Reduced insulin-stimulated glucose transport in denervated muscle is associated with impaired Akt-alpha activation

Insulin Resistance Is Not Sustained Following Denervation in Glycolytic Skeletal Muscle

Denervation rapidly induces insulin resistance (i.e., impairments in insulin-stimulated glucose uptake and signaling proteins) in skeletal muscle. Surprisingly, whether this metabolic derangement is long-lasting is presently not clear. The main goal of this study was to determine if insulin resistance is sustained in both oxidative soleus and glycolytic extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscles following long-term (28 days) denervation. Mouse hindlimb muscles were denervated via unilateral sciatic nerve resection. Both soleus and EDL muscles atrophied ~40%. Strikingly, while denervation impaired submaximal insulin-stimulated [3H]-2-deoxyglucose uptake ~30% in the soleus, it enhanced submaximal (~120%) and maximal (~160%) insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in the EDL. To assess possible mechanism(s), immunoblots were performed. Denervation did not consistently alter insulin signaling (e.g., p-Akt (Thr308):Akt; p-TBC1D1 [phospho-Akt substrate (PAS)]:TBC1D1; or p-TBC1D4 (PAS):TBC1D4) in either muscle. However, denervation decreased glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) levels ~65% in the soleus but increased them ~90% in the EDL. To assess the contribution of GLUT4 to the enhanced EDL muscle glucose uptake, muscle-specific GLUT4 knockout mice were examined. Loss of GLUT4 prevented the denervation-induced increase in insulin-stimulated glucose uptake. In conclusion, the denervation results sustained insulin resistance in the soleus but enhanced insulin sensitivity in the EDL due to increased GLUT4 protein levels.

Calcitonin gene-related peptide inhibits autophagic-lysosomal proteolysis through cAMP/PKA signaling in rat skeletal muscles

Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) is a neuropeptide released by motor neuron in skeletal muscle and modulates the neuromuscular transmission by induction of synthesis and insertion of acetylcholine receptor on postsynaptic muscle membrane; however, its role in skeletal muscle protein metabolism remains unclear. We examined the in vitro and in vivo effects of CGRP on protein breakdown and signaling pathways in control skeletal muscles and muscles following denervation (DEN) in rats. In isolated muscles, CGRP (10(-10) to 10(-6)M) reduced basal and DEN-induced activation of overall proteolysis in a concentration-dependent manner. The in vitro anti-proteolytic effect of CGRP was completely abolished by CGRP8-37, a CGRP receptor antagonist. CGRP down-regulated the lysosomal proteolysis, the mRNA levels of LC3b, Gabarapl1 and cathepsin L and the protein content of LC3-II in control and denervated muscles. In parallel, CGRP elevated cAMP levels, stimulated PKA/CREB signaling and increased Foxo1 phosphorylation in both conditions. In denervated muscles and starved C2C12 cells, Rp-8-Br-cAMPs or PKI, two PKA inhibitors, completely abolished the inhibitory effect of CGRP on Foxo1, 3 and 4 and LC3 lipidation. A single injection of CGRP (100 μg kg(-1)) in denervated rats increased the phosphorylation levels of CREB and Akt, inhibited Foxo transcriptional activity, the LC3 lipidation as well as the mRNA levels of LC3b and cathepsin L, two bona fide targets of Foxo. This study shows for the first time that CGRP exerts a direct inhibitory action on autophagic-lysosomal proteolysis in control and denervated skeletal muscle by recruiting cAMP/PKA signaling, effects that are related to inhibition of Foxo activity and LC3 lipidation.

Compensatory responses of the insulin signaling pathway restore muscle glucose uptake following long-term denervation

We investigated the role of muscle activity in maintaining normal glucose homeostasis via transection of the sciatic nerve, an extreme model of disuse atrophy. Mice were killed 3, 10, 28, or 56 days after transection or sham surgery. There was no difference in muscle weight between sham and transected limbs at 3 days post surgery, but it was significantly lower following transection at the other three time points. Transected muscle weight stabilized by 28 days post surgery with no further loss. Myocellular cross-sectional area was significantly smaller at 10, 28, and 56 days post transection surgery. Additionally, muscle fibrosis area was significantly greater at 56 days post transection. In transected muscle there was reduced expression of genes encoding transcriptional regulators of metabolism (PPARα, PGC-1α, PGC-1β, PPARδ), a glycolytic enzyme (PFK), a fatty acid transporter (M-CPT 1), and an enzyme of mitochondrial oxidation (CS) with transection. In denervated muscle, glucose uptake was significantly lower at 3 days but was greater at 56 days under basal and insulin-stimulated conditions. Although GLUT 4 mRNA was significantly lower at all time points in transected muscle, Western blot analysis showed greater expression of GLUT4 at 28 and 56 days post surgery. GLUT1 mRNA was unchanged; however, GLUT1 protein expression was also greater in transected muscles. Surgery led to significantly higher protein expression for Akt2 as well as higher phosphorylation of Akt. While denervation may initially lead to reduced glucose sensitivity, compensatory responses of insulin signaling appeared to restore and improve glucose uptake in long-term-transected muscle.

Acute sedentary behaviour and markers of cardiometabolic risk: a systematic review of intervention studies

North Americans spend half their waking hours engaging in sedentary behaviour. Although several recent interventions suggest that short bouts of uninterrupted sedentary behaviour may result in acute increases in cardiometabolic risk, this literature has not been reviewed systematically. This study performed a systematic review of the impact of uninterrupted sedentary behaviour lasting ≤7 days on markers of cardiometabolic risk (insulin sensitivity, glucose tolerance, and fasting insulin, glucose, and lipid levels) in humans. Interventions were identified through systematic searches of Medline and Embase and screened by 2 independent reviewers. A total of 25 interventions were identified that examined the impact of imposed sedentary behaviour on biomarkers of interest. The majority of these studies focused on healthy young men, with very little identified research on females or other age groups. We found consistent, moderate quality evidence that uninterrupted sedentary behaviour ≤7 days results in moderate and deleterious changes in insulin sensitivity, glucose tolerance, and plasma triglyceride levels. In contrast, there is inconsistent, very low-quality evidence linking uninterrupted sedentary behaviour with changes in insulin, glucose, and HDL- and LDL-cholesterol levels. These findings suggest that uninterrupted bouts of sedentary behaviour should be avoided in order to prevent or attenuate transient increases in metabolic risk.

Viability of the isolated soleus muscle during long-term incubation

Skeletal muscle metabolism has been examined in perfused hindlimb muscles and in isolated muscle preparations. While long-term viability of the fast-twitch epitrochlearis has been documented with respect to glucose transport, it appears that long-term incubated soleus muscles are less stable when incubated ex vivo for many hours. Therefore, in the present study, we have examined whether the isolated soleus muscle remains metabolically viable for up to 18 h with respect to maintaining ATP and phosphocreatine (PCr) concentrations, carbohydrate and fatty-acid metabolism, insulin signalling, and protein expression. Soleus muscles were incubated in well-oxygenated Medium 199 (M199) supplemented with low concentrations of insulin (14.3 microU/mL) for 0, 6, 12, and 18 h. During this incubating period the concentrations of ATP and PCr were stable, indicating that oxygenation and substrate supply were being maintained. In addition, the concentrations of proglycogen and macroglycogen were not altered, whereas an increase (+30%) in intramuscular triacylglycerol concentration was observed at the end of 18 h of incubation (p < 0.05). Complex molecular processes in the long-term incubated muscles were also stable. This was shown by maintenance of basal as well as insulin-stimulated rates of 3-O-methyl glucose transport, and by the maintenance of protein expression of the glucose transporter GLUT4 and the fatty acid transporters FAT/CD36 and FABPpm. In addition, the insulin-stimulated translocation of GLUT4 to the plasma membrane, which involves a complex signalling cascade, was fully preserved. In conclusion, in well-oxygenated soleus muscles maintained in M199 supplemented with extremely low concentrations of insulin, ATP and PCr concentrations, carbohydrate and fatty acid metabolism, insulin signalling, and protein expression were stably maintained for up to 18 h. This provides for opportunities to examine muscle metabolic function under very highly controlled conditions.

In vivo insulin signaling through PI3-kinase is impaired in skeletal muscle of adult rat offspring exposed to ethanol in utero

It is now known that prenatal ethanol (EtOH) exposure is associated with impaired glucose tolerance and insulin resistance in rat offspring, but the underlying mechanism(s) is not known. To test the hypothesis that in vivo insulin signaling through phosphatidylinositol 3 (PI3)-kinase is reduced in skeletal muscle of adult rat offspring exposed to EtOH in utero, we gave insulin intravenously to these rats and probed steps in the PI3-kinase insulin signaling pathway. After insulin treatment, EtOH-exposed rats had decreased tyrosine phosphorylation of the insulin receptor β-subunit and of insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1), as well as reduced IRS-1-associated PI3-kinase in the gastrocnemius muscle compared with control rats. There was no significant difference in basal or insulin-stimulated Akt activity between EtOH-exposed rats and controls. Insulin-stimulated PKC isoform ζ phosphorylation and membrane association were reduced in EtOH-exposed rats compared with controls. Muscle insulin binding and peptide contents of insulin receptor, IRS-1, p85 subunit of PI3-kinase, Akt/PKB, and atypical PKC isoform ζ were not different between EtOH-exposed rats and controls. Thus insulin resistance in rat offspring exposed to EtOH in utero may be explained, at least in part, by impaired insulin signaling through the PI3-kinase pathway in skeletal muscle.

Different mechanisms can alter fatty acid transport when muscle contractile activity is chronically altered

We examined whether skeletal muscle transport rates of long-chain fatty acids (LCFAs) were altered when muscle activity was eliminated (denervation) or increased (chronic stimulation). After 7 days of chronically stimulating the hindlimb muscles of female Sprague-Dawley rats, the LCFA transporter proteins fatty acid translocase (FAT)/CD36 (+43%) and plasma membrane-associated fatty acid-binding protein (FABPpm; +30%) were increased (P < 0.05), which resulted in the increased plasmalemmal content of these proteins (FAT/CD36, +42%; FABPpm +13%, P < 0.05) and a concomitant increase in the LCFA transport rate into giant sarcolemmal vesicles (+44%, P < 0.05). Although the total muscle contents of FAT/CD36 and FABPpm were not altered (P > 0.05) after 7 days of denervation, the LCFA transport rate was markedly decreased (-39%). This was associated with reductions in plasmalemmal FAT/CD36 (-24%) and FABPpm (-28%; P < 0.05). These data suggest that these LCFA transporters were resequestered to their intracellular depot(s) within the muscle. Combining the results from these experiments indicated that changes in rates of LCFA transport were correlated with concomitant changes in plasmalemmal FAT/CD36 and FABPpm, but not necessarily with their total muscle content. Thus chronic alterations in muscle activity can alter the rates of LCFA transport via different mechanisms, either 1) by increasing the total muscle content of FAT/CD36 and FABPpm, resulting in a concomitant increase at the sarcolemma, or 2) by reducing the plasma membrane content of these proteins in the absence of any changes in their total muscle content.

Muscle-specific Pparg deletion causes insulin resistance

Thiazolidinediones (TZDs) are insulin-sensitizing drugs and are potent agonists of the nuclear peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma). Although muscle is the major organ responsible for insulin-stimulated glucose disposal, PPAR-gamma is more highly expressed in adipose tissue than in muscle. To address this issue, we used the Cre-loxP system to knock out Pparg, the gene encoding PPAR-gamma, in mouse skeletal muscle. As early as 4 months of age, mice with targeted disruption of PPAR-gamma in muscle showed glucose intolerance and progressive insulin resistance. Using the hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp technique, the in vivo insulin-stimulated glucose disposal rate (IS-GDR) was reduced by approximately 80% and was unchanged by 3 weeks of TZD treatment. These effects reveal a crucial role for muscle PPAR-gamma in the maintenance of skeletal muscle insulin action, the etiology of insulin resistance and the action of TZDs.

Reversal of denervation-induced insulin resistance by SHIP2 protein synthesis blockade

Short-term muscle denervation is a reproducible model of tissue-specific insulin resistance. To investigate the molecular basis of insulin resistance in denervated muscle, the downstream signaling molecules of the insulin-signaling pathway were examined in intact and denervated soleus muscle of rats. Short-term denervation induced a significant fall in glucose clearance rates (62% of control, P < 0.05) as detected by euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp and was associated with a significant decrease in insulin-stimulated tyrosine phosphorylation of the insulin receptor (IR; 73% of control, P < 0.05), IR substrate 1 (IRS1; 69% of control, P < 0.05), and IRS2 (82% of control, P < 0.05) and serine phosphorylation of Akt (39% of control, P < 0.05). Moreover, denervation reduced insulin-induced association between IRS1/IRS2 and p85/phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase. Nevertheless, denervation caused an increase in PI 3-kinase activity associated with IRS1 (275%, P < 0.05) and IRS2 (180%, P < 0.05), but the contents of phosphorylated PI detected by HPLC were significantly reduced in lipid fractions. In the face of the apparent discrepancy, we evaluated the expression and activity of the 5-inositol, lipid phosphatase SH2 domain-containing inositol phosphatase (SHIP2), and the serine phosphorylation of p85/PI 3-kinase. No major differences in SHIP2 expression were detected between intact and denervated muscle. However, serine phosphorylation of p85/PI 3-kinase was reduced in denervated muscle, whereas the blockade of SHIP2 expression by antisense oligonucleotide treatment led to partial restoration of phosphorylated PI contents and to improved glucose uptake. Thus modulation of the functional status of SHIP2 may be a major mechanism of insulin resistance induced by denervation.

Insulin induces the translocation of the fatty acid transporter FAT/CD36 to the plasma membrane

It is well known that muscle contraction and insulin can independently translocate GLUT-4 from an intracellular depot to the plasma membrane. Recently, we have shown that the fatty acid transporter FAT/CD36 is translocated from an intracellular depot to the plasma membrane by muscle contraction (<30 min) (Bonen et al. J Biol Chem 275: 14501-14508, 2000). In the present study, we examined whether insulin also induced the translocation of FAT/CD36 in rat skeletal muscle. In studies in perfused rat hindlimb muscles, we observed that insulin increased fatty acid uptake by +51%. Insulin increased the rate of palmitate incorporation into triacylglycerols, diacylglycerols, and phospholipids (P < 0.05) while reducing muscle palmitate oxidation (P < 0.05). Perfusing rat hindlimb muscles with insulin increased plasma membrane FAT/CD36 by +48% (P < 0.05), whereas concomitantly the intracellular FAT/CD36 depot was reduced by 68% (P < 0.05). These insulin-induced effects on FAT/CD36 translocation were inhibited by the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase inhibitor LY-294002. Thus these studies have shown for the first time that insulin can induce the translocation of FAT/CD36 from an intracellular depot to the plasma membrane. This reveals a previously unknown level of regulation of fatty acid transport by insulin and may well have important consequences in furthering our understanding of the relation between fatty acid metabolism and insulin resistance.

AMP-activated protein kinase activation prevents denervation-induced decline in gastrocnemius GLUT-4

This study was designed to determine whether the reductions in GLUT-4 seen in 3-day-denervated muscles can be prevented through chemical activation of 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). Muscle AMPK can be chemically activated in rats using subcutaneous injections with 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide-1-beta-D-ribofuranoside (AICAR). In this study, the tibial nerve was sectioned on one side; the other was sham operated but without nerve section. Acute injections of AICAR resulted in significantly increased AMPK activity in denervated gastrocnemius but not soleus muscles. Acetyl-CoA carboxylase activity, a reporter of AMPK activation, declined in both gastrocnemius and soleus in both denervated and contralateral muscles. Three days after denervation, GLUT-4 levels were significantly decreased by approximately 40% in gastrocnemius muscles and by approximately 30% in soleus muscles. When rats were injected with AICAR (1 mg/g body wt) for 3 days, the decline in GLUT-4 levels was prevented in denervated gastrocnemius muscles but not in denervated soleus muscles. The extent of denervation-induced muscle atrophy was similar in AICAR-treated vs. saline-treated rats. These studies provide evidence that some effects of denervation may be prevented by chemical activation of the appropriate signaling pathways.

Interactions of estrogens and insulin-like growth factor-I in the brain: implications for neuroprotection

Data from epidemiological studies suggest that the decline in estrogen following menopause could increase the risk of neurodegenerative diseases. Furthermore, experimental studies on different animal models have shown that estrogen is neuroprotective. The mechanisms involved in the neuroprotective effects of estrogen are still unclear. Anti-oxidant effects, activation of different membrane-associated intracellular signaling pathways, and activation of classical nuclear estrogen receptors (ERs) could contribute to neuroprotection. Interactions with neurotrophins and other growth factors may also be important for the neuroprotective effects of estradiol. In this review we focus on the interaction between insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and estrogen signaling in the brain and on the implications of this interaction for neuroprotection. During the development of the nervous system, IGF-I promotes the differentiation and survival of specific neuronal populations. In the adult brain, IGF-I is a neuromodulator, regulates synaptic plasticity, is involved in the response of neural tissue to injury and protects neurons against different neurodegenerative stimuli. As an endocrine signal, IGF-I represents a link between the growth and reproductive axes and the interaction between estradiol and IGF-I is of particular physiological relevance for the regulation of growth, sexual maturation and adult neuroendocrine function. There are several potential points of convergence between estradiol and IGF-I receptor (IGF-IR) signaling in the brain. Estrogen activates the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway and has a synergistic effect with IGF-I on the activation of Akt, a kinase downstream of phosphoinositol-3 kinase. In addition, IGF-IR is necessary for the estradiol induced expression of the anti-apoptotic molecule Bcl-2 in hypothalamic neurons. The interaction of ERs and IGF-IR in the brain may depend on interactions between neural cells expressing ERs with neural cells expressing IGF-IR, or on direct interactions of the signaling pathways of alpha and beta ERs and IGF-IR in the same cell, since most neurons expressing IGF-IR also express at least one of the ER subtypes. In addition, studies on adult ovariectomized rats given intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) infusions with antagonists for ERs or IGF-IR or with IGF-I have shown that there is a cross-regulation of the expression of ERs and IGF-IR in the brain. The interaction of estradiol and IGF-I and their receptors may be involved in different neural events. In the developing brain, ERs and IGF-IR are interdependent in the promotion of neuronal differentiation. In the adult, ERs and IGF-IR interact in the induction of synaptic plasticity. Furthermore, both in vitro and in vivo studies have shown that there is an interaction between ERs and IGF-IR in the promotion of neuronal survival and in the response of neural tissue to injury, suggesting that a parallel activation or co-activation of ERs and IGF-IR mediates neuroprotection.