Abstract 606: Impaired Glucose Metabolism in the Triggering Receptor Expressed in Myeloid Cells Like Transcript- 1 Null Mice A Link to Obesity
Fat rich foods have been shown to produce increased body weight and diabetes in various strains of mice. When fed ad libitum with a high fat diet (HFD), apolipoprotein E deficient ( apoe -/- ) mice develop hypercholesterolemia, but are not known to be obese. Our laboratory demonstrated that the triggering receptor expressed in myeloid cells (TREM) like transcript-1 (TLT-1), as a potential target for intervention during atherosclerosis, diabetes, and obesity. Crossing the treml1 -/- mouse onto an apoe -/- background (DKO), we found DKO mice had smaller lesions than apoe -/- mice, yet had significantly higher triglycerides and weight gain over a 20-week period of HFD. Further investigation demonstrated treml1 -/- mice to have higher cholesterol than wild type mice (wt), suggesting the treml1 mutation contributes to the phenotype observed in DKO mice. Glucose evaluation of treml1 -/- , treml1 +/- and wt mice, showed a significant difference in basal glucose, and in plasma glucose clearance, as revealed by intraperitoneal (IP) glucose tolerance test. Analysis of serum insulin by ELISA showed no differences, while IP insulin tolerance test revealed treml1 -/- and treml1 +/- mice present apparent insulin hypersensitivity, as represented by the steady glucose decline 15 min post injection, with no recovery after two hours. Western blot performed in various tissues, demonstrated the presence of a TLT-1 splice variant that lacks the extracellular domain (TLT-1s), in the adipose tissue of treml1 -/- but not wt mice. Analysis of insulin response, in vivo by insulin sensitivity assay and in vitro using TSA 201 cells transfected with TLT-1s to determine the effect on AKT activation, revealed enhanced phosphorylation in the presence of TLT-1, with a similar response observed in vitro. This data support a model where TLT-1s modulation of AKT phosphorylation, increases adipocyte glucose uptake, leading to: low blood glucose levels, increased fatty acid production and storage, and the obese phenotype we observed in our mice.