models of type 2 diabetes (T2D), a single intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) induces remission of hyperglycemia that is sustained for weeks. To clarify the peripheral mechanisms underlying this effect, we used the Zucker diabetic fatty fa/fa rat model of T2D, which, like human T2D, is characterized by progressive deterioration of pancreatic ß-cell function after hyperglycemia onset. We report that although icv FGF1 injection delays the onset of ß-cell dysfunction in these animals, it has no effect on either glucose-induced insulin secretion or insulin sensitivity. These observations suggest that FGF1 acts in the brain to stimulate insulin-independent glucose clearance. On the basis of our finding that icv FGF1 treatment increases hepatic glucokinase gene expression, we considered the possibility that increased hepatic glucose uptake (HGU) contributes to the insulin-independent glucose-lowering effect of icv FGF1. Consistent with this possibility, we report that icv FGF1 injection increases liver glucokinase activity by approximately twofold. We conclude that sustained remission of hyperglycemia induced by the central action of FGF1 involves both preservation of ß-cell function and stimulation of HGU through increased hepatic glucokinase activity.

Uncertainty in estuarine extreme water level predictions due to surge-tide interaction.

Storm surge is often the greatest threat to life and critical infrastructures during hurricanes and violent storms. Millions of people living in low-lying coastal zones and critical infrastructure within this zone rely on accurate storm surge forecast for disaster prevention and flood hazard mitigation. However, variability in residual sea level up-estuary, defined here as observed sea level minus predicted tide, can enhance total water levels; variability in the surge thus needs to be captured accurately to reduce uncertainty in site specific hazard assessment. Delft3D-FLOW is used to investigate surge variability, and the influence of storm surge timing on barotropic tide-surge propagation in a tide-dominant estuary using the Severn Estuary, south-west England, as an example. Model results show maximum surge elevation increases exponentially up-estuary and, for a range of surge timings consistently occurs on the flood tide. In the Severn Estuary, over a distance of 40 km from the most upstream tide gauge at Oldbury, the maximum surge elevation increases by 255%. Up-estuary locations experience short duration, high magnitude surge elevations and greater variability due to shallow-water effects and channel convergence. The results show that surge predictions from forecasting systems at tide gauge locations could under-predict the magnitude and duration of surge contribution to up-estuary water levels. Due to the large tidal range and dynamic nature of hyper-tidal estuaries, local forecasting systems should consider changes in surge elevation and shape with distance up-estuary from nearby tide gauge sites to minimize uncertainties in flood hazard assessment.