Comprehensive sex steroid profiling in multiple tissues reveals novel insights in sex steroid distribution in male mice

A comprehensive atlas of sex steroid distribution in multiple tissues is currently lacking, and how circulating and tissue sex steroid levels correlate remains unknown. Here, we adapted and validated a gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method for simultaneous measurement of testosterone (T), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), androstenedione, progesterone (Prog), estradiol, and estrone in mouse tissues. We then mapped the sex steroid pattern in 10 different endocrine, reproductive, and major body compartment tissues and serum of gonadal intact and orchiectomized (ORX) male mice. In gonadal intact males, high levels of DHT were observed in reproductive tissues, but also in white adipose tissue (WAT). A major part of the total body reservoir of androgens (T and DHT) and Prog was found in WAT. Serum levels of androgens and Prog were strongly correlated with corresponding levels in the brain while only modestly correlated with corresponding levels in WAT. After orchiectomy, the levels of the active androgens T and DHT decreased markedly while Prog levels in male reproductive tissues increased slightly. In ORX mice, Prog was by far the most abundant sex steroid, and, again, WAT constituted the major reservoir of Prog in the body. In conclusion, we present a comprehensive atlas of tissue and serum concentrations of sex hormones in male mice, revealing novel insights in sex steroid distribution. Brain sex steroid levels are well reflected by serum levels and WAT constitutes a large reservoir of sex steroids in male mice. In addition, Prog is the most abundant sex hormone in ORX mice

Comprehensive Sex Steroid Profiling in Multiple Tissues Reveals Novel Insights in Sex Steroid Distribution in Male Mice

A comprehensive atlas of sex steroid distribution in multiple tissues is currently lacking, and how circulating and tissue sex steroid levels correlate remains unknown. Here, we adapted and validated a gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method for simultaneous measurement of testosterone (T), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), androstenedione, progesterone (Prog), estradiol, and estrone in mouse tissues. We then mapped the sex steroid pattern in 10 different endocrine, reproductive, and major body compartment tissues and serum of gonadal intact and orchiectomized (ORX) male mice. In gonadal intact males, high levels of DHT were observed in reproductive tissues, but also in white adipose tissue (WAT). A major part of the total body reservoir of androgens (T and DHT) and Prog was found in WAT. Serum levels of androgens and Prog were strongly correlated with corresponding levels in the brain while only modestly correlated with corresponding levels in WAT. After orchiectomy, the levels of the active androgens T and DHT decreased markedly while Prog levels in male reproductive tissues increased slightly. In ORX mice, Prog was by far the most abundant sex steroid, and, again, WAT constituted the major reservoir of Prog in the body. In conclusion, we present a comprehensive atlas of tissue and serum concentrations of sex hormones in male mice, revealing novel insights in sex steroid distribution. Brain sex steroid levels are well reflected by serum levels and WAT constitutes a large reservoir of sex steroids in male mice. In addition, Prog is the most abundant sex hormone in ORX mice

Global, neuronal or β cell-specific deletion of inceptor improves glucose homeostasis in male mice with diet-induced obesity

Insulin resistance is an early complication of diet-induced obesity (DIO)1, potentially leading to hyperglycaemia and hyperinsulinaemia, accompanied by adaptive beta cell hypertrophy and development of type 2 diabetes2. Insulin not only signals via the insulin receptor (INSR), but also promotes beta cell survival, growth and function via the insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R)3-6. We recently identified the insulin inhibitory receptor (inceptor) as the key mediator of IGF1R and INSR desensitization7. But, although beta cell-specific loss of inceptor improves beta cell function in lean mice7, it warrants clarification whether inceptor signal inhibition also improves glycaemia under conditions of obesity. We assessed the glucometabolic effects of targeted inceptor deletion in either the brain or the pancreatic beta cells under conditions of DIO in male mice. In the present study, we show that global and neuronal deletion of inceptor, as well as its adult-onset deletion in the beta cells, improves glucose homeostasis by enhancing beta cell health and function. Moreover, we demonstrate that inceptor-mediated improvement in glucose control does not depend on inceptor function in agouti-related protein-expressing or pro-opiomelanocortin neurons. Our data demonstrate that inceptor inhibition improves glucose homeostasis in mice with DIO, hence corroborating that inceptor is a crucial regulator of INSR and IGF1R signalling. In male mice with diet-induced obesity, deletion of insulin inhibitory receptor (inceptor) in the whole body, in the brain and in pancreatic beta cells improves glucose homeostasis, underlining a role of inceptor in regulating glucose homeostasis in the brain and pancreas

GLP-1-mediated delivery of tesaglitazar improves obesity and glucose metabolism in male mice

Dual agonists activating the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors alpha and gamma (PPARɑ/ɣ) have beneficial effects on glucose and lipid metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes, but their development was discontinued due to potential adverse effects. Here we report the design and preclinical evaluation of a molecule that covalently links the PPARɑ/ɣ dual-agonist tesaglitazar to a GLP-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) to allow for GLP-1R-dependent cellular delivery of tesaglitazar. GLP-1RA/tesaglitazar does not differ from the pharmacokinetically matched GLP-1RA in GLP-1R signalling, but shows GLP-1R-dependent PPARɣ-retinoic acid receptor heterodimerization and enhanced improvements of body weight, food intake and glucose metabolism relative to the GLP-1RA or tesaglitazar alone in obese male mice. The conjugate fails to affect body weight and glucose metabolism in GLP-1R knockout mice and shows preserved effects in obese mice at subthreshold doses for the GLP-1RA and tesaglitazar. Liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry-based proteomics identified PPAR regulated proteins in the hypothalamus that are acutely upregulated by GLP-1RA/tesaglitazar. Our data show that GLP-1RA/tesaglitazar improves glucose control with superior efficacy to the GLP-1RA or tesaglitazar alone and suggest that this conjugate might hold therapeutic value to acutely treat hyperglycaemia and insulin resistance

Pasteurized Akkermansia muciniphila protects from fat mass gain but not from bone loss

Probiotic bacteria can protect from ovariectomy (ovx)-induced bone loss in mice. Akkermansia muciniphila is considered to have probiotic potential due to its beneficial effect on obesity and insulin resistance. The purpose of the present study was to determine if treatment with pasteurized Akkermansia muciniphila (pAkk) could prevent ovx-induced bone loss. Mice were treated with vehicle or pAkk for 4 wk, starting 3 days before ovx or sham surgery. Treatment with pAkk reduced fat mass accumulation confirming earlier findings. However, treatment with pAkk decreased trabecular and cortical bone mass in femur and vertebra of gonadal intact mice and did not protect from ovx-induced bone loss. Treatment with pAkk increased serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels and increased expression of the calcium transporter Trpv5 in kidney suggesting increased reabsorption of calcium in the kidneys. Serum amyloid A 3 (SAA3) can suppress bone formation and mediate the effects of PTH on bone resorption and bone loss in mice and treatment with pAkk increased serum levels of SAA3 and gene expression of Saa3 in colon. Moreover, regulatory T cells can be protective of bone and pAkk-treated mice had decreased number of regulatory T cells in mesenteric lymph nodes and bone marrow. In conclusion, treatment with pAkk protected from ovx-induced fat mass gain but not from bone loss and reduced bone mass in gonadal intact mice. Our findings with pAkk differ from some probiotics that have been shown to protect bone mass, demonstrating that not all prebiotic and probiotic factors have the same effect on bone.Peer reviewe

Pirt deficiency has subtle female-specific effects on energy and glucose metabolism in mice

Objective: The contribution of brown adipose tissue (BAT) to adult human metabolic control is a topic of ongoing investigation. In context, understanding the cellular events leading to BAT uncoupling, heat production, and energy expenditure is anticipated to produce significant insight into this endeavor. The phosphoinositide interacting regulator of transient receptor potentials (Pirt) was recently put forward as a key protein regulating cold sensing downstream of the transient receptor potential melastatin 8 (TRPM8). Notably, TRPM8 has been identified as a non-canonical regulator of BAT thermogenesis. The aim of this investigation was to delineate the role of Pirt in energy homeostasis and glucose metabolism - and the possible involvement of Pirt in TRPM8-elicited energy expenditure. Methods: To this end, we metabolically phenotyped male and female Pirt deficient (Pirt−/−) mice exposed to a low-fat chow diet or to a high-fat, high-sugar (HFHS) diet. Results: We identified that chow-fed female Pirt−/− mice have an increased susceptibility to develop obesity and glucose intolerance. This effect is abrogated when the mice are exposed to a HFHS diet. Conversely, Pirt−/− male mice display no metabolic phenotype on either diet relative to wild-type (WT) control mice. Finally, we observed that Pirt is dispensable for TRPM8-evoked energy expenditure. Conclusion: We here report subtle metabolic abnormalities in female, but not male, Pirt−/− mice. Future studies are required to tease out if metabolic stressors beyond dietary interventions, e.g. temperature fluctuations, are interacting with Pirt-signaling and metabolic control in a sex-specific fashion. Keywords: Signaling molecule, Sex differences, Body weight, Energy metabolism, TRPM8, Brown adipose tissu

Author Correction: Inceptor counteracts insulin signalling in β-cells to control glycaemia.

In this Article, the affiliations for author Ünal Coskun were incorrect. They should be ‘German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Neuherberg, Germany’, ‘Paul Langerhans Institute Dresden of Helmholtz Center Munich, Technical University Dresden, Dresden, Germany’ and ‘Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and University Clinic Carl Gustav Carus, Technical University Dresden, Dresden, Germany’ (affiliations 2, 10 and 14, respectively), and not ‘Department of Microsystems Engineering (IMTEK), University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany’ (affiliation 5). The original Article has been corrected online

Inceptor counteracts insulin signalling in β-cells to control glycaemia.

Resistance to insulin and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) in pancreatic β-cells causes overt diabetes in mice; thus, therapies that sensitize β-cells to insulin may protect patients with diabetes against β-cell failure1–3. Here we identify an inhibitor of insulin receptor (INSR) and IGF1 receptor (IGF1R) signalling in mouse β-cells, which we name the insulin inhibitory receptor (inceptor; encoded by the gene Iir). Inceptor contains an extracellular cysteine-rich domain with similarities to INSR and IGF1R4, and a mannose 6-phosphate receptor domain that is also found in the IGF2 receptor (IGF2R)5. Knockout mice that lack inceptor (Iir−/−) exhibit signs of hyperinsulinaemia and hypoglycaemia, and die within a few hours of birth. Molecular and cellular analyses of embryonic and postnatal pancreases from Iir−/− mice showed an increase in the activation of INSR–IGF1R in Iir−/− pancreatic tissue, resulting in an increase in the proliferation and mass of β-cells. Similarly, inducible β-cell-specific Iir−/− knockout in adult mice and in ex vivo islets led to an increase in the activation of INSR–IGF1R and increased proliferation of β-cells, resulting in improved glucose tolerance in vivo. Mechanistically, inceptor interacts with INSR–IGF1R to facilitate clathrin-mediated endocytosis for receptor desensitization. Blocking this physical interaction using monoclonal antibodies against the extracellular domain of inceptor resulted in the retention of inceptor and INSR at the plasma membrane to sustain the activation of INSR–IGF1R in β-cells. Together, our findings show that inceptor shields insulin-producing β-cells from constitutive pathway activation, and identify inceptor as a potential molecular target for INSR–IGF1R sensitization and diabetes therapy

The glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) regulates body weight and food intake via CNS-GIPR signaling.

Uncertainty exists as to whether the glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptor (GIPR) should be activated or inhibited for the treatment of obesity. Gipr was recently demonstrated in hypothalamic feeding centers, but the physiological relevance of CNS Gipr remains unknown. Here we show that HFD-fed CNS-Gipr KO mice and humanized (h)GIPR knockin mice with CNS-hGIPR deletion show decreased body weight and improved glucose metabolism. In DIO mice, acute central and peripheral administration of acyl-GIP increases cFos neuronal activity in hypothalamic feeding centers, and this coincides with decreased body weight and food intake and improved glucose handling. Chronic central and peripheral administration of acyl-GIP lowers body weight and food intake in wild-type mice, but shows blunted/absent efficacy in CNS-Gipr KO mice. Also, the superior metabolic effect of GLP-1/GIP co-agonism relative to GLP-1 is extinguished in CNS-Gipr KO mice. Our data hence establish a key role of CNS Gipr for control of energy metabolism