ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Adaptor protein, phosphotyrosine interacting with PH domain and leucine zipper 1 (APPL1) plays a crucial role in regulating insulin signaling and glucose metabolism. Mutations in the APPL1 gene have been associated with the development of maturity-onset diabetes of the young type 14 (MODY14). Currently, only two mutations [c.1655T>A (p.Leu552*) and c.281G>A p.(Asp94Asn)] have been identified in association with this disease. Given the limited understanding of MODY14, it is imperative to identify additional cases and carry out comprehensive research on MODY14 and APPL1 mutations. AIM: To assess the pathogenicity of APPL1 gene mutations in diabetic patients and to characterize the functional role of the APPL1 domain. METHODS: Patients exhibiting clinical signs and a medical history suggestive of MODY were screened for the study. Whole exome sequencing was performed on the patients as well as their family members. The pathogenicity of the identified APPL1 variants was predicted on the basis of bioinformatics analysis. In addition, the pathogenicity of the novel APPL1 variant was preliminarily evaluated through in vitro functional experiments. Finally, the impact of these variants on APPL1 protein expression and the insulin pathway were assessed, and the potential mechanism underlying the interaction between the APPL1 protein and the insulin receptor was further explored. RESULTS: A total of five novel mutations were identified, including four missense mutations (Asp632Tyr, Arg633His, Arg532Gln, and Ile642Met) and one intronic mutation (1153-16A>T). Pathogenicity prediction analysis revealed that the Arg532Gln was pathogenic across all predictions. The Asp632Tyr and Arg633His variants also had pathogenicity based on MutationTaster. In addition, multiple alignment of amino acid sequences showed that the Arg532Gln, Asp632Tyr, and Arg633His variants were conserved across different species. Moreover, in in vitro functional experiments, both the c.1894G>T (at Asp632Tyr) and c.1595G>A (at Arg532Gln) mutations were found to downregulate the expression of APPL1 on both protein and mRNA levels, indicating their pathogenic nature. Therefore, based on the patient's clinical and family history, combined with the results from bioinformatics analysis and functional experiment, the c.1894G>T (at Asp632Tyr) and c.1595G>A (at Arg532Gln) mutations were classified as pathogenic mutations. Importantly, all these mutations were located within the phosphotyrosine-binding domain of APPL1, which plays a critical role in the insulin sensitization effect. CONCLUSION: This study provided new insights into the pathogenicity of APPL1 gene mutations in diabetes and revealed a potential target for the diagnosis and treatment of the disease.
ABSTRACT
Utilizing a series of positional isomers of tetrachlorinated benzenedicarboxylic acid ligands, seven La(iii)-based coordination polymers were solvothermally synthesized and structurally characterized. Their structural dimensionalities varying from 1D double chains, to the 2D 3,4,5-connected network, to 3D 6-connected pcu topological nets are only governed by the positions of carboxyl groups on the tetrachlorinated benzene ring. A comprehensive analysis and comparison reveals that the size of the carbonyl solvent molecules (DMF, DEF, DMA, and NMP) can affect the coordination geometries around the La(iii) ions, the coordination modes of carboxylate groups, the packing arrangements, and the void volumes of the overall crystal lattices. One as-synthesized framework further shows an unprecedented structural transformation from a 3D 6-connected network to a 3D 4,5-connected net through the dissolution and reformation pathway in water, suggesting that these easily hydrolyzed lanthanide complexes may serve as precursors to produce new high-dimensional frameworks. The bulk solvent-free melt polymerisation of glycolide utilizing these La(iii) complexes as initiators has been reported herein for the first time. All complexes were found to promote the polymerization of glycolide over a temperature range of 200 to 220 °C, producing poly(glycolic acid) (PGA) with a molecular weight up to 93,280. Under the same experimental conditions, the different catalytic activities for these complexes may result from their structural discrepancy.
