bims-mimbat Biomed News
on Mitochondrial metabolism in brown adipose tissue
Issue of 2023–03–12
fourteen papers selected by
José Carlos de Lima-Júnior, Washington University



  1. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2023 ;14 1106544
      Brown adipocytes is a specialized fat cell that dissipates nutrient-derived chemical energy in the form of heat, instead of ATP synthesis. This unique feature provides a marked capacity for brown adipocyte mitochondria to oxidize substrates independent of ADP availability. Upon cold exposure, brown adipocytes preferentially oxidize free fatty acids (FFA) liberated from triacylglycerol (TAG) in lipid droplets to support thermogenesis. In addition, brown adipocytes take up large amounts of circulating glucose, concurrently increasing glycolysis and de novo FA synthesis from glucose. Given that FA oxidation and glucose-derived FA synthesis are two antagonistic mitochondrial processes in the same cell, it has long been questioned how brown adipocytes run FA oxidation and FA synthesis simultaneously. In this review, I summarize mechanisms regulating mitochondrial substrate selection and describe recent findings of two distinct populations of brown adipocyte mitochondria with different substrate preferences. I further discuss how these mechanisms may permit a concurrent increase in glycolysis, FA synthesis, and FA oxidation in brown adipocytes.
    Keywords:  brown adipocytes; de novo fatty acid synthesis; fatty acid oxidation; mitochondrial substrate utilization; uncoupled respiration
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2023.1106544
  2. Nat Metab. 2023 Mar 06.
      Sympathetic neurons activate thermogenic adipocytes through release of catecholamine; however, the regulation of sympathetic innervation by thermogenic adipocytes is unclear. Here, we identify primary zinc ion (Zn) as a thermogenic adipocyte-secreted factor that promotes sympathetic innervation and thermogenesis in brown adipose tissue and subcutaneous white adipose tissue in male mice. Depleting thermogenic adipocytes or antagonizing β3-adrenergic receptor on adipocytes impairs sympathetic innervation. In obesity, inflammation-induced upregulation of Zn chaperone protein metallothionein-2 decreases Zn secretion from thermogenic adipocytes and leads to decreased energy expenditure. Furthermore, Zn supplementation ameliorates obesity by promoting sympathetic neuron-induced thermogenesis, while sympathetic denervation abrogates this antiobesity effect. Thus, we have identified a positive feedback mechanism for the reciprocal regulation of thermogenic adipocytes and sympathetic neurons. This mechanism is important for adaptive thermogenesis and could serve as a potential target for the treatment of obesity.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-023-00751-9
  3. iScience. 2023 Mar 17. 26(3): 106161
      The high thermogenic activity of brown adipose tissue (BAT) has received considerable attention. Here, we demonstrated the role of the mevalonate (MVA) biosynthesis pathway in the regulation of brown adipocyte development and survival. The inhibition of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGCR), the rate-limiting enzyme in the MVA pathway and the molecular target of statins, suppressed brown adipocyte differentiation by suppressing protein geranylgeranylation-mediated mitotic clonal expansion. The development of BAT in neonatal mice exposed to statins during the fetal period was severely impaired. Moreover, statin-induced geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate (GGPP) deficiency led to the apoptosis of mature brown adipocytes. Brown adipocyte-specific Hmgcr knockout induced BAT atrophy and disrupted thermogenesis. Importantly, both genetic and pharmacological inhibition of HMGCR in adult mice induced morphological changes in BAT accompanied by an increase in apoptosis, and statin-treated diabetic mice showed worsened hyperglycemia. These findings revealed that MVA pathway-generated GGPP is indispensable for BAT development and survival.
    Keywords:  Biochemistry; Biological sciences; Molecular Genetics
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2023.106161
  4. Biophys J. 2023 Mar 09. pii: S0006-3495(23)00164-9. [Epub ahead of print]
      Mitochondrial inner membrane potentials in cardiomyocytes may oscillate in cycles of depolarization/repolarization when the mitochondrial network is exposed to metabolic or oxidative stress. The frequencies of such oscillations are dynamically changing while clusters of weakly coupled mitochondrial oscillators adjust to a common phase and frequency. Across the cardiac myocyte, the averaged signal of the mitochondrial population follows self-similar or fractal dynamics; however, fractal properties of individual mitochondrial oscillators have not yet been examined. We show that the largest synchronously oscillating cluster exhibits a fractal dimension,D, that is indicative of self-similar behavior with D=1.27±0.11, in contrast to the remaining network mitochondria whose fractal dimension is close to that of Brownian noise,D=1.58±0.10 . We further demonstrate that fractal behavior is correlated with local coupling mechanisms, while it is only weakly linked to measures of functional connections between mitochondria. Our findings suggest that individual mitochondrial fractal dimensions may serve as a simple measure of local mitochondrial coupling.
    Keywords:  cardiac myocyte; fractal dimension; mitochondrial oscillator; wavelets
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2023.03.011
  5. Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Basis Dis. 2023 Mar 04. pii: S0925-4439(23)00048-0. [Epub ahead of print] 166682
      NF-κB-inducing kinase (NIK) is an essential upstream inducer of noncanonical NF-κB signaling and a critical regulator of immunity and inflammation. Our recent work has demonstrated that NIK regulates mitochondrial respiration and adaptive metabolic responses in cancer and innate immune cells. However, it is not clear whether NIK also has roles in regulating systemic metabolism. In this study, we demonstrate that NIK has local and systemic effects on developmental and metabolic processes. Our findings show that NIK-deficient mice exhibit reduced adiposity, as well as elevated energy expenditure both basally, and under the stress of a high-fat diet. Moreover, we identify NF-κB-independent and -dependent functions for NIK in white adipose tissue metabolism and development. Specifically, we found that in an NF-κB-independent manner NIK is required for maintaining mitochondrial fitness, as NIK-deficient adipocytes have impaired mitochondrial membrane potential and spare respiratory capacity. In addition to mitochondrial exhaustion, NIK-deficient adipocytes and ex vivo adipose tissue exhibit a compensatory upregulation of glycolysis to meet bioenergetic demands. Finally, while NIK regulation of mitochondrial metabolism in preadipocytes is NF-κB-independent, we demonstrate that NIK has a complementary role in adipocyte differentiation that requires activation of RelB and the noncanonical NF-κB pathway. Collectively, these data demonstrate that NIK has critical roles in local and systemic development and metabolism. Our findings establish NIK as an important regulator of organelle, cell, and systemic metabolic homeostasis, suggesting that metabolic dysfunction may be an important and unappreciated component of immune disorders and inflammatory diseases arising from NIK deficiency.
    Keywords:  Glycolysis; High-fat diet; NF-κB-inducing kinase; Oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS); Proton leak; Spare respiratory capacity
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbadis.2023.166682
  6. Nature. 2023 Mar 08.
      Metabolic rewiring underlies the effector functions of macrophages1-3, but the mechanisms involved remain incompletely defined. Here, using unbiased metabolomics and stable isotope-assisted tracing, we show that an inflammatory aspartate-argininosuccinate shunt is induced following lipopolysaccharide stimulation. The shunt, supported by increased argininosuccinate synthase (ASS1) expression, also leads to increased cytosolic fumarate levels and fumarate-mediated protein succination. Pharmacological inhibition and genetic ablation of the tricarboxylic acid cycle enzyme fumarate hydratase (FH) further increases intracellular fumarate levels. Mitochondrial respiration is also suppressed and mitochondrial membrane potential increased. RNA sequencing and proteomics analyses demonstrate that there are strong inflammatory effects resulting from FH inhibition. Notably, acute FH inhibition suppresses interleukin-10 expression, which leads to increased tumour necrosis factor secretion, an effect recapitulated by fumarate esters. Moreover, FH inhibition, but not fumarate esters, increases interferon-β production through mechanisms that are driven by mitochondrial RNA (mtRNA) release and activation of the RNA sensors TLR7, RIG-I and MDA5. This effect is recapitulated endogenously when FH is suppressed following prolonged lipopolysaccharide stimulation. Furthermore, cells from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus also exhibit FH suppression, which indicates a potential pathogenic role for this process in human disease. We therefore identify a protective role for FH in maintaining appropriate macrophage cytokine and interferon responses.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-05720-6
  7. Elife. 2023 Mar 06. pii: e84168. [Epub ahead of print]12
      Genetic variation at the MTIF3 (Mitochondrial Translational Initiation Factor 3) locus has been robustly associated with obesity in humans, but the functional basis behind this association is not known. Here, we applied luciferase reporter assay to map potential functional variants in the haplotype block tagged by rs1885988 and used CRISPR-Cas9 to edit the potential functional variants to confirm the regulatory effects on MTIF3 expression. We further conducted functional studies on MTIF3-deficient differentiated human white adipocyte cell line (hWAs-iCas9), generated through inducible expression of CRISPR-Cas9 combined with delivery of synthetic MTIF3-targeting guide RNA. We demonstrate that rs67785913-centered DNA fragment (in LD with rs1885988, r2>0.8) enhances transcription in a luciferase reporter assay, and CRISPR-Cas9 edited rs67785913 CTCT cells show significantly higher MTIF3 expression than rs67785913 CT cells. Perturbed MTIF3 expression led to reduced mitochondrial respiration and endogenous fatty acid oxidation, as well as altered expression of mitochondrial DNA-encoded genes and proteins, and disturbed mitochondrial OXPHOS complex assembly. Furthermore, after glucose restriction, the MTIF3 knockout cells retained more triglycerides than control cells. This study demonstrates an adipocyte function-specific role of MTIF3, which originates in the maintenance of mitochondrial function, providing potential explanations for why MTIF3 genetic variation at rs67785913 is associated with body corpulence and response to weight loss interventions.
    Keywords:  cell biology; genetics; genomics; human
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.84168
  8. PNAS Nexus. 2023 Feb;2(2): pgad007
      Human monocarboxylate/H+ transporters, MCT, facilitate the transmembrane translocation of vital weak acid metabolites, mainly l-lactate. Tumors exhibiting a Warburg effect rely on MCT activity for l-lactate release. Recently, high-resolution MCT structures revealed binding sites for anticancer drug candidates and the substrate. Three charged residues, Lys 38, Asp 309, and Arg 313 (MCT1 numbering) are essential for substrate binding and initiation of the alternating access conformational change. However, the mechanism by which the proton cosubstrate binds and traverses MCTs remained elusive. Here, we report that substitution of Lys 38 by neutral residues maintained MCT functionality in principle, yet required strongly acidic pH conditions for wildtype-like transport velocity. We determined pH-dependent biophysical transport properties, Michaelis-Menten kinetics, and heavy water effects for MCT1 wildtype and Lys 38 mutants. Our experimental data provide evidence for the bound substrate itself to accept and shuttle a proton from Lys 38 to Asp 309 initiating transport. We have shown before that substrate protonation is a pivotal step in the mechanisms of other MCT-unrelated weak acid translocating proteins. In connection with this study, we conclude that utilization of the proton binding and transfer capabilities of the transporter-bound substrate is probably a universal theme for weak acid anion/H+ cotransport.
    Keywords:  lactate; mechanism; monocarboxylate transporter; mutagenesis; proton
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgad007
  9. Nature. 2023 Mar 08.
      
    Keywords:  Cell biology; Immunology; Metabolism
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-00596-y
  10. Mol Metab. 2023 Mar 04. pii: S2212-8778(23)00035-2. [Epub ahead of print] 101701
       OBJECTIVE: Emerging evidence suggest the existence of constant basal lipolysis and re-esterification of a substantial fraction of thus liberated fatty acids. In stimulated lipolysis, the re-esterification is proposed to be a protective mechanism against lipotoxicity; however, the role of the lipolysis coupled to re-esterification under basal conditions has not been deciphered.
    METHODS: We used adipocytes (in vitro differentiated brown and white adipocytes derived from a cell line or primary SVF culture) to study the effect of inhibition of re-esterification by pharmacological DGAT1 and DGAT2 inhibitors alone or in combination. We then evaluated cellular energetics, lipolysis flux, and lipidomic parameters along with mitochondrial properties and fuel utilization.
    RESULTS: In adipocytes, DGAT1 and 2 mediated re-esterification is a moderator of fatty acid oxidation. Combined inhibition of both DGATs (D1+2i) increases oxygen consumption, which is largely due to enhanced mitochondrial respiration by lipolysis-derived fatty acids (FAs). Acute D1+2i selectively affects mitochondrial respiration without affecting the transcriptional homeostasis of genes relevant to mitochondrial health and lipid metabolism. D1+2i enhances the mitochondrial import of pyruvate and activates AMP Kinase to counteract CPT1 antagonism, thus facilitating the mitochondrial import of fatty acyl-CoA.
    CONCLUSIONS: These data implicate the process of re-esterification in the regulation of mitochondrial FA usage and uncover a mechanism of FAO regulation via crosstalk with FA re-esterification.
    Keywords:  Adipose tissue; DGAT1; DGAT2; Fatty acid oxidation; Lipidomics; Lipolysis; Re-esterification
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmet.2023.101701
  11. Science. 2023 Mar 10. 379(6636): 996-1003
      Metabolic networks are interconnected and influence diverse cellular processes. The protein-metabolite interactions that mediate these networks are frequently low affinity and challenging to systematically discover. We developed mass spectrometry integrated with equilibrium dialysis for the discovery of allostery systematically (MIDAS) to identify such interactions. Analysis of 33 enzymes from human carbohydrate metabolism identified 830 protein-metabolite interactions, including known regulators, substrates, and products as well as previously unreported interactions. We functionally validated a subset of interactions, including the isoform-specific inhibition of lactate dehydrogenase by long-chain acyl-coenzyme A. Cell treatment with fatty acids caused a loss of pyruvate-lactate interconversion dependent on lactate dehydrogenase isoform expression. These protein-metabolite interactions may contribute to the dynamic, tissue-specific metabolic flexibility that enables growth and survival in an ever-changing nutrient environment.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abm3452
  12. Nature. 2023 Mar 08.
      Mutations in fumarate hydratase (FH) cause hereditary leiomyomatosis and renal cell carcinoma1. Loss of FH in the kidney elicits several oncogenic signalling cascades through the accumulation of the oncometabolite fumarate2. However, although the long-term consequences of FH loss have been described, the acute response has not so far been investigated. Here we generated an inducible mouse model to study the chronology of FH loss in the kidney. We show that loss of FH leads to early alterations of mitochondrial morphology and the release of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) into the cytosol, where it triggers the activation of the cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS)-stimulator of interferon genes (STING)-TANK-binding kinase 1 (TBK1) pathway and stimulates an inflammatory response that is also partially dependent on retinoic-acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I). Mechanistically, we show that this phenotype is mediated by fumarate and occurs selectively through mitochondrial-derived vesicles in a manner that depends on sorting nexin 9 (SNX9). These results reveal that increased levels of intracellular fumarate induce a remodelling of the mitochondrial network and the generation of mitochondrial-derived vesicles, which allows the release of mtDNAin the cytosol and subsequent activation of the innate immune response.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-05770-w
  13. Elife. 2023 Mar 06. pii: e85494. [Epub ahead of print]12
      Recent studies reveal that lateral mitochondrial transfer, the movement of mitochondria from one cell to another, can affect cellular and tissue homeostasis1,2. Most of what we know about mitochondrial transfer stems from bulk cell studies and have led to the paradigm that functional transferred mitochondria restore bioenergetics and revitalize cellular functions to recipient cells with damaged or non-functional mitochondrial networks3. However, we show that mitochondrial transfer also occurs between cells with functioning endogenous mitochondrial networks, but the mechanisms underlying how transferred mitochondria can promote such sustained behavioral reprogramming remain unclear. We report that unexpectedly, transferred macrophage mitochondria are dysfunctional and accumulate reactive oxygen species in recipient cancer cells. We further discovered that reactive oxygen species accumulation activates ERK signaling, promoting cancer cell proliferation. Pro-tumorigenic macrophages exhibit fragmented mitochondrial networks, leading to higher rates of mitochondrial transfer to cancer cells. Finally, we observe that macrophage mitochondrial transfer promotes tumor cell proliferation in vivo. Collectively these results indicate that transferred macrophage mitochondria activate downstream signaling pathways in a ROS-dependent manner in cancer cells, and provide a model of how sustained behavioral reprogramming can be mediated by a relatively small amount of transferred mitochondria in vitro and in vivo.
    Keywords:  cancer biology; cell biology; human; mouse
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.85494
  14. Cell Chem Biol. 2023 Mar 01. pii: S2451-9456(23)00055-7. [Epub ahead of print]
      Reactive oxygen species (ROS) can modulate protein function through cysteine oxidation. Identifying protein targets of ROS can provide insight into uncharacterized ROS-regulated pathways. Several redox-proteomic workflows, such as oxidative isotope-coded affinity tags (OxICAT), exist to identify sites of cysteine oxidation. However, determining ROS targets localized within subcellular compartments and ROS hotspots remains challenging with existing workflows. Here, we present a chemoproteomic platform, PL-OxICAT, which combines proximity labeling (PL) with OxICAT to monitor localized cysteine oxidation events. We show that TurboID-based PL-OxICAT can monitor cysteine oxidation events within subcellular compartments such as the mitochondrial matrix and intermembrane space. Furthermore, we use ascorbate peroxidase (APEX)-based PL-OxICAT to monitor oxidation events within ROS hotspots by using endogenous ROS as the source of peroxide for APEX activation. Together, these platforms further hone our ability to monitor cysteine oxidation events within specific subcellular locations and ROS hotspots and provide a deeper understanding of the protein targets of endogenous and exogenous ROS.
    Keywords:  APEX; OxICAT; TurboID; cysteine oxidation; proximity labeling; reactive oxygen species
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chembiol.2023.02.006