Bruce W. Patterson

Intrahepatic fat, not visceral fat, is linked with metabolic complications of obesity

Visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is an important risk factor for obesity-related metabolic disorders. Therefore, a reduction in VAT has become a key goal in obesity management. However, VAT is correlated with intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content, so it is possible that IHTG, not VAT, is a better marker of metabolic disease. We determined the independent association of IHTG and VAT to metabolic function, by evaluating groups of obese subjects, who differed in IHTG content (high or normal) but matched on VAT volume or differed in VAT volume (high or low) but matched on IHTG content. Stable isotope tracer techniques and the euglycemic–hyperinsulinemic clamp procedure were used to assess insulin sensitivity and very-low-density lipoprotein–triglyceride (VLDL-TG) secretion rate. Tissue biopsies were obtained to evaluate cellular factors involved in ectopic triglyceride accumulation. Hepatic, adipose tissue and muscle insulin sensitivity were 41, 13, and 36% lower (P < 0.01), whereas VLDL-triglyceride secretion rate was almost double (P < 0.001), in subjects with higher than normal IHTG content, matched on VAT. No differences in insulin sensitivity or VLDL-TG secretion were observed between subjects with different VAT volumes, matched on IHTG content. Adipose tissue CD36 expression was lower (P < 0.05), whereas skeletal muscle CD36 expression was higher (P < 0.05), in subjects with higher than normal IHTG. These data demonstrate that IHTG, not VAT, is a better marker of the metabolic derangements associated with obesity. Furthermore, alterations in tissue fatty acid transport could be involved in the pathogenesis of ectopic triglyceride accumulation by redirecting plasma fatty acid uptake from adipose tissue toward other tissues.

Human apoE isoforms differentially regulate brain amyloid-β peptide clearance

Human apoE4 increases the concentration of soluble Aβ in the brain by impairing its clearance. Clearing the Debris in Alzheimer’s Disease The strongest risk factor for developing the common sporadic form of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) that occurs in old age is the ε4 allele encoding apolipoprotein E4 (apoE4). Two ε4 alleles can lower the age of onset of AD by 10 to 15 years. In contrast, the ε2 allele decreases the risk of developing this neurodegenerative disorder. APOE is important for lipoprotein metabolism, but how it might be involved in AD has remained unclear. It has been suggested that the apoE4 isoform might somehow help to drive accumulation of the peptide amyloid-β (Aβ), which forms amyloid plaques in the brain that contribute to neuronal death and are the characteristic hallmark of AD. In a tour de force study in humans and mice, Holtzman and his team at Washington University in St. Louis now show that apoE4 contributes to Aβ accumulation in the brain not by affecting Aβ synthesis but by affecting its clearance. First, the authors looked at the Aβ concentration in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of cognitively normal individuals under age 70 carrying different APOE genotypes. They found that those with the ε4/ε4 genotype had a much lower CSF Aβ concentration than did those with the protective ε2/ε3 genotype. A CSF Aβ concentration of less than 500 pg/ml is an indication that Aβ peptide is accumulating in the brain and thus is not moving into the CSF. Next, the researchers analyzed imaging data using a dye called Pittsburgh compound B that binds to amyloid plaques in the brain and showed that those individuals with the ε4/ε4 genotype bound more dye than did those with the other APOE genotypes. They then moved to a mouse model of AD in which the mice expressed one of the three human apoE isoforms. They measured Aβ concentrations in the interstitial fluid of these mice using in vivo microdialysis and then looked at stained hippocampal sections from these mice. They found greater Aβ concentrations in both interstitial fluid and the hippocampus in mice expressing the human apoE4 isoform than in animals expressing either the E3 or E2 isoforms. They discovered that this difference in Aβ concentration between the mice carrying different APOE genotypes was present in young as well as aged mice, suggesting that it predates the appearance of amyloid plaques. They then measured clearance of Aβ from the interstitial fluid of young mice and showed that those with the human apoE4 isoform were less able to clear Aβ than those with the apoE2 or apoE3 isoforms. The researchers showed that processing of the amyloid precursor protein and generation of the Aβ peptide did not vary according to genotype, lending credence to the hypothesis that apoE4 affects clearance of Aβ but not its synthesis. This thorough study sheds new light on how apoE4 is implicated in AD and highlights the Aβ clearance pathway as a new target for developing drugs to slow or even halt the accumulation of amyloid plaques in patients with AD. The apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 allele is the strongest genetic risk factor for late-onset, sporadic Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The APOE ε4 allele markedly increases AD risk and decreases age of onset, likely through its strong effect on the accumulation of amyloid-β (Aβ) peptide. In contrast, the APOE ε2 allele appears to decrease AD risk. Most rare, early-onset forms of familial AD are caused by autosomal dominant mutations that often lead to overproduction of Aβ42 peptide. However, the mechanism by which APOE alleles differentially modulate Aβ accumulation in sporadic, late-onset AD is less clear. In a cohort of cognitively normal individuals, we report that reliable molecular and neuroimaging biomarkers of cerebral Aβ deposition vary in an apoE isoform–dependent manner. We hypothesized that human apoE isoforms differentially affect Aβ clearance or synthesis in vivo, resulting in an apoE isoform–dependent pattern of Aβ accumulation later in life. Performing in vivo microdialysis in a mouse model of Aβ-amyloidosis expressing human apoE isoforms (PDAPP/TRE), we find that the concentration and clearance of soluble Aβ in the brain interstitial fluid depends on the isoform of apoE expressed. This pattern parallels the extent of Aβ deposition observed in aged PDAPP/TRE mice. ApoE isoform–dependent differences in soluble Aβ metabolism are observed not only in aged but also in young PDAPP/TRE mice well before the onset of Aβ deposition in amyloid plaques in the brain. Additionally, amyloidogenic processing of amyloid precursor protein and Aβ synthesis, as assessed by in vivo stable isotopic labeling kinetics, do not vary according to apoE isoform in young PDAPP/TRE mice. Our results suggest that APOE alleles contribute to AD risk by differentially regulating clearance of Aβ from the brain, suggesting that Aβ clearance pathways may be useful therapeutic targets for AD prevention.

Dietary Fat and Carbohydrates Differentially Alter Insulin Sensitivity During Caloric Restriction

BACKGROUND & AIMS We determined the effects of acute and chronic calorie restriction with either a low-fat, high-carbohydrate (HC) diet or a low-carbohydrate (LC) diet on hepatic and skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity. METHODS Twenty-two obese subjects (body mass index, 36.5 +/- 0.8 kg/m2) were randomized to an HC (>180 g/day) or LC (<50 g/day) energy-deficit diet. A euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp, muscle biopsy specimens, and magnetic resonance spectroscopy were used to determine insulin action, cellular insulin signaling, and intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content before, after 48 hours, and after approximately 11 weeks (7% weight loss) of diet therapy. RESULTS At 48 hours, IHTG content decreased more in the LC than the HC diet group (29.6% +/- 4.8% vs 8.9% +/- 1.4%; P < .05) but was similar in both groups after 7% weight loss (LC diet, 38.0% +/- 4.5%; HC diet, 44.5% +/- 13.5%). Basal glucose production rate decreased more in the LC than the HC diet group at 48 hours (23.4% +/- 2.2% vs 7.2% +/- 1.4%; P < .05) and after 7% weight loss (20.0% +/- 2.4% vs 7.9% +/- 1.2%; P < .05). Insulin-mediated glucose uptake did not change at 48 hours but increased similarly in both groups after 7% weight loss (48.4% +/- 14.3%; P < .05). In both groups, insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of c-Jun-N-terminal kinase decreased by 29% +/- 13% and phosphorylation of Akt and insulin receptor substrate 1 increased by 35% +/- 9% and 36% +/- 9%, respectively, after 7% weight loss (all P < .05). CONCLUSIONS Moderate calorie restriction causes temporal changes in liver and skeletal muscle metabolism; 48 hours of calorie restriction affects the liver (IHTG content, hepatic insulin sensitivity, and glucose production), whereas moderate weight loss affects muscle (insulin-mediated glucose uptake and insulin signaling).

Tauroursodeoxycholic Acid May Improve Liver and Muscle but Not Adipose Tissue Insulin Sensitivity in Obese Men and Women

OBJECTIVE Insulin resistance is commonly associated with obesity. Studies conducted in obese mouse models found that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress contributes to insulin resistance, and treatment with tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA), a bile acid derivative that acts as a chemical chaperone to enhance protein folding and ameliorate ER stress, increases insulin sensitivity. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of TUDCA therapy on multiorgan insulin action and metabolic factors associated with insulin resistance in obese men and women. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Twenty obese subjects ([means ± SD] aged 48 ± 11 years, BMI 37 ± 4 kg/m2) were randomized to 4 weeks of treatment with TUDCA (1,750 mg/day) or placebo. A two-stage hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp procedure in conjunction with stable isotopically labeled tracer infusions and muscle and adipose tissue biopsies were used to evaluate in vivo insulin sensitivity, cellular factors involved in insulin signaling, and cellular markers of ER stress. RESULTS Hepatic and muscle insulin sensitivity increased by ∼30% (P < 0.05) after treatment with TUDCA but did not change after placebo therapy. In addition, therapy with TUDCA, but not placebo, increased muscle insulin signaling (phosphorylated insulin receptor substrateTyr and AktSer473 levels) (P < 0.05). Markers of ER stress in muscle or adipose tissue did not change after treatment with either TUDCA or placebo. CONCLUSIONS These data demonstrate that TUDCA might be an effective pharmacological approach for treating insulin resistance. Additional studies are needed to evaluate the target cells and mechanisms responsible for this effect.

Stimulation of muscle protein synthesis by long-term insulin infusion in severely burned patients

ObjectiveTo determine if long-term (7 days) infusion of insulin can ameliorate altered protein kinetics in skeletal muscle of severely burned patients and to investigate the hypothesis that changes in protein kinetics during insulin infusion are associated with an increased rate of transmembrane amino acid transport from plasma into the intracellular free amino acid pool. Summary Background DataIn critically ill patients, vigorous nutritional support alone may often fail to entirely curtail muscle catabolism; insulin stimulates muscle protein synthesis in normal volunteers. MethodsNine patients with severe burns were studied once during enteral feeding alone (control period), and once after 7 days of high-dose insulin. The order of treatment with insulin was randomized. Data were derived from a model based on a primed-continuous infusion of L-[15N]phenylalanine, sampling of blood from the femoral artery and vein, and biopsies of the vastus lateralis muscle. ResultsNet leg muscle protein balance was significantly (p < 0.05) negative during the control period. Exogenous insulin eliminated this negative balance by stimulating protein synthesis approximately 350% (p < 0.01). This was made possible in part by a sixfold increase in the inward transport of amino acids from blood (p < 0.01). There was also a significant increase in leg muscle protein breakdown. The new rates of synthesis, breakdown, and inward transport during insulin were in balance, such that there was no difference in the intracellular phenylalanine concentration from the control period. The fractional synthetic rate of protein in the wound was also stimulated by insulin by approximately 50%, but the response was variable and did not reach significance. ConclusionsExogenous insulin may be useful in promoting muscle protein synthesis in severely catabolic patients.

Gastric bypass and banding equally improve insulin sensitivity and β cell function

Bariatric surgery in obese patients is a highly effective method of preventing or resolving type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM); however, the remission rate is not the same among different surgical procedures. We compared the effects of 20% weight loss induced by laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) or Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery on the metabolic response to a mixed meal, insulin sensitivity, and β cell function in nondiabetic obese adults. The metabolic response to meal ingestion was markedly different after RYGB than after LAGB surgery, manifested by rapid delivery of ingested glucose into the systemic circulation, by an increase in the dynamic insulin secretion rate, and by large, early postprandial increases in plasma glucose, insulin, and glucagon-like peptide-1 concentrations in the RYGB group. However, the improvement in oral glucose tolerance, insulin sensitivity, and overall β cell function after weight loss were not different between surgical groups. Additionally, both surgical procedures resulted in a similar decrease in adipose tissue markers of inflammation. We conclude that marked weight loss itself is primarily responsible for the therapeutic effects of RYGB and LAGB on insulin sensitivity, β cell function, and oral glucose tolerance in nondiabetic obese adults.

Randomized trial of exercise effect on intrahepatic triglyceride content and lipid kinetics in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and alterations in hepatic lipoprotein kinetics are common metabolic complications associated with obesity. Lifestyle modification involving diet‐induced weight loss and regular exercise decreases intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content and very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) triglyceride (TG) secretion rate. The aim of this study was to evaluate the weight loss‐independent effect of following the physical activity guidelines recommended by the Department of Health and Human Services on IHTG content and VLDL kinetics in obese persons with NAFLD. Eighteen obese people (body mass index [BMI]: 38.1 ± 4.6 kg/m2) with NAFLD were randomized to 16 weeks of exercise training (45%‐55% V̇O2peak, 30‐60 minutes × 5 days/week; n = 12) or observation (control; n = 6). Magnetic resonance spectroscopy and stable isotope tracer infusions in conjunction with compartmental modeling were used to evaluate IHTG content and hepatic VLDL‐TG and apolipoprotein B‐100 (apoB‐100) secretion rates. Exercise training resulted in a 10.3% ± 4.6% decrease in IHTG content (P < 0.05), but did not change total body weight (103.1 ± 4.2 kg before and 102.9 ± 4.2 kg after training) or percent body fat (38.9% ± 2.1% before and 39.2% ± 2.1% after training). Exercise training did not change the hepatic VLDL‐TG secretion rate (17.7 ± 3.9 μmol/min before and 16.8 ± 5.4 μmol/min after training) or VLDL‐apoB‐100 secretion rate (1.5 ± 0.5 nmol/min before and 1.6 ± 0.6 nmol/min after training). Conclusion: Following the Department of Health and Human Services recommended physical activity guidelines has small but beneficial effects on IHTG content, but does not improve hepatic lipoprotein kinetics in obese persons with NAFLD. (HEPATOLOGY 2012;55:1738–1745)

Measurement of very low stable isotope enrichments by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry: Application to measurement of muscle protein synthesis

Measurement of muscle protein synthesis using stable isotopically labeled tracers usually requires isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) because of the need to measure very low enrichments of stable isotopically labeled tracers (tracer to tracee ratio [TTR], 0.005% to 0.10%). This approach is laborious, requiring purification of the metabolite of interest and combustion to a gas for IRMS analysis, and is best suited for use with 13C tracers. We have developed an approach whereby low enrichments can be conveniently measured by a conventional gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) instrument. The approach includes three critical elements: (1) use of a highly substituted tracer containing three or more labeled atoms, to measure enrichment above a very low natural abundance of highly substituted isotopomers; (2) use of a highly substituted natural abundance isotopomer as a base ion for comparison rather than the most abundant m + 0 isotopomer, to reduce the dynamic range of the isotopomer ratio measurement; and (3) a sensitive mass spectrometric analysis that measures the natural abundance of the isotopomer used as a tracer with a high signal to noise ratio (> 100:1). This approach was used to measure the rate of synthesis of muscle protein following a primed continuous infusion of L-[13C6]-phenylalanine (PHE) in eight fasted dogs and L-[2H3]-leucine in five fasted human subjects. Values for [13C6]-PHE enrichment by GC/MS rates were virtually identical to those obtained by a conventional approach using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to isolate PHE, combustion to CO2, and measurement of 13CO2 enrichment by IRMS (IRMS enrichment = 0.9988 x GC/MS enrichment, R2 = .891), resulting in identical values for muscle fractional synthesis rates ([FSRs] mean +/- SEM: 2.7 +/- 0.2 and 2.5 +/- 0.2%/d for GC/MS and IRMS, respectively). Human muscle synthesis rates measured by GC/MS analysis of [2H3]-leucine enrichment (1.90 +/- 0.17%/d) were similar to published values based on IRMS analysis using a 1- 13C-leucine tracer. We conclude that compared with the IRMS approach, the GC/MS approach offers faster throughput, has a lower sample requirement, and is suitable for a wider variety of tracers such as 2H. The principles outlined here should be applicable to the measurement of low enrichments by GC/MS in a wide variety of stable isotope tracer applications.

WNT-LRP5 Signaling Induces Warburg Effect through mTORC2 Activation during Osteoblast Differentiation

WNT signaling controls many biological processes including cell differentiation in metazoans. However, how WNT reprograms cell identity is not well understood. We have investigated the potential role of cellular metabolism in WNT-induced osteoblast differentiation. WNT3A induces aerobic glycolysis known as Warburg effect by increasing the level of key glycolytic enzymes. The metabolic regulation requires LRP5 but not β-catenin and is mediated by mTORC2-AKT signaling downstream of RAC1. Suppressing WNT3A-induced metabolic enzymes impairs osteoblast differentiation in vitro. Deletion of Lrp5 in the mouse, which decreases postnatal bone mass, reduces mTORC2 activity and glycolytic enzymes in bone cells and lowers serum lactate levels. Conversely, mice expressing a mutant Lrp5 that causes high bone mass exhibit increased glycolysis in bone. Thus, WNT-LRP5 signaling promotes bone formation in part through direct reprogramming of glucose metabolism. Moreover, regulation of cellular metabolism may represent a general mechanism contributing to the wide-ranging functions of WNT proteins.

Association Between Specific Adipose Tissue CD4+ T-Cell Populations and Insulin Resistance in Obese Individuals

BACKGROUND & AIMS An increased number of macrophages in adipose tissue is associated with insulin resistance and metabolic dysfunction in obese people. However, little is known about other immune cells in adipose tissue from obese people, and whether they contribute to insulin resistance. We investigated the characteristics of T cells in adipose tissue from metabolically abnormal insulin-resistant obese (MAO) subjects, metabolically normal insulin-sensitive obese (MNO) subjects, and lean subjects. Insulin sensitivity was determined by using the hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp procedure. METHODS We assessed plasma cytokine concentrations and subcutaneous adipose tissue CD4(+) T-cell populations in 9 lean, 12 MNO, and 13 MAO subjects. Skeletal muscle and liver samples were collected from 19 additional obese patients undergoing bariatric surgery to determine the presence of selected cytokine receptors. RESULTS Adipose tissue from MAO subjects had 3- to 10-fold increases in numbers of CD4(+) T cells that produce interleukin (IL)-22 and IL-17 (a T-helper [Th] 17 and Th22 phenotype) compared with MNO and lean subjects. MAO subjects also had increased plasma concentrations of IL-22 and IL-6. Receptors for IL-17 and IL-22 were expressed in human liver and skeletal muscle samples. IL-17 and IL-22 inhibited uptake of glucose in skeletal muscle isolated from rats and reduced insulin sensitivity in cultured human hepatocytes. CONCLUSIONS Adipose tissue from MAO individuals contains increased numbers of Th17 and Th22 cells, which produce cytokines that cause metabolic dysfunction in liver and muscle in vitro. Additional studies are needed to determine whether these alterations in adipose tissue T cells contribute to the pathogenesis of insulin resistance in obese people.