Activin B regulates islet composition and islet mass but not whole body glucose homeostasis or insulin sensitivity

Based on the phenotype of the activin-like kinase-7 (ALK7)-null mouse, activins A and B have been proposed to play distinct roles in regulating pancreatic islet function and glucose homeostasis, with activin A acting to enhance islet function and insulin release while activin B antagonizes these actions. We therefore hypothesized that islets from activin B-null (BBKO) mice would have enhanced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. In addition, we hypothesized that this enhanced islet function would translate into increased whole body glucose tolerance. We tested these hypotheses by analyzing glucose homeostasis, insulin secretion, and islet function in BBKO mice. No differences were observed in fasting glucose or insulin levels, glucose tolerance, or insulin sensitivity compared with weight-matched young or older males. Similarly, there were no significant differences in insulin secretion comparing islets from WT or BBKO males at either age. However, BBKO islets were more sensitive to activin A, myostatin (MSTN), and follistatin (FST) treatments, so that activin A and FST inhibited and MSTN enhanced glucose stimulated insulin secretion. While mean islet area and the distribution of islet areas were not different between the genotypes, islet mass, islet number, and the proportion of α-cells/islet were significantly reduced in BBKO islets. These results indicate that activin B does not antagonize activin A to influence whole body glucose homeostasis or β-cell function but does influence islet mass and proportion of α-cells/islet. Therefore, loss of activin B signaling alone does not account for the ALK7-null phenotype, but activin B may have important roles in modulating islet mass, islet number, and the cellular composition of islets.     

Inhibition of Ca2+-independent phospholipase A2 results in insufficient insulin secretion and impaired glucose tolerance

Islet Ca2+-independent phospholipase A2 (iPLA2) is postulated to mediate insulin secretion by releasing arachidonic acid in response to insulin secretagogues. However, the significance of iPLA2 signaling in insulin secretion in vivo remains unexplored. Here we investigated the physiological role of iPLA2 in beta-cell lines, isolated islets, and mice. We showed that small interfering RNA-specific silencing of iPLA2 expression in INS-1 cells significantly reduced insulin-secretory responses of INS-1 cells to glucose. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that mouse islet cells expressed significantly higher levels of iPLA2 than pancreatic exocrine acinar cells. Bromoenol lactone (BEL), a selective inhibitor of iPLA2, inhibited glucose-stimulated insulin secretion from isolated mouse islets; this inhibition was overcome by exogenous arachidonic acid. We also showed that iv BEL administration to mice resulted in sustained hyperglycemia and reduced insulin levels during glucose tolerance tests. Clamp experiments demonstrated that the impaired glucose tolerance was due to insufficient insulin secretion rather than decreased insulin sensitivity. Short-term administration of BEL to mice had no effect on fasting glucose levels and caused no apparent pathological changes of islets in pancreas sections. These results unambiguously demonstrate that iPLA2 signaling plays an important role in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion under physiological conditions.     

Glucose homeostasis, insulin secretion, and islet phospholipids in mice that overexpress iPLA2beta in pancreatic beta-cells and in iPLA2beta-null mice

Studies with genetically modified insulinoma cells suggest that group VIA phospholipase A(2) (iPLA(2)beta) participates in amplifying glucose-induced insulin secretion. INS-1 insulinoma cells that overexpress iPLA(2)beta, for example, exhibit amplified insulin-secretory responses to glucose and cAMP-elevating agents. To determine whether similar effects occur in whole animals, we prepared transgenic (TG) mice in which the rat insulin 1 promoter (RIP) drives iPLA(2)beta overexpression, and two characterized TG mouse lines exhibit similar phenotypes. Their pancreatic islet iPLA(2)beta expression is increased severalfold, as reflected by quantitative PCR of iPLA(2)beta mRNA, immunoblotting of iPLA(2)beta protein, and iPLA(2)beta enzymatic activity. Immunofluorescence microscopic studies of pancreatic sections confirm iPLA(2)beta overexpression in RIP-iPLA(2)beta-TG islet beta-cells without obviously perturbed islet morphology. Male RIP-iPLA(2)beta-TG mice exhibit lower blood glucose and higher plasma insulin concentrations than wild-type (WT) mice when fasting and develop lower blood glucose levels in glucose tolerance tests, but WT and TG blood glucose levels do not differ in insulin tolerance tests. Islets from male RIP-iPLA(2)beta-TG mice exhibit greater amplification of glucose-induced insulin secretion by a cAMP-elevating agent than WT islets. In contrast, islets from male iPLA(2)beta-null mice exhibit blunted insulin secretion, and those mice have impaired glucose tolerance. Arachidonate incorporation into and the phospholipid composition of RIP-iPLA(2)beta-TG islets are normal, but they exhibit reduced Kv2.1 delayed rectifier current and prolonged glucose-induced action potentials and elevations of cytosolic Ca(2+) concentration that suggest a molecular mechanism for the physiological role of iPLA(2)beta to amplify insulin secretion.     

Novel role for SGK3 in glucose homeostasis revealed in SGK3/Akt2 double-null mice

The phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase-dependent kinase, Akt2, plays a central role in mediating insulin effects in glucose-metabolizing tissues. Akt2 knockout mice display insulin resistance with a reactive increase in pancreatic islet mass and hyperinsulinemia. The related phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase-dependent kinase, serum- and glucocorticoid-regulated kinase 3 (SGK3), is essential for normal postnatal hair follicle development but plays no apparent role in glucose homeostasis. We report here an unexpected role of SGK3 in islet β-cell function, which is revealed in Akt2/SGK3 double-knockout (DKO) mice. DKO mice have markedly worse glucose homeostasis than Akt2 single-null animals, including greater baseline glucose, and greater rise in blood glucose after glucose challenge. However, surprisingly, our data strongly support the idea that this exacerbation of the glucose-handling defect is due to impaired β-cell function, rather than increased insulin resistance in peripheral tissues. DKO mice had lower plasma insulin and C-peptide levels, lower β-cell mass, reduced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, and greater sensitivity to exogenous insulin than Akt2 single nulls. We further demonstrated that SGK3 is strongly expressed in normal mouse islets and, interestingly, that β-catenin expression is dramatically lower in the islets of DKO mice than in those of Akt2(-/-)/SGK3(+/+) or Akt2(-/-)/SGK3(+/-) mice. Taken together, these data strongly suggest that SGK3 plays a previously unappreciated role in glucose homeostasis, likely through direct effects within β-cells, to stimulate proliferation and insulin release, at least in part by controlling the expression and activity of β-catenin.     

Resistin induces insulin resistance in pancreatic islets to impair glucose-induced insulin release

An adipokine resistin, a small cysteine-rich protein, is one of the major risk factors of insulin resistance. In the present study, transiently resistin-expressing mice using adenovirus method showed an impaired glucose tolerance due to insulin resistance. We found that resistin-expressing mice exhibited impaired insulin secretory response to glucose. In addition, in vitro treatment with resistin for 1 day induced insulin resistance in pancreatic islets and impaired glucose-stimulated insulin secretion by elevating insulin release at basal glucose (2.8 mM) and suppressing insulin release at stimulatory glucose (8.3 mM). In addition, resistin inhibited insulin-induced phosphorylation of Akt in islets as well as other insulin target organs. Furthermore, resistin induced SOCS-3 expression in beta-cells. In conclusion, resistin induces insulin resistance in islet beta-cells at least partly via induction of SOCS-3 expression and reduction of Akt phosphorylation and impairs glucose-induced insulin secretion.     

CART knock out mice have impaired insulin secretion and glucose intolerance, altered beta cell morphology and increased body weight

CART peptides are anorexigenic and are widely expressed in the central and peripheral nervous systems, as well as in endocrine cells in the pituitary, adrenal medulla and the pancreatic islets. To study the role of CART in islet function, we used CART null mutant mice (CART KO mice) and examined insulin secretion in vivo and in vitro, and expression of islet hormones and markers of beta-cell function using immunocytochemistry. We also studied CART expression in the normal pancreas. In addition, body weight development and food intake were documented. We found that in the normal mouse pancreas, CART was expressed in numerous pancreatic nerve fibers, both in the exocrine and endocrine portion of the gland. CART was also expressed in nerve cell bodies in the ganglia. Double immunostaining revealed expression in parasympathetic (vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP)-containing) and in fewer sensory fibers (calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP)-containing). Although the expression of islet hormones appeared normal, CART KO islets displayed age dependent reduction of pancreatic duodenal homeobox 1 (PDX-1) and glucose transporter-2 (GLUT-2) immunoreactivity, indicating beta-cell dysfunction. Consistent with this, CART KO mice displayed impaired glucose-stimulated insulin secretion both in vivo after an intravenous glucose challenge and in vitro following incubation of isolated islets in the presence of glucose. The impaired insulin secretion in vivo was associated with impaired glucose elimination, and was apparent already in young mice with no difference in body weight. In addition, CART KO mice displayed increased body weight at the age of 40 weeks, without any difference in food intake. We conclude that CART is required for maintaining normal islet function in mice.     

Aging and glucose homeostasis in C57BL/6J male mice

Age-dependent changes in glucose homeostasis were assessed in specific pathogen-free C57BL/6J male mice. Increased islet size and pancreatic insulin content in old (21-25-month-old) mice were associated with lower nonfasting plasma glucose levels and improved clearance of either an oral or an i.p. administered glucose load in comparison with young, mature (4-5-month-old) males. The almost twofold increase in islet size correlated with a twofold increase of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion from perifused islets from 25-month-old males compared with 5-month-old males. These aging male mice did not become obese, and there were no fibrotic changes associated with the hyperplastic islets observed in the old males. Thus, the findings that glucose tolerance did not deteriorate with age, coupled with the lack of evidence for impaired beta cell responsiveness to glucose in old males, suggest that deterioration in glucose homeostasis is not an inevitable consequence of aging in the mouse.     

The apj receptor is expressed in pancreatic islets and its ligand, apelin, inhibits insulin secretion in mice

Apelin is the endogenous ligand of the G-protein coupled apj receptor. Apelin is expressed in the brain, the hypothalamus and the stomach and was recently shown also to be an adipokine secreted from the adipocytes. Although apelin has been suggested to be involved in the regulation of food intake, it is not known whether the peptide affects islet function and glucose homeostasis. We show here that the apj receptor is expressed in pancreatic islets and that intravenous administration of full-length apelin-36 (2 nmol/kg) inhibits the rapid insulin response to intravenous glucose (1 g/kg) by 35% in C57BL/6J mice. Thus, the acute (1-5 min) insulin response to intravenous glucose was 682+/-23 pmol/l after glucose alone (n=17) and 445+/-58 pmol/l after glucose plus apelin-36 (n=18; P=0.017). This was associated with impaired glucose elimination (the 5-20 min glucose elimination was 2.9+/-0.1%/min after glucose alone versus 2.3+/-0.2%/min after glucose plus apelin-36, P=0.008). Apelin (2 nmol/kg) also inhibited the insulin response to intravenous glucose in obese insulin resistant high-fat fed C57BL/6J mice (P=0.041). After 60 min incubation of isolated islets from normal mice, insulin secretion in the presence of 16.7 mmol/l glucose was inhibited by apelin-36 at 1 mumol/l, whereas apelin-36 did not significantly affect insulin secretion at 2.8 or 8.3 mmol/l glucose or after stimulation of insulin secretion by KCl. Islet glucose oxidation at 16.7 mmol/l was not affected by apelin-36. We conclude that the apj receptor is expressed in pancreatic islets and that apelin-36 inhibits glucose-stimulated insulin secretion both in vivo and in vitro. This may suggest that the islet beta-cells are targets for apelin-36.     

PACAP is an islet neuropeptide which contributes to glucose-stimulated insulin secretion

Pituitary adenylate cyclase activating peptide (PACAP) is a ubiquitously distributed neuropeptide which also is localized to pancreatic islets and stimulates insulin secretion. We examined whether endogenous PACAP within the islets might contribute to glucose-stimulated insulin secretion by immunoneutralizing endogenous PACAP. Immunocytochemistry showed that PACAP immunoreactivity is expressed in nerve terminals within freshly isolated rat islets, but not in islets that had been cultured for 48 h. In contrast, islet endocrine cells did not display PACAP immunoreactivity. Addition of either of two specific PACAP antisera markedly inhibited glucose (11.1 mmol/l)-stimulated insulin secretion from freshly isolated rat islets, whereas a control rabbit serum did not affect glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. In contrast, the PACAP antisera had no effect on glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in cultured islets. Based on these results we therefore suggest that PACAP is an islet neuropeptide which is required for the normal insulinotropic action of glucose.     

Long-term treatment with atrial natriuretic peptide inhibits ATP production and insulin secretion in rat pancreatic islets

Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) levels correlate with hyperglycemia in diabetes mellitus, but ANP effects on pancreatic islet β-cell insulin secretion are controversial. ANP was investigated for short- and long-term effects on insulin secretion and mechanisms regulating secretion in isolated rat pancreatic islets. A 3-h incubation with ANP did not affect basal or glucose-stimulated islet insulin secretion. However, 7-day culture of islets with 5.5 mM glucose and ANP (1 nM - 1 μM) markedly inhibited subsequent glucose (11 mM)-stimulated insulin secretion; total islet insulin content was not affected. Following ANP removal for 24 h, the islet insulin-secretory response to glucose was restored. The insulin-secretory response to other insulin secretagogues, including α-ketoisocaproic acid, forskolin, potassium chloride, and ionomycin were also markedly inhibited by chronic exposure to ANP. However, the combination of potassium chloride and α-ketoisocaproic acid was sufficient to overcome the inhibitory effects of ANP on insulin secretion. The glucose-stimulated increases in islet ATP levels and the ATP/ADP ratio were completely inhibited in ANP 7-day-treated islets vs. control; removal of ANP for 24 h partially restored the glucose response. ANP did not affect islet glycolysis. ANP significantly increased levels of islet activated hormone-sensitive lipase and the expression of uncoupling protein-2 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-δ and -α. Although islet ANP-binding natriuretic peptide receptor-A levels were reduced to 60% of control after 7-day culture with ANP, the ANP-stimulated cGMP levels remained similar to control islet levels. Thus, long-term exposure to ANP inhibits glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and ATP generation in isolated islets.     

Somatostatin receptor subtype 5 regulates insulin secretion and glucose homeostasis

Somatostatin (SRIF) regulates pancreatic insulin and glucagon secretion. In the present study we describe the generation of SRIF receptor subtype 5 knockout (sst(5) KO) mice to examine the role of SRIF receptor subtypes (sst) in regulating insulin secretion and glucose homeostasis. Mice deficient in sst(5) were viable, fertile, appeared healthy, and displayed no obvious phenotypic abnormalities. Pancreatic islets isolated from sst(5) KO mice displayed increased total insulin content as compared with islets obtained from wild-type (WT) mice. Somatostatin-28 (SRIF-28) and the sst(5)/sst(1)-selective agonist compound 5/1 potently inhibited glucose-stimulated insulin secretion from WT islets. SRIF-28 inhibited insulin secretion from sst(5) KO islets with 16-fold less potency while the maximal effect of compound 5/1 was markedly diminished when compared with its effects in WT islets. sst(5) KO mice exhibited decreased blood glucose and plasma insulin levels and increased leptin and glucagon concentrations compared with WT mice. Furthermore, sst(5) KO mice displayed decreased susceptibility to high fat diet-induced insulin resistance. The results of these studies suggest sst(5) mediates SRIF inhibition of pancreatic insulin secretion and contributes to the regulation of glucose homeostasis and insulin sensitivity. Our findings suggest a potential beneficial role of sst(5) antagonists for alleviating metabolic abnormalities associated with obesity and insulin resistance.     

Total parenteral nutrition-stimulated activity of inducible nitric oxide synthase in rat pancreatic islets is suppressed by glucagon-like peptide-1.

Long-term total parenteral nutrition (TPN) is associated with elevated plasma lipids and a marked decrease of glucose-stimulated insulin release. Since nitric oxide (NO) has been shown to modulate negatively the insulin response to glucose, we investigated the influence of TPN-treatment on isoforms of islet NO-synthase (NOS) activities in relation to the effect of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), a known activator of glucose-stimulated insulin release. Isolated islets from TPN rats incubated at basal glucose (1 mmol/l) showed a modestly increased insulin secretion accompanied by an enhanced accumulation of islet cAMP and cGMP. In contrast, TPN islets incubated at high glucose (16.7 mmol/l) displayed an impaired insulin secretion and a strong suppression of islet cAMP content. Moreover, islet inducible NOS (iNOS) as well as islet cGMP content were greatly increased in these TPN islets. A dose-response study of GLP-1 with glucose-stimulated islets showed that GLP-1 could overcome and completely restore the impaired insulin release in TPN islets, bringing about a marked increase in islet cAMP accumulation concomitant with heavy suppression of both glucose-stimulated increase in islet cGMP content and the activities of constitutive NOS (cNOS) and iNOS. These effects of GLP-1 were mimicked by dibutyryl-cAMP. The present results show that the impaired insulin response of glucose-stimulated insulin release seen after TPN treatment is normalized by GLP-1. This beneficial effect of GLP-1 is most probably exerted by a cAMP-induced suppression of both iNOS and cNOS activities in these TPN islets.     

UCP2 mRNA expression is dependent on glucose metabolism in pancreatic islets

Uncoupling Protein 2 (UCP2) is expressed in the pancreatic β-cell, where it partially uncouples the mitochondrial proton gradient, decreasing both ATP-production and glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS). Increased glucose levels up-regulate UCP2 mRNA and protein levels, but the mechanism for UCP2 up-regulation in response to increased glucose is unknown. The aim was to examine the effects of glucokinase (GK) deficiency on UCP2 mRNA levels and to characterize the interaction between UCP2 and GK with regard to glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in pancreatic islets. UCP2 mRNA expression was reduced in GK+/- islets and GK heterozygosity prevented glucose-induced up-regulation of islet UCP2 mRNA. In contrast to UCP2 protein function UCP2 mRNA regulation was not dependent on superoxide generation, but rather on products of glucose metabolism, because MnTBAP, a superoxide dismutase mimetic, did not prevent the glucose-induced up-regulation of UCP2. Glucose-stimulated insulin secretion was increased in UCP2-/- and GK+/- islets compared with GK+/- islets and UCP2 deficiency improved glucose tolerance of GK+/- mice. Accordingly, UCP2 deficiency increased ATP-levels of GK+/- mice. Thus, the compensatory down-regulation of UCP2 is involved in preserving the insulin secretory capacity of GK mutant mice and might also be implicated in limiting disease progression in MODY2 patients.     

Chronic blockade of NO synthase paradoxically increases islet NO production and modulates islet hormone release

Islet production of nitric oxide (NO) and CO in relation to islet hormone secretion was investigated in mice given the NO synthase (NOS) inhibitor N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) in their drinking water. In these mice, the total islet NO production was paradoxically increased, reflecting induction of inducible NOS (iNOS) in background of reduced activity and immunoreactivity of constitutive NOS (cNOS). Unexpectedly, normal mice fasted for 24 h also displayed iNOS activity, which was further increased in L-NAME-drinking mice. Glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in vitro and in vivo was increased in fasted but unaffected in fed mice after L-NAME drinking. Glucagon secretion was increased in vitro. Control islets incubated with different NOS inhibitors at 20 mM glucose displayed increased insulin release and decreased cNOS activity. These NOS inhibitors potentiated glucose-stimulated insulin release also from islets of L-NAME-drinking mice. In contrast, glucagon release was suppressed. In islets from L-NAME-drinking mice, cyclic nucleotides were upregulated, and forskolin-stimulated hormone release, CO production, and heme oxygenase (HO)-2 expression increased. In conclusion, chronic NOS blockade evoked iNOS-derived NO production in pancreatic islets and elicited compensatory mechanisms against the inhibitory action of NO on glucose-stimulated insulin release by inducing upregulation of the islet cAMP and HO-CO systems.     

Protein kinase Cdelta plays a non-redundant role in insulin secretion in pancreatic beta cells

Protein kinase C (PKC) is considered to modulate glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. Pancreatic beta cells express multiple isoforms of PKCs; however, the role of each isoform in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion remains controversial. In this study we investigated the role of PKCdelta, a major isoform expressed in pancreatic beta cells on beta cell function. Here, we showed that PKCdelta null mice manifested glucose intolerance with impaired insulin secretion. Insulin tolerance test showed no decrease in insulin sensitivity in PKCdelta null mice. Studies using islets isolated from these mice demonstrated decreased glucose- and KCl-stimulated insulin secretion. Perifusion studies indicated that mainly the second phase of insulin secretion was decreased. On the other hand, glucose-induced influx of Ca2+ into beta cells was not altered. Immunohistochemistry using total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy and electron microscopic analysis showed an increased number of insulin granules close to the plasma membrane in beta cells of PKCdelta null mice. Although PKC is thought to phosphorylate Munc18-1 and facilitate soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive fusion protein attachment protein receptors complex formation, the phosphorylation of Munc18-1 by glucose stimulation was decreased in islets of PKCdelta null mice. We conclude that PKCdelta plays a non-redundant role in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. The impaired insulin secretion in PKCdelta null mice is associated with reduced phosphorylation of Munc18-1.     

Effects of biotin deficiency on pancreatic islet morphology, insulin sensitivity and glucose homeostasis

Several studies have revealed that physiological concentrations of biotin are required for the normal expression of critical carbohydrate metabolism genes and for glucose homeostasis. However, the different experimental models used in these studies make it difficult to integrate the effects of biotin deficiency on glucose metabolism. To further investigate the effects of biotin deficiency on glucose metabolism, we presently analyzed the effect of biotin deprivation on glucose homeostasis and on pancreatic islet morphology. Three-week-old male BALB/cAnN Hsd mice were fed a biotin-deficient or a biotin-control diet (0 or 7.2 μmol of free biotin/kg diet, respectively) over a period of 8 weeks. We found that biotin deprivation caused reduced concentrations of blood glucose and serum insulin concentrations, but increased plasma glucagon levels. Biotin-deficient mice also presented impaired glucose and insulin tolerance tests, indicating defects in insulin sensitivity. Altered insulin signaling was linked to a decrease in phosphorylated Akt/PKB but induced no change in insulin receptor abundance. Islet morphology studies revealed disruption of islet architecture due to biotin deficiency, and an increase in the number of α-cells in the islet core. Morphometric analyses found increased islet size, number of islets and glucagon-positive area, but a decreased insulin-positive area, in the biotin-deficient group. Glucagon secretion and gene expression increased in islets isolated from biotin-deficient mice. Our results suggest that biotin deficiency promotes hyperglycemic mechanisms such as increased glucagon concentration and decreased insulin secretion and sensitivity to compensate for reduced blood glucose concentrations. Variations in glucose homeostasis may participate in the changes observed in pancreatic islets.