Search

Insulin resistance is a major factor in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes and is strongly associated with obesity. Increased concentrations of intracellular fatty acid metabolites have been postulated to interfere with insulin signaling by activation of a serine kinase cascade involving PKCtheta in skeletal muscle. Uncoupling protein 3 (UCP3) has been postulated to dissipate the mitochondrial proton gradient and cause metabolic inefficiency. We therefore hypothesized that overexpression of UCP3 in skeletal muscle might protect against fat-induced insulin resistance in muscle by conversion of intramyocellular fat into thermal energy. Wild-type mice fed a high-fat diet were markedly insulin resistant, a result of defects in insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in skeletal muscle and hepatic insulin resistance. Insulin resistance in these tissues was associated with reduced insulin-stimulated insulin receptor substrate 1- (IRS-1-) and IRS-2-associated PI3K activity in muscle and liver, respectively. In contrast, UCP3-overexpressing mice were completely protected against fat-induced defects in insulin signaling and action in these tissues. Furthermore, these changes were associated with a lower membrane-to-cytosolic ratio of diacylglycerol and reduced PKCtheta activity in whole-body fat-matched UCP3 transgenic mice. These results suggest that increasing mitochondrial uncoupling in skeletal muscle may be an excellent therapeutic target for type 2 diabetes mellitus.

As a new mouse model of obesity-induced diabetes generated by combining quantitative trait loci from New Zealand Obese (NZO/HlLt) and Nonobese Nondiabetic (NON/LtJ) mice, NONcNZO10/LtJ (RCS10) male mice developed type 2 diabetes characterized by maturity onset obesity, hyperglycemia, and insulin resistance. To metabolically profile the progression to diabetes in preobese and obese states, a 2-h hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp was performed and organ-specific changes in insulin action were assessed in awake RCS10 and NON/LtJ (control) males at 8 and 13 wk of age. Prior to development of obesity and attendant increases in hepatic lipid content, 8-wk-old RCS10 mice developed insulin resistance in liver and skeletal muscle due to significant decreases in insulin-stimulated glucose uptake and GLUT4 expression in muscle. Transition to an obese and hyperglycemic state by 13 wk of age exacerbated insulin resistance in skeletal muscle, liver, and heart associated with organ-specific increases in lipid content. Thus, this polygenic mouse model of type 2 diabetes, wherein plasma insulin is only modestly elevated and obesity develops with maturity yet insulin action and glucose metabolism in skeletal muscle and liver are reduced at an early prediabetic age, should provide new insights into the etiology of type 2 diabetes.

Mice with liver-specific overexpression of dominant negative phosphorylation-defective S503A-CEACAM1 mutant (L-SACC1) developed chronic hyperinsulinemia resulting from blunted hepatic clearance of insulin, visceral obesity, and glucose intolerance. To determine the underlying mechanism of altered glucose homeostasis, a 2-h hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp was performed, and tissue-specific glucose and lipid metabolism was assessed in awake L-SACC1 and wild-type mice. Inactivation of carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 1 (CEACAM1) caused insulin resistance in liver that was mostly due to increased expression of fatty acid synthase and lipid metabolism, resulting in elevated intrahepatic levels of triglyceride and long-chain acyl-CoAs. Whole body insulin resistance in the L-SACC1 mice was further attributed to defects in insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in skeletal muscle and adipose tissue. Insulin resistance in peripheral tissues was associated with significantly elevated intramuscular fat contents that may be secondary to increased whole body adiposity (assessed by (1)H-MRS) in the L-SACC1 mice. Overall, these results demonstrate that L-SACC1 is a mouse model in which chronic hyperinsulinemia acts as a cause, and not a consequence, of insulin resistance. Our findings further indicate the important role of CEACAM1 and hepatic insulin clearance in the pathogenesis of obesity and insulin resistance.

Type 2 diabetes is a heterogeneous disease characterized by insulin resistance and altered glucose and lipid metabolism in multiple organs. To understand the complex series of events that occur during the development of obesity-associated diabetes, we examined the temporal pattern of changes in insulin action and glucose metabolism in individual organs during chronic high-fat feeding in C57BL/6 mice. Insulin-stimulated cardiac glucose metabolism was significantly reduced after 1.5 weeks of high-fat feeding, and cardiac insulin resistance was associated with blunted Akt-mediated insulin signaling and GLUT4 levels. Insulin resistance in skeletal muscle, adipose tissue, and liver developed in parallel after 3 weeks of high-fat feeding. Diet-induced whole-body insulin resistance was associated with increased circulating levels of resistin and leptin but unaltered adiponectin levels. High-fat feeding caused insulin resistance in skeletal muscle that was associated with significantly elevated intramuscular fat content. In contrast, diet-induced hepatic insulin resistance developed before a marked increase in intrahepatic triglyceride levels. Cardiac function gradually declined over the course of high-fat feeding, and after 20 weeks of high-fat diet, cardiac dysfunction was associated with mild hyperglycemia, hyperleptinemia, and reduced circulating adiponectin levels. Our findings demonstrate that cardiac insulin resistance is an early adaptive event in response to obesity and develops before changes in whole-body glucose homeostasis. This suggests that obesity-associated defects in cardiac function may not be due to insulin resistance per se but may be attributable to chronic alteration in cardiac glucose and lipid metabolism and circulating adipokines.

Diabetic heart failure may be causally associated with alterations in cardiac energy metabolism and insulin resistance. Mice with heart-specific overexpression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)alpha showed a metabolic and cardiomyopathic phenotype similar to the diabetic heart, and we determined tissue-specific glucose metabolism and insulin action in vivo during hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamps in awake myosin heavy chain (MHC)-PPARalpha mice (12-14 weeks of age). Basal and insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in heart was significantly reduced in the MHC-PPARalpha mice, and cardiac insulin resistance was mostly attributed to defects in insulin-stimulated activities of insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1-associated phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase, Akt, and tyrosine phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3). Interestingly, MHC-PPARalpha mice developed hepatic insulin resistance associated with defects in insulin-mediated IRS-2-associated PI 3-kinase activity, increased hepatic triglyceride, and circulating interleukin-6 levels. To determine the underlying mechanism, insulin clamps were conducted in 8-week-old MHC-PPARalpha mice. Insulin-stimulated cardiac glucose uptake was similarly reduced in 8-week-old MHC-PPARalpha mice without changes in cardiac function and hepatic insulin action compared with the age-matched wild-type littermates. Overall, these findings indicate that increased activity of PPARalpha, as occurs in the diabetic heart, leads to cardiac insulin resistance associated with defects in insulin signaling and STAT3 activity, subsequently leading to reduced cardiac function. Additionally, age-associated hepatic insulin resistance develops in MHC-PPARalpha mice that may be due to altered cardiac metabolism, functions, and/or inflammatory cytokines.

Insulin resistance in skeletal muscle and heart plays a major role in the development of type 2 diabetes and diabetic heart failure and may be causally associated with altered lipid metabolism. Hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL) is a rate-determining enzyme in the hydrolysis of triglyceride in adipocytes, and HSL-deficient mice have reduced circulating fatty acids and are resistant to diet-induced obesity. To determine the metabolic role of HSL, we examined the changes in tissue-specific insulin action and glucose metabolism in vivo during hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamps after 3 wk of high-fat or normal chow diet in awake, HSL-deficient (HSL-KO) mice. On normal diet, HSL-KO mice showed a twofold increase in hepatic insulin action but a 40% decrease in insulin-stimulated cardiac glucose uptake compared with wild-type littermates. High-fat feeding caused a similar increase in whole body fat mass in both groups of mice. Insulin-stimulated glucose uptake was reduced by 50-80% in skeletal muscle and heart of wild-type mice after high-fat feeding. In contrast, HSL-KO mice were protected from diet-induced insulin resistance in skeletal muscle and heart, and these effects were associated with reduced intramuscular triglyceride and fatty acyl-CoA levels in the fat-fed HSL-KO mice. Overall, these findings demonstrate the important role of HSL on skeletal muscle, heart, and liver glucose metabolism.

Insulin resistance plays a major role in the development of type 2 diabetes and may be causally associated with increased intracellular fat content. Transgenic mice with adipocyte-specific overexpression of FOXC2 (forkhead transcription factor) have been generated and shown to be protected against diet-induced obesity and glucose intolerance. To understand the underlying mechanism, we examined the effects of chronic high-fat feeding on tissue-specific insulin action and glucose metabolism in the FOXC2 transgenic (Tg) mice. Whole-body fat mass were significantly reduced in the FOXC2 Tg mice fed normal diet or high-fat diet compared with the wild-type mice. Diet-induced insulin resistance in skeletal muscle of the wild-type mice was associated with defects in insulin signaling and significant increases in intramuscular fatty acyl CoA levels. In contrast, FOXC2 Tg mice were completely protected from diet-induced insulin resistance and intramuscular accumulation of fatty acyl CoA. High-fat feeding also blunted insulin-mediated suppression of hepatic glucose production in the wild-type mice, whereas FOXC2 Tg mice were protected from diet-induced hepatic insulin resistance. These findings demonstrate an important role of adipocyte-expressed FOXC2 on whole-body glucose metabolism and further suggest FOXC2 as a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.

Insulin resistance plays a primary role in the development of type 2 diabetes and may be related to alterations in fat metabolism. Recent studies have suggested that local accumulation of fat metabolites inside skeletal muscle may activate a serine kinase cascade involving protein kinase C-theta (PKC-theta), leading to defects in insulin signaling and glucose transport in skeletal muscle. To test this hypothesis, we examined whether mice with inactivation of PKC-theta are protected from fat-induced insulin resistance in skeletal muscle. Skeletal muscle and hepatic insulin action as assessed during hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamps did not differ between WT and PKC-theta KO mice following saline infusion. A 5-hour lipid infusion decreased insulin-stimulated skeletal muscle glucose uptake in the WT mice that was associated with 40-50% decreases in insulin-stimulated tyrosine phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) and IRS-1-associated PI3K activity. In contrast, PKC-theta inactivation prevented fat-induced defects in insulin signaling and glucose transport in skeletal muscle. In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that PKC-theta is a crucial component mediating fat-induced insulin resistance in skeletal muscle and suggest that PKC-theta is a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

To determine the role of adipocytes and the tissue-specific nature in the insulin sensitizing action of rosiglitazone, we examined the effects of 3 weeks of rosiglitazone treatment on insulin signaling and action during hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamps in awake A-ZIP/F-1 (fatless), fat-transplanted fatless, and wild-type littermate mice. We found that 53 and 66% decreases in insulin-stimulated glucose uptake and insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1-associated phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase activity in skeletal muscle of fatless mice were normalized after rosiglitazone treatment. These effects of rosiglitazone treatment were associated with 50% decreases in triglyceride and fatty acyl-CoA contents in the skeletal muscle of rosiglitazone-treated fatless mice. In contrast, rosiglitazone treatment exacerbated hepatic insulin resistance in the fatless mice and did not affect already reduced IRS-2-associated PI 3-kinase activity in liver. The worsening of insulin action in liver was associated with 30% increases in triglyceride and fatty acyl-CoA contents in the liver of rosiglitazone-treated fatless mice. In conclusion, these data support the hypothesis that rosiglitazone treatment enhanced insulin action in skeletal muscle mostly by its ability to repartition fat away from skeletal muscle.