Linkage of low-density lipoprotein size to the lipoprotein lipase gene in heterozygous lipoprotein lipase deficiency.

Small low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles are a genetically influenced coronary disease risk factor. Lipoprotein lipase (LpL) is a rate-limiting enzyme in the formation of LDL particles. The current study examined genetic linkage of LDL particle size to the LpL gene in five families with structural mutations in the LpL gene. LDL particle size was smaller among the heterozygous subjects, compared with controls. Among heterozygous subjects, 44% were classified as affected by LDL subclass phenotype B, compared with 8% of normal family members. Plasma triglyceride levels were significantly higher, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels were lower, in heterozygous subjects, compared with normal subjects, after age and sex adjustment. A highly significant LOD score of 6.24 at straight theta=0 was obtained for linkage of LDL particle size to the LpL gene, after adjustment of LDL particle size for within-genotype variance resulting from triglyceride and HDL-C. Failure to adjust for this variance led to only a modest positive LOD score of 1.54 at straight theta=0. Classifying small LDL particles as a qualitative trait (LDL subclass phenotype B) provided only suggestive evidence for linkage to the LpL gene (LOD=1. 65 at straight theta=0). Thus, use of the quantitative trait adjusted for within-genotype variance, resulting from physiologic covariates, was crucial for detection of significant evidence of linkage in this study. These results indicate that heterozygous LpL deficiency may be one cause of small LDL particles and may provide a potential mechanism for the increase in coronary disease seen in heterozygous LpL deficiency. This study also demonstrates a successful strategy of genotypic specific adjustment of complex traits in mapping a quantitative trait locus.     

Characterization of lipoprotein lipase activity, secretion, and degradation at different sites of post-translational processing in primary cultures of rat adipocytes.

The regulation of adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase (LPL) by feeding and fasting occurs through post-translational changes in the LPL protein. In addition, LPL activity and secretion are decreased when N-linked glycosylation is inhibited. To better understand the role of oligosaccharide processing in the development of LPL activity and in LPL secretion, primary cultures of rat adipocytes were treated with inhibitors of oligosaccharide processing. LPL catalytic activity from the heparin-releasable fraction of adipocytes was inhibited by more than 70%, with similar decreases in LPL mass, when cells were cultured for 24 h in the presence of either tunicamycin or castanospermine. On the other hand, deoxymannojirimycin (DMJ) and swainsonine had no effect on LPL activity. LPL secretion was examined after pulse-labeling cells with [35S]methionine. The appearance of 35S-labeled LPL in the medium was blocked by treatment of cells with tunicamycin and castanospermine, whereas secretion was not affected by DMJ or swainsonine. To examine the effect of oligosaccharide processing on LPL intracellular degradation, adipocytes were treated with tunicamycin, castanospermine, and DMJ and then pulse-labeled with [35S]methionine, followed by a chase with unlabeled methionine for 120 min. The unglycosylated [35S]LPL that was synthesized in the presence of tunicamycin demonstrated essentially no intracellular degradation. In the presence of castanospermine and DMJ, the half-life of newly synthesized LPL was increased to 81 and 113 min, as compared to 65 min in control cells. Thus, castanospermine-treated adipocytes demonstrated a decrease in LPL activity and secretion, suggesting that the glucosidase-mediated cleavage of terminal glucose residues from oligosaccharides is a critical step in LPL maturation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Amiloride inhibits insulin sensitivity and responsiveness in rat adipocytes through different mechanisms.

To investigate the mechanisms by which amiloride inhibits insulin action rat adipocytes were treated with insulin and with amiloride added before or after energy depleting the cells with 2 mM KCN. Amiloride decreased the insulin response on 3-0-methylglucose transport, IGF-II- and insulin binding in both intact and energy depleted cells. In contrast, the sensitivity to insulin was inhibited by amiloride only when it was added before KCN. The effect of amiloride on insulin sensitivity was probably exerted through the impaired activation of the insulin receptor tyrosine kinase and the decreased insulin binding. However, insulin responsiveness was probably impaired through a direct effect on the plasma membrane proteins. In contrast to a recent report with pituitary cells, amiloride did not affect the activation of the inhibitory GTP-binding protein (Gi) in rat adipocytes.     

Increased effect of fucoidan on lipoprotein lipase secretion in adipocytes

AimsFucoidan, a sulfated polysaccharide extracted from brown seaweed (F. vesiculosus) is recognized as an effective anticoagulant but its anti-lipidemic potency has not been well defined. We investigated the effect of fucoidan on lipoprotein lipase (LPL) secretion by human adipocytes.Main methodsLPL mRNA and protein expressions were measured using semi-quantitative RT-PCR, ELISA and immunohistochemistry in cultured adipocytes with or without fucoidan treatment. LPL enzyme activity was determined by a fluorometric assay.Key findingsIn cultured adipocytes, fucoidan induced LPL secretion in a dose- and time-dependent manner. An initial increase in LPL was maintained at a significant level but much slower than that in heparin-treated cells. Fucoidan also dose-dependently induced a cofactor of LPL, the apolipoprotein C-II (ApoC-II) secretion. In fucoidan-treated cells, LPL mRNA was time-dependently increased and LPL protein expression was also inceased. Treatment with both heparin and fucoidan showed no further increase in media LPL activity compared to heparin alone. In the conditioned medium from fucoidan-treated cells followed for 4 h, LPL activity decayed exponentially with half-life of about 180 min. In addition, the extracellular LPL mass in cycloheximide (a protein synthesis inhibitor) and fucoidan-treated cells did not change markedly, but LPL shifted significantly from active to inactive form.SignificanceThese results suggest that fucoidan acts like heparin by releasing LPL in addition to increasing the intracellular transport and decreasing the degradation of LPL in the medium. Furthermore, LPL and ApoC-II secretion induced by fucoidan may be involved in regulating plasma triglyceride lowering clearance.     

Mechanisms for turnover of lipoprotein lipase in guinea pig adipocytes

Guinea-pig adipocytes released lipoprotein lipase activity to the medium without depletion of cell-associated lipoprotein lipase activity. Heparin caused immediate release of 20-25% of the lipase activity to the medium, and also enhanced the continued release. After addition of cycloheximide, cell-associated lipoprotein lipase activity decreased rapidly. Release of lipase activity to the medium continued unabated for about 30 min, but there was little release thereafter. The release accounted for only about 25% of the initial lipoprotein lipase activity in the absence and about 50% in the presence of heparin. In pulse-chase experiments with [35S]methionine, labeled lipoprotein lipase appeared in the medium within 40 min, and most of the release occurred during the first h of chase. In a 4-h chase the total (cells + medium) amount of labeled lipase decreased to 34%. Thus, degradation was a main fate of the lipase. Heparin markedly increased the amount of labeled lipase that was released to the medium and decreased the amount that was degraded. Heparin did not change the time-course for the release, and the amount of labeled lipase degraded was proportional to the amount not released to the medium, indicating that the effect of heparin was primarily on release, not on degradation as such. This study demonstrates that adipocytes synthesize lipoprotein lipase in excess of what is being released, and that the excess is rapidly degraded.     

Heparin decreases the degradation rate of lipoprotein lipase in adipocytes

The mechanism responsible for the stimulation of secretion of lipoprotein lipase by heparin in cultured cells was studied with avian adipocytes in culture. Immunoprecipitation followed by electrophoresis and fluorography were used to isolate and quantitate the radiolabeled enzyme, whereas total lipoprotein lipase was quantitated by radioimmunoassay. Rates of synthesis of lipoprotein lipase were not different for control or heparin treatments as judged by incorporation of L-[35S]methionine counts into lipoprotein lipase during a 20-min pulse. This observation was corroborated in pulse-chase experiments where the calculation of total lipoprotein lipase synthesis, based on the rate of change in enzyme-specific activity during the chase, showed no difference between control (8.13 +/- 3.1) and heparin treatments (9.1 +/- 5.3 ng/h/60-mm dish). Secretion rates of enzyme were calculated from measurements of the radioactivity of the secreted enzyme and the cellular enzyme-specific activity. Degradation rates were calculated by difference between synthesis and secretion rates of enzyme. In control cells 76% of the synthesized enzyme was degraded. Addition of heparin to the culture medium reduced the degradation rate to 21% of the synthetic rate. The presence of heparin in cell media resulted in a decrease in apparent intracellular retention half-time for secreted enzyme from 160 +/- 44 min to 25 +/- 1 min. The above data demonstrate that the increase in lipoprotein lipase protein secretion, observed upon addition of heparin to cultured adipocytes, is due to a decreased degradation rate with no change in synthetic rate. Finally, newly synthesized lipoprotein lipase in cultured adipocytes is secreted constitutively and there is no evidence that it is stored in an intracellular pool.     

Insulin increases the synthetic rate and messenger RNA level of lipoprotein lipase in isolated rat adipocytes

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) is the enzyme responsible for hydrolysis of circulating triglyceride-rich lipoproteins and is important for storage of adipocyte lipid. To study the regulation of LPL synthetic rate in adipose tissue, primary cultures of isolated rat adipocytes were pulse-labeled with [35S]methionine, and LPL was immunoprecipitated with an LPL-specific antibody. A pulse-chase experiment identified the cellular and secreted forms of LPL as a 55-57-kDa protein. In the presence of heparin, there was a large increase in secretion of newly synthesized LPL from the cells, although heparin did not stimulate cellular LPL synthetic rate. When cells were exposed to insulin for 2 h, pulse-labeling revealed that insulin stimulated a maximal dose-related increase in LPL synthetic rate of 300% of control. This increase in LPL synthetic rate was observed after an exposure to insulin for as little as 60 min and was accompanied by only a 10-25% increase in total protein synthesis. In addition, insulin had no effect on the turnover of intracellular LPL. Using a cDNA probe for LPL, insulin induced a 2-fold increase in the LPL mRNA. Thus, insulin stimulated an increase in specific LPL mRNA in isolated rat adipocytes. This increase in LPL mRNA then leads to an increase in the synthetic rate of the LPL protein.     

Expression of lipoprotein lipase gene in combined lipase deficiency

The expression of the gene for lipoprotein lipase (LPL) was studied in brown adipose tissue and the liver of combined lipase deficient (cld/cld) and unaffected mice. The mRNA specific for LPL was detected in both animals. Although the size of LPL mRNA in cld mice was similar to that of unaffected mice, the mRNA concentration in affected animals was higher than in unaffected animals. We also studied the LPL gene mutation in cld mice by Southern blot analysis. No restriction fragment length polymorphisms were observed after digestion with 16 endonucleases. These data indicate that there is no gene insertion or deletion, but do not exclude the possibility of point mutation in the LPL structural gene. However, the present results agree with the hypothesis that the genetic defect in cld is not due to a mutation in the LPL structural gene, but instead involves the defective post-translational processing of LPL or defective cellular function affecting transport and secretion of this enzyme group.     

Secretion and degradation of lipoprotein lipase in cultured adipocytes. Binding of lipoprotein lipase to membrane heparan sulfate proteoglycans is necessary for degradation

Equilibrium-binding data of highly purified 125I-labeled avian lipoprotein lipase to cultured avian adipocytes demonstrate the presence of a class of high affinity binding sites. Analysis of the binding function yielded an association constant of 0.62 x 10(8)M-1 and a maximum binding capacity of 2.1 micrograms/60-mm dish. From a time course of dissociation of 125I-lipoprotein lipase from adipocytes at 4 degrees C, a dissociation rate constant of 6.1 x 10(-5)s-1 was obtained. Pretreatment of cells with heparinase and heparitinase resulted in a quantitative suppression of the high affinity binding component, establishing that lipoprotein lipase is bound to cell surface heparan sulfate proteoglycans. At 37 degrees C, cell surface-bound 125I-lipoprotein lipase is internalized and either degraded or recycled to the medium. The degradation rate constant for 125I-lipoprotein lipase was estimated to be 0.78 h-1. The degradation rate constant was reduced 6-fold when cells were exposed to 100 microM chloroquine, indicating that most of the degradation occurs within the lysosomal compartment. By using cells that had been pulsed with Trans35S-label for 1 h, it was demonstrated that acute treatment with endoglycosidases for up to 1 h resulted in a new lipoprotein lipase secretion rate which was 6-fold higher than that of control cells. Degradation of newly synthesized lipoprotein lipase was essentially blocked 30 min after the initiation of the chase. In other studies it was observed that there were no additive effects of chloroquine and either endoglycosidase or heparin treatment on total lipoprotein lipase levels (intracellular, cell surface, and medium) in adipocyte cultures. These experiments support the hypothesis that the release of lipoprotein lipase from its receptor prevents its internalization and degradation and enhances enzyme efflux from the adipocyte. A new model of lipoprotein lipase secretion in cultured adipocytes is proposed: Newly synthesized lipoprotein lipase is transported to the cell surface where it binds to specific heparan sulfate proteoglycan receptors. The enzyme is either released to the medium or internalized via the receptor, in which case the enzyme is degraded or recycled to the cell surface. Major determinants of enzyme efflux from the cell surface include the number and integrity of receptors, the association constant of the enzyme-receptor complex, and the presence in the medium of competing molecules with high affinity for lipoprotein lipase. In this model, modulation of lipoprotein lipase degradation rate may be a significant mechanism for acute regulation of enzyme efflux independent of changes in the rate of enzyme synthesis.     

Cardiac-specific knock-out of lipoprotein lipase alters plasma lipoprotein triglyceride metabolism and cardiac gene expression

Fatty acids are the primary energy source for the heart. The heart acquires fatty acids associated with albumin or derived from lipoprotein lipase (LpL)-mediated hydrolysis of lipoprotein triglyceride (TG). We generated heart-specific LpL knock-out mice (hLpL0) to determine whether cardiac LpL modulates the actions of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors and affects whole body lipid metabolism. Male hLpL0 mice had significantly elevated plasma TG levels and decreased clearance of postprandial lipids despite normal postheparin plasma LpL activity. Very large density lipoprotein-TG uptake was decreased by 72% in hLpL0 hearts. However, heart uptake of albumin-bound free fatty acids was not altered. Northern blot analysis revealed a decrease in the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha-response genes involved in fatty acid beta-oxidation. Surprisingly, the expression of glucose transporters 1 and 4 and insulin receptor substrate 2 was increased and that of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4 and insulin receptor substrate 1 was reduced. Basal glucose uptake was increased markedly in hLpL0 hearts. Thus, the loss of LpL in the heart leads to defective plasma metabolism of TG. Moreover, fatty acids derived from lipoprotein TG and not just albumin-associated fatty acids are important for cardiac lipid metabolism and gene regulation.     

Specificity of gene expression in adipocytes.

During the differentiation of preadipose 3T3 cells into adipose cells, the mRNAs for three proteins increase strikingly in abundance. To determine the degree of cell-type specificity in the expression of these mRNAs, we estimated their abundances in several nonadipose tissues of the mouse. None of these mRNAs was strictly confined to adipocytes, but the ensemble of three mRNAs was rather specific to adipocytes. Insofar as is revealed by these three markers, the distinctive phenotype of adipocytes is the result of the enhanced expression of a number of genes, none of which is completely silent in all other cell types.