Serum transferrin levels reflect hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 alpha activity in the liver

2020 ◽  
Vol 73 ◽  
pp. S246
Author(s):  
Nurdan Guldiken ◽  
Josepmaria Argemi ◽  
Berivan Gürbüz ◽  
Stephen Atkinson ◽  
Karim Hamesch ◽  
...  
BMC Medicine ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurdan Guldiken ◽  
Josepmaria Argemi ◽  
Berivan Gurbuz ◽  
Stephen R. Atkinson ◽  
Martin Oliverius ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Serum transferrin levels represent an independent predictor of mortality in patients with liver failure. Hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 alpha (HNF4α) is a master regulator of hepatocyte functions. The aim of this study was to explore whether serum transferrin reflects HNF4α activity. Methods Factors regulating transferrin expression in alcoholic hepatitis (AH) were assessed via transcriptomic/methylomic analysis as well as chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled to DNA sequencing. The findings were corroborated in primary hepatocytes. Serum and liver samples from 40 patients with advanced liver disease of multiple etiologies were also studied. Results In patients with advanced liver disease, serum transferrin levels correlated with hepatic transferrin expression (r = 0.51, p = 0.01). Immunohistochemical and biochemical tests confirmed reduced HNF4α and transferrin protein levels in individuals with cirrhosis. In AH, hepatic gene-gene correlation analysis in liver transcriptome revealed an enrichment of HNF4α signature in transferrin-correlated transcriptome while transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGFβ1), tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα), interleukin 1 beta (IL-1β), and interleukin 6 (IL-6) negatively associated with transferrin signature. A key regulatory region in transferrin promoter was hypermethylated in patients with AH. In primary hepatocytes, treatment with TGFβ1 or the HNF4α inhibitor BI6015 suppressed transferrin production, while exposure to TNFα, IL-1β, and IL-6 had no effect. The correlation between hepatic HNF4A and transferrin mRNA levels was also seen in advanced liver disease. Conclusions Serum transferrin levels constitute a prognostic and mechanistic biomarker. Consequently, they may serve as a surrogate of impaired hepatic HNF4α signaling and liver failure.


Diabetologia ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 40 (7) ◽  
pp. 859-862 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. P. Bulman ◽  
M. J. Dronsfield ◽  
T. Frayling ◽  
M. Appleton ◽  
S. C. Bain ◽  
...  

1994 ◽  
Vol 14 (11) ◽  
pp. 7276-7284
Author(s):  
W Zhong ◽  
J Mirkovitch ◽  
J E Darnell

Hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 (HNF-4) is a liver-enriched transcription factor and a member of the steroid hormone receptor superfamily. HNF-4 is required for the hepatoma-specific expression of HNF-1 alpha, another liver-enriched transcription factor, suggesting the early participation of HNF-4 in development. To prepare for further study of HNF-4 in development, the tissue-specific expression of the mouse HNF-4 gene was studied by analyzing the promoter region for required DNA elements. DNase-hypersensitive sites in the gene in liver and kidney tissues were found in regions both distal and proximal to the RNA start that were absent in tissues in which HNF-4 expression did not occur. By use of reporter constructs in transient-transfection assays and with transgenic mice, a region sufficient to drive liver-specific expression of HNF-4 was identified. While an HNF-1 binding site between bp -98 and -68 played an important role in the hepatoma-specific promoter activity of HNF-4 in transient-transfection assays, it was not sufficient for the liver-specific expression of a reporter gene in transgenic mice. Distal enhancer elements indicated by the presence of DNase I-hypersensitive sites at kb -5.5 and -6.5, while not functional in transient-transfection assays, were required for the correct expression of the mouse HNF-4 gene in animals.


1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1708-1718
Author(s):  
M Mietus-Snyder ◽  
F M Sladek ◽  
G S Ginsburg ◽  
C F Kuo ◽  
J A Ladias ◽  
...  

Apolipoprotein CIII (apoCIII), a lipid-binding protein involved in the transport of triglycerides and cholesterol in the plasma, is synthesized primarily in the liver and the intestine. A cis-acting regulatory element, C3P, located at -90 to -66 upstream from the apoCIII gene transcriptional start site (+1), is necessary for maximal expression of the apoCIII gene in human hepatoma (HepG2) and intestinal carcinoma (Caco2) cells. This report shows that three members of the steroid receptor superfamily of transcription factors, hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 (HNF-4), apolipoprotein AI regulatory protein 1 (ARP-1), and Ear3/COUP-TF, act at the C3P site. HNF-4 activates apoCIII gene expression in HepG2 and Caco2 cells, while ARP-1 and Ear3/COUP-TF repress its expression in the same cells. HNF-4 activation is abolished by increasing amounts of ARP-1 or Ear3/COUP-TF, and repression by ARP-1 or Ear3/COUP-TF is alleviated by increasing amounts of HNF-4. HNF-4 and ARP-1 bind with similar affinities to the C3P site, suggesting that their opposing transcriptional effects may be mediated by direct competition for DNA binding. HNF-4 and ARP-1 mRNAs are present within the same cells in the liver and intestine, and protein extracts from hepatic tissue, HepG2, and Caco2 cells contain significantly more HNF-4 than ARP-1 or Ear3/COUP-TF binding activities. These findings suggest that the transcription of the apoCIII gene in vivo is dependent, at least in part, upon the intracellular balance of these positive and negative regulatory factors.


Diabetes ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 55 (6) ◽  
pp. 1869-1873 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Ek ◽  
S. P. Hansen ◽  
M. Lajer ◽  
C. Nicot ◽  
T. W. Boesgaard ◽  
...  

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