scholarly journals Geroscience approaches to obesity

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 830-830
Author(s):  
Alessandro Bitto ◽  
Matt Kaeberlein

Abstract Besides aging, obesity is the greatest risk factor for numerous chronic pathologies, including metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and cancer. Preventing and treating obesity would greatly reduce healthcare costs and the impact of the aging process, with estimated savings up to $145,000,000,000. Pharmacological interventions identified by geroscience may prove effective against diet-induced obesity. To test this hypothesis, we fed a 66% kcal/fat diet to nine-month-old C57Bl6/N mice for 6 weeks and treated them with either rapamycin, acarbose, or a combination thereof. Rapamycin, and to a lesser extent acarbose, prevented weight gain and fat accumulation in these mice. We detected increased expression of the Liver Activating Protein (LAP) isoform of the transcription factor CCAT/Enhancer Binding Protein β (C/EBPβ) in the liver of mice treated with rapamycin. C/EBPβ-LAP mediates some of the effects of caloric restriction on nutrient metabolism and increases lifespan in a mouse transgenic model. We tested whether independent activation of C/EBPβ-LAP would recapitulate the effects of rapamycin by treating mice on a high-fat diet with adefovir dipivoxil, a reverse transcriptase inhibitor that can activate LAP in vitro independently of mTOR inhibition. Adefovir dipivoxil reduced weight and fat mass accumulation in mice over the course of 6 weeks. Mice treated with adefovir dipivoxil showed increased expression of genes involved in β-oxidation and lipids mobilization, and reduced activation of fatty acid biosynthesis and lipid storage pathways. Our results identify C/EBPβ-LAP as a potential new target to improve lipid homeostasis in both aging and obesity.

2020 ◽  
Vol 117 (20) ◽  
pp. 10935-10945 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shanta Karki ◽  
Kathrina Castillo ◽  
Zhaolan Ding ◽  
Olivia Kerr ◽  
Teresa M. Lamb ◽  
...  

The circadian clock in eukaryotes controls transcriptional and posttranscriptional events, including regulation of the levels and phosphorylation state of translation factors. However, the mechanisms underlying clock control of translation initiation, and the impact of this potential regulation on rhythmic protein synthesis, were not known. We show that inhibitory phosphorylation of eIF2α (P-eIF2α), a conserved translation initiation factor, is clock controlled in Neurospora crassa, peaking during the subjective day. Cycling P-eIF2α levels required rhythmic activation of the eIF2α kinase CPC-3 (the homolog of yeast and mammalian GCN2), and rhythmic activation of CPC-3 was abolished under conditions in which the levels of charged tRNAs were altered. Clock-controlled accumulation of P-eIF2α led to reduced translation during the day in vitro and was necessary for the rhythmic synthesis of select proteins in vivo. Finally, loss of rhythmic P-eIF2α levels led to reduced linear growth rates, supporting the idea that partitioning translation to specific times of day provides a growth advantage to the organism. Together, these results reveal a fundamental mechanism by which the clock regulates rhythmic protein production, and provide key insights into how rhythmic translation, cellular energy, stress, and nutrient metabolism are linked through the levels of charged versus uncharged tRNAs.


2008 ◽  
Vol 78 (2) ◽  
pp. A27
Author(s):  
Genevieve Laflamme ◽  
Constantin Boojamra ◽  
Lijun Zhang ◽  
Hon Hui ◽  
Robyn Fisher ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Peter Mancuso ◽  
Jeffrey L Curtis ◽  
Anne Marie Weitzel ◽  
Cameron A Griffin ◽  
Benjamin Bouchard ◽  
...  

Obesity impairs host defense against Klebsiella pneumoniae but responsible mechanisms are incompletely understood. To determine the impact of diet-induced obesity on pulmonary host defense against K. pneumoniae, we fed 6-week-old male C57BL/6j mice a normal (ND) or high fat diet (HFD) (13% versus 60% fat, respectively) for 16 weeks. Mice were intratracheally infected with Klebsiella, assayed at 24 or 48 h for bacterial colony-forming units, lung cytokines, and leukocytes from alveolar spaces, lung parenchyma, and gonadal adipose tissue were assessed using flow cytometry. Neutrophils from uninfected mice were cultured with and without 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) and assessed for phagocytosis, killing, reactive oxygen intermediates (ROI), transport of 2-DG, and glucose transporter (GLUT1-4) transcripts, and protein expression of GLUT1 and GLUT3. HFD mice had higher lung and splenic bacterial burdens. In HFD mice, baseline lung homogenate concentrations of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-17, IFN-ɣ, CXCL2, and TNF-ɑ were reduced relative to ND mice, but following infection were greater for IL-6, CCL2, and CXCL2 and IL-1β (24 h only). Despite equivalent lung homogenate leukocytes, HFD mice had fewer intra-alveolar neutrophils. HFD neutrophils exhibited decreased Klebsiella phagocytosis and killing, and reduced ROI to heat-killed Klebsiella in vitro. 2-DG transport was lower in HFD neutrophils, with reduced GLUT1 and GLUT3 transcripts and protein (GLUT3 only). Blocking glycolysis with 2-DG impaired bacterial killing and ROI production in neutrophils from mice fed ND but not HFD. Diet-induced obesity impairs pulmonary Klebsiella clearance and augments blood dissemination by reducing neutrophil killing and ROI due to impaired glucose transport.


2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sauzanne G. Khalilieh ◽  
Ka Lai Yee ◽  
Rosa I. Sanchez ◽  
Li Fan ◽  
Matt S. Anderson ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Identifying and understanding potential drug-drug interactions (DDIs) are vital for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection. This article discusses DDIs between doravirine, a nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI), and cytochrome P450 3A (CYP3A) substrates and drugs that modulate CYP3A activity. Consistent with previously published in vitro data and DDI trials with the CYP3A substrates midazolam and atorvastatin, doravirine did not have any meaningful impact on the pharmacokinetics of the CYP3A substrates ethinyl estradiol and levonorgestrel. Coadministration of doravirine with CYP3A inhibitors (ritonavir or ketoconazole) increased doravirine exposure approximately 3-fold. However, these increases were not considered clinically meaningful. Conversely, previously published trials showed that coadministered CYP3A inducers (rifampin and rifabutin) decreased doravirine exposure by 88% and 50%, respectively (K. L. Yee, S. G. Khalilieh, R. I. Sanchez, R. Liu, et al., Clin Drug Investig 37:659–667, 2017 [https://doi.org/10.1007/s40261-017-0513-4]; S. G. Khalilieh, K. L. Yee, R. I. Sanchez, R. Liu, et al., J Clin Pharmacol 58:1044–1052, 2018 [https://doi.org/10.1002/jcph.1103]), while doravirine exposure following prior efavirenz administration led to an initial reduction in doravirine exposure of 62%, but the reduction became less pronounced with time (K. L. Yee, R. I. Sanchez, P. Auger, R. Liu, et al., Antimicrob Agents Chemother 61:e01757-16, 2017 [https://doi.org/10.1128/AAC.01757-16]). Overall, the coadministration of doravirine with CYP3A inhibitors and substrates is, therefore, supported by these data together with efficacy and safety data from clinical trials, while coadministration with strong CYP3A inducers, such as rifampin, cannot be recommended. Concomitant dosing with rifabutin (a CYP3A inducer less potent than rifampin) is acceptable if doravirine dosing is adjusted from once to twice daily; however, the effect of other moderate inducers on doravirine pharmacokinetics is unknown.


1994 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 278-281
Author(s):  
H. Samanta ◽  
R. Rose ◽  
A. K. Patick ◽  
C. M. Bechtold ◽  
J. Trimble ◽  
...  

A virus strain resistant to R82150, a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase (NNRT) inhibitor (tetrahydro-imidazo [4,5, 1- jk] [1,4] benzodiazepine-2(1 H)-thione), was isolated following serial passage of HIV-1 RF in CEM-SS cells. The virus is cross-resistant to another non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor, TGG-II-23A [1,4-dimethyl-1-[5,5-dimethyl-2-oxazoionyl]-naphthalen-2-one), but remains susceptible to AZT, DDI, D4T and phosphonoformate (PFA). DNA sequencing of reverse transcriptase genes from resistant virus indicated that R82150 selects for amino acid alterations Y181C and V108I. In vitro mutagenized reverse transcriptase and recombinant HIV-1 (pNL4-3) carrying either of the mutations have been generated. Genotypic and phenotypic analyses identified V108I as an unreported R82150-associated mutation. Both reverse transcriptase and viral resistance assays indicated that the resistance conferred by the V108I mutation is 7-fold less than that conferred by Y181C.


2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 185 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. C. S. Leao ◽  
N. A. S. Rocha Frigoni ◽  
P. C. Dall'Acqua ◽  
M. Ambrogi ◽  
G. B. Nunes ◽  
...  

This study was conducted to evaluate the impact of supplementation during in vitro maturation (IVM) with linolenic acid (ALA), l-carnitine (L-car), or the combination of both supplements on the embryo intracellular lipid content and cryotolerance, as well as in the embryo expression of genes involved in lipid metabolism (lipogenesis regulation: SCD1, FASN, and SREBP1; and β-oxidation pathway: CPT1B and CPT2). Cumulus-oocyte complexes (n = 1076) were IVM for 22 h at 38.5°C and 5% CO2 in air, in TCM-199 medium with bicarbonate, hormones, and 10% FCS (control group), supplemented with 100 μM ALA (ALA group), 5 mM L-car (L-car group), or a combination of 100 μM ALA + 5 mM L-car (ALA + L-car group). After IVF, presumptive zygotes were in vitro cultured in SOFaa medium supplemented with 5 mg mL−1 BSA and 2.5% FCS, at 38.5°C and 5% CO2 in air during 7 days. Cleavage and blastocyst rates were evaluated on Day 3 and 7, respectively (IVF = Day 0). At Day 7, the blastocysts were stained with the lipophilic dye Sudan Black B (n = 60), vitrified/warmed (n = 260; Ingámed® protocol, Maringa-PR, Brazil), or collected for analysis of gene expression (n = 180). Embryonic development were analysed by ANOVA and the multiple comparisons of means were determined by Tukey’s test. The embryonic re-expansion data were subjected to chi-square test and the differences in gene expression among groups were evaluated by Duncan’s multiple range test (P < 0.05). Data are presented as means ± standard error means. There was no effect (P > 0.05) of the supplements used during IVM on cleavage (79.54 ± 2.76% to 82.16 ± 1.13%) and blastocyst rates (29.03 ± 3.07% to 30.46 ± 2.01%). Similarly, the intracellular lipid content in Day-7 blastocysts (1.03 ± 0.04 to 1.15 ± 0.07 pixels) and the embryonic cryotolerance, assessed by the re-expansion rates after 24 h (67.3 to 78.3%) hatching rates after 48 h (11.5 to 25.5%) of post-warming culture, were unaffected (P > 0.05) by the supplements of IVM medium. Although the treatments did not alter (P > 0.05) the expression of CPT1B and CPT2 genes, the expression of FASN gene was decreased (P < 0.05) in the ALA group and the expression of SREBP1 gene was decreased (P < 0.05) in the ALA and L-car groups. The expression of the gene SCD1 was reduced (P < 0.05) in all treatments compared with the control group. Thus, despite the lack of effects of the treatments performed during IVM on the intracellular lipid content and cryotolerance of the embryos derived from the treated oocytes, a reduction in the expression of genes related to lipogenesis was observed in Day-7 blastocysts. These results suggest that treatments performed in the oocytes during IVM may have prolonged effects, affecting the subsequent expression of genes in embryos. Further studies are needed to determine the mechanisms related to the differentiation of the oocyte machinery during maturation. Financial support was provided by FAPESP (#2012/10084–4 and #2013/07382–6).


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lyess Allas ◽  
Sybille Brochard ◽  
Quitterie Rochoux ◽  
Jules Ribet ◽  
Cleo Dujarrier ◽  
...  

Abstract Histone methyltransferase EZH2 is upregulated during osteoarthritis (OA), which is the most widespread rheumatic disease worldwide, and a leading cause of disability. This study aimed to assess the impact of EZH2 inhibition on cartilage degradation, inflammation and functional disability. In vitro, gain and loss of EZH2 function were performed in human articular OA chondrocytes stimulated with IL-1β. In vivo, the effects of EZH2 inhibition were investigated on medial meniscectomy (MMX) OA mouse model. The tissue alterations were assayed by histology and the functional disabilities of the mice by actimetry and running wheel. In vitro, EZH2 overexpression exacerbated the action of IL-1β in chondrocytes increasing the expression of genes involved in inflammation, pain (NO, PGE2, IL6, NGF) and catabolism (MMPs), whereas EZH2 inhibition by a pharmacological inhibitor, EPZ-6438, reduced IL-1β effects. Ex vivo, EZH2 inhibition decreased IL-1β-induced degradation of cartilage. In vivo, intra-articular injections of the EZH2 inhibitor reduced cartilage degradation and improved motor functions of OA mice. This study demonstrates that the pharmacological inhibition of the histone methyl-transferase EZH2 slows the progression of osteoarthritis and improves motor functions in an experimental OA model, suggesting that EZH2 could be an effective target for the treatment of OA by reducing catabolism, inflammation and pain.


2020 ◽  
Vol 318 (6) ◽  
pp. L1261-L1269 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Goodwin ◽  
Pengfei Li ◽  
Perry V. Halushka ◽  
James A. Cook ◽  
Aman S. Sumal ◽  
...  

Circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) can be taken up by recipient cells and have been recently associated with the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Their role in host predisposition to the syndrome is unknown. The objective of the study was to identify circulating miRNAs associated with the development of sepsis-related ARDS and examine their impact on endothelial cell gene expression and function. We determined miRNA levels in plasma collected from subjects during the first 24 h of admission to a tertiary intensive care unit for sepsis. A miRNA that was differentially expressed between subjects who did and did not develop ARDS was identified and was transfected into human pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells (HPMECs). RNA sequencing, in silico analysis, cytokine expression, and leukocyte migration assays were used to determine the impact of this miRNA on gene expression and cell function. In two cohorts, circulating miR-887-3p levels were elevated in septic patients who developed ARDS compared with those who did not. Transfection of miR-887-3p into HPMECs altered gene expression, including the upregulation of several genes previously associated with ARDS (e.g., CXCL10, CCL5, CX3CL1, VCAM1, CASP1, IL1B, IFNB, and TLR2), and activation of cellular pathways relevant to the response to infection. Functionally, miR-887-3p increased the endothelial release of chemokines and facilitated trans-endothelial leukocyte migration. Circulating miR-887-3p is associated with ARDS in critically ill patients with sepsis. In vitro, miR-887-3p regulates the expression of genes relevant to ARDS and neutrophil tracking. This miRNA may contribute to ARDS pathogenesis and could represent a novel therapeutic target.


2007 ◽  
Vol 51 (8) ◽  
pp. 2943-2947 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Holdich ◽  
L. A. Shiveley ◽  
J. Sawyer

ABSTRACT Apricitabine is a novel deoxycytidine analog reverse transcriptase inhibitor. In vitro apricitabine competes with other deoxycytidine analogues for intracellular phosphorylation mediated by deoxycytidine kinase. The topic of this study, the effect of concomitant administration of apricitabine and lamivudine on the plasma and intracellular pharmacokinetics of the two compounds, was investigated in healthy volunteers. Participants (n = 21; age, 18 to 30 years) received apricitabine at 600 mg twice daily, lamivudine at 300 mg once daily, and the two treatments in combination for 4 days each in random order. Plasma, urine, and intracellular pharmacokinetics were assessed on day 4 of each treatment period. Apricitabine was rapidly absorbed after oral administration, with peak concentrations being attained after a mean of 1.76 h. Coadministration with lamivudine had no significant effect on the plasma and urine pharmacokinetics of apricitabine. However, the formation of apricitabine triphosphate in peripheral blood mononuclear cells was markedly reduced after the coadministration of apricitabine and lamivudine than after the administration of apricitabine alone: the area under the concentration-time curve from 0 to 12 h for apricitabine triphosphate during combination treatment was ca. 15% of that seen after the administration of apricitabine alone. In contrast, apricitabine had no effect on the plasma pharmacokinetics of lamivudine or on the formation of lamivudine triphosphate in peripheral blood mononuclear cells. These results are consistent with in vitro findings that lamivudine inhibits the intracellular phosphorylation of apricitabine. In conjunction with similar in vitro observations for emtricitabine and apricitabine, these results suggest that apricitabine should not be coadministered with other deoxycytidine analogues for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus infection.


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