scholarly journals Transforming Growth Factor Beta 1 Alters Glucose Uptake but Not Insulin Signalling in Human Primary Myotubes From Women With and Without Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luke C. McIlvenna ◽  
Rhiannon K. Patten ◽  
Andrew J. McAinch ◽  
Raymond J. Rodgers ◽  
Nigel K. Stepto ◽  
...  

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), commonly have profound skeletal muscle insulin resistance which can worsen other clinical features. The heterogeneity of the condition has made it challenging to identify the precise mechanisms that cause this insulin resistance. A possible explanation for the underlying insulin resistance may be the dysregulation of Transforming Growth Factor-beta (TGFβ) signalling. TGFβ signalling contributes to the remodelling of reproductive and hepatic tissues in women with PCOS. Given the systemic nature of TGFβ signalling and its role in skeletal muscle homeostasis, it may be possible that these adverse effects extend to other peripheral tissues. We aimed to determine if TGFβ1 could negatively regulate glucose uptake and insulin signalling in skeletal muscle of women with PCOS. We show that both myotubes from women with PCOS and healthy women displayed an increase in glucose uptake, independent of changes in insulin signalling, following short term (16 hr) TGFβ1 treatment. This increase occurred despite pro-fibrotic signalling increasing via SMAD3 and connective tissue growth factor in both groups following treatment with TGFβ1. Collectively, our findings show that short-term treatment with TGFβ1 does not appear to influence insulin signalling or promote insulin resistance in myotubes. These findings suggest that aberrant TGFβ signalling is unlikely to directly contribute to skeletal muscle insulin resistance in women with PCOS in the short term but does not rule out indirect or longer-term effects.

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alba Moreno-Asso ◽  
Luke C McIlvenna ◽  
Rhiannon K Patten ◽  
Andrew J McAinch ◽  
Raymond J Rodgers ◽  
...  

Abstract Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common female endocrine disorder affecting metabolic, reproductive and mental health of 8-13% of reproductive-age women. Insulin resistance (IR) appears to underpin the pathophysiology of PCOS and is present in approximately 85% of women with PCOS. This underlying IR has been identified as unique from, but synergistic with, obesity-induced IR (1). Skeletal muscle accounts for up to 85% of whole body insulin-stimulated glucose uptake, however, in PCOS this is reduced about 27% when assessed by hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp (2). Interestingly, this reduced insulin-stimulated glucose uptake observed in skeletal muscle tissue is not retained in cultured myotubes (3), suggesting that environmental factors may play a role in this PCOS-specific IR. Yet, the molecular mechanisms regulating IR remain unclear (4). Previous work suggested that Transforming Growth Factor Beta (TGFβ) superfamily ligands may be involved in the metabolic morbidity associated with PCOS (5). In this study, we investigated the effects of TGFβ1 (1, 5ng/ml), and the Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH; 5, 10, 30ng/ml), a novel TGFβ superfamily ligand elevated in women with PCOS, as causal factors of IR in cultured myotubes from women with PCOS (n=10) and healthy controls (n=10). AMH negatively affected glucose uptake and insulin signalling increasing p-IRS1 (ser312) in a dose-dependent manner in myotubes from both women with and without PCOS. AMH did not appear to activate the canonical TGFβ/BMP signalling pathway. Conversely, TGFβ1 had an opposite effect in both PCOS and control myotubes cultures, decreasing phosphorylation of IRS1 (ser312) and enhancing glucose uptake via Smad2/3 signalling. In conclusion, these results suggest that AMH may play a role in skeletal muscle IR observed in PCOS, however, further research is required to elucidate its mechanisms of action and broader impact in this syndrome. References: (1) Stepto et al. Hum Reprod 2013 Mar;28(3):777-784. (2) Cassar et al. Hum Reprod 2016 Nov;31(11):2619-2631. (3) Corbould et al., Am J Physiol-Endoc 2005 May;88(5):E1047-54. (4) Stepto et al. J Clin Endocrinol Metab, 2019 Nov 1;104(11):5372-5381. (5) Raja-Khan et al. Reprod Sci 2014 Jan;21(1):20-31.


2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (10) ◽  
pp. 638-646 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Li ◽  
Yungai Xiang ◽  
Yuxia Song ◽  
Lijing Wan ◽  
Guo Yu ◽  
...  

Abstract It is well established that microRNA (miRNA) expression profiles are altered in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). In addition, abnormal transforming growth factor beta (TGFB) signaling in granulosa cells is related to the pathological conditions of PCOS. However, the function of dysregulated miRNAs in PCOS is still unclear. In this study, we aimed to elucidate the roles of specific miRNAs in PCOS. We collected follicular fluid from 46 patients with PCOS and 32 healthy controls. Granulosa cells (GCs) were separated and the levels of six candidate miRNAs were determined by quantitative RT-PCR. The direct targets of three dysregulated miRNAs were predicted using bioinformatic tools and confirmed using a dual luciferase assay and immunoblotting. The biological function of three dysregulated miRNAs in primary GCs was determined using a cell proliferation assay and flow cytometry. We found that miR-423 expression was downregulated (P = 0.038), and the levels of miR-33b (P = 0.032) and miR-142 (P = 0.021) were upregulated in GCs from patients with PCOS, compared to controls. miR-423 directly repressed SMAD family member 7 (SMAD7) expression, while transforming growth factor beta receptor 1 (TGFBR1) was a direct target of both miR-33b and miR-142. An RNA oligonucleotide mixture containing miR-423 inhibitor, miR-33b mimic, and miR-142 mimic repressed TGFB signaling, promoted cell proliferation (P = 0.0098), repressed apoptosis (P = 0.027), and increased S phase cell numbers (P = 0.0036) in primary cultures of GCs, compared to the cells treated with a sequence scrambled control RNA oligonucleotide. This study unveiled the possible roles of three miRNAs in PCOS and might provide candidate biomarkers for PCOS diagnosis while in vivo functional studies, using transgenic or knockout mouse models, are expected to confirm the roles of dysregulated miRNAs in the pathogenesis of PCOS.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. A443-A444
Author(s):  
Alba Moreno-Asso ◽  
Luke C McIlvenna ◽  
Rhiannon K Patten ◽  
Andrew J McAinch ◽  
Raymond J Rodgers ◽  
...  

Abstract Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common female endocrinopathy affecting metabolic and reproductive health of 8–13% of reproductive-age women. Insulin resistance (IR) appears to underpin the pathophysiology of PCOS and is present in approximately 38–95% of women with PCOS. This underlying IR has been identified as unique from, but synergistic with, obesity-induced IR (1). Skeletal muscle accounts for up to 85% of whole-body insulin-stimulated glucose uptake; however, in PCOS this is reduced by about 27% when assessed by a euglycaemic-hyperinsulinaemic clamp (2). Interestingly, this reduced insulin-stimulated glucose uptake observed in skeletal muscle tissue is not retained in cultured myotubes (3), suggesting that in vivo environmental factors may play a role in this PCOS-specific IR. Yet, the molecular mechanisms regulating IR remain unclear (4). A potential environmental mechanism contributing to the development of peripheral IR may be the extracellular matrix remodelling and aberrant transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) signalling. Previous work demonstrated that TGFβ superfamily ligands are involved in the increased collagen deposition and fibrotic tissue in the ovaries, and suggested that these ligands may be involved in the metabolic morbidity associated with PCOS (5). In this study, we investigated the effects of TGFβ1 (1, 5 ng/ml), and the Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH; 5, 10, 30 ng/ml), a TGFβ superfamily ligand elevated in women with PCOS, as causal factors of IR in cultured myotubes from women with PCOS (n=5) and healthy controls (n=5). TGFβ1 did not have a significant effect on insulin signalling but induced expression of some ECM related genes and proteins, and increased glucose uptake via Smad2/3 signalling in myotubes from both groups. Conversely, AMH did not appear to activate the TGFβ/Smad signalling pathway and had no significant impact on insulin signalling or glucose uptake in any of the groups. In conclusion, these findings suggest that TGFβ1, but not AMH, may play a role in skeletal muscle ECM remodelling/fibrosis and glucose metabolism in PCOS but does not have a direct effect on insulin signalling pathway. Further research is required to elucidate its contribution to the development of in vivo skeletal muscle IR and broader impact in this syndrome. References: (1) Stepto et al., Hum Reprod 2013 Mar;28(3):777–784. (2) Cassar et al., Hum Reprod 2016 Nov;31(11):2619–2631. (3) Corbould et al., Am J Physiol-Endoc 2005 May;88(5):E1047-54. (4) Stepto et al., J Clin Endocrinol Metab, 2019 Nov 1;104(11):5372–5381. (5) Raja-Khan et al., Reprod Sci 2014 Jan;21(1):20–31.


2020 ◽  
Vol 134 (10) ◽  
pp. 1167-1180
Author(s):  
Jing Cheng ◽  
Yi Tan ◽  
Jiong Zhou ◽  
Linda Xiao ◽  
Michael Johnson ◽  
...  

Abstract In the present study, we evaluated the metabolic effects of green tea polyphenols (GTPs) in high-fat diet (HFD) fed Zucker fatty (ZF) rats, in particular the effects of GTP on skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity. Body weight, visceral fat, glucose tolerance, lipid profiles and whole-body insulin sensitivity were measured in HFD-fed ZF rats after 8-week-treatment with GTP (200 mg/kg of body weight) or saline (5 ml/kg of body weight). Zucker lean rats were studied as controls. Ex vivo insulin-mediated muscle glucose uptake was assessed. Immunoblotting was used to evaluate the expression of key insulin signalling proteins in skeletal muscle. GTP treatment attenuated weight gain (P<0.05) and visceral fat accumulation (27.6%, P<0.05), and significantly reduced fasting serum glucose (P<0.05) and insulin (P<0.01) levels. Homoeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), a measure of insulin resistance, was lower (P<0.01) in GTP-treated animals compared with ZF controls. Moreover, insulin-stimulated glucose uptake by isolated soleus muscle was increased (P<0.05) in GTP-ZF rats compared with ZF-controls. GTP treatment attenuated the accumulation of ectopic lipids (triacyl- and diacyl-glycerols), enhanced the expression and translocation of glucose transporter-4, and decreased pSer612IRS-1 and increased pSer473Akt2 expression in skeletal muscle. These molecular changes were also associated with significantly decreased activation of the inhibitory (muscle-specific) protein kinase (PKC) isoform, PKC-θ. Taken together, the present study has shown that regular ingestion of GTP exerts a number of favourable metabolic and molecular effects in an established animal model of obesity and insulin resistance. The benefits of GTP are mediated in part by inhibiting PKC-θ and improving muscle insulin sensitivity.


2009 ◽  
Vol 418 (3) ◽  
pp. 665-671 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madhurima Rajkhowa ◽  
Sandra Brett ◽  
Daniel J. Cuthbertson ◽  
Christopher Lipina ◽  
Antonio J. Ruiz-Alcaraz ◽  
...  

Insulin resistance is a recognized feature of PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome). However, the molecular reason(s) underlying this reduced cellular insulin sensitivity is not clear. The present study compares the major insulin signalling pathways in skeletal muscle isolated from PCOS and controls. We measured whole-body insulin sensitivity and insulin signalling in skeletal muscle biopsies taken before and after acute exposure to hyperinsulinaemia in nine women diagnosed with PCOS and seven controls. We examined the expression, basal activity and response to in vivo insulin stimulation of three signalling molecules within these human muscle samples, namely IRS-1 (insulin receptor substrate-1), PKB (protein kinase B) and ERK (extracellular-signal-regulated kinase) 1/2. There was no significant difference in the expression, basal activity or activation of IRS-1 or PKB between PCOS and control subjects. However, there was a severe attenuation of insulin stimulation of the ERK pathway in muscle from all but two of the women with PCOS (the two most obese), and an accompanying trend towards higher basal phosphorylation of ERK1/2 in PCOS. These results are striking in that the metabolic actions of insulin are widely believed to require the IRS-1/PKB pathway rather than ERK, and the former has been reported as defective in some previous PCOS studies. Most importantly, the molecular defect identified was independent of adiposity. The altered response of ERK to insulin in PCOS was the most obvious signalling defect associated with insulin resistance in muscle from these patients.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-25
Author(s):  
Noor Alhuda K. Ibrahim ◽  
Wasnaa J. Mohammad ◽  
Sanan T. Abdawahab

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common causes of infertility in women of reproductive age. The aim of the study was to determine the level of apelin, insulin resistance (IR), transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-β1), and endoglin in women with polycystic ovary syndrome. Fifty PCOS patients and 40 non-PCOS infertile patients were recruited. The fasting serum levels of folliclestimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), testosterone (T), prolactin, fasting blood glucose, insulin, and apelin at the early follicular phase were measured. Levels of apelin, LH, LH/FSH, T, and fasting insulin, as well as homeostatic model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR) in PCOS patients, were significantly higher than in the control group. Correlation analysis showed that apelin level was positively correlated with body mass index and HOMA-IR. Apelin levels and TGF-β1 were significantly increased in PCOS patients while show decrease levels of endoglin.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 346-359 ◽  
Author(s):  
N K Stepto ◽  
D Hiam ◽  
M Gibson-Helm ◽  
S Cassar ◽  
C L Harrison ◽  
...  

Objective Mechanisms of insulin resistance in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) remain ill defined, contributing to sub-optimal therapies. Recognising skeletal muscle plays a key role in glucose homeostasis we investigated early insulin signalling, its association with aberrant transforming growth factor β (TGFβ)-regulated tissue fibrosis. We also explored the impact of aerobic exercise on these molecular pathways. Methods A secondary analysis from a cross-sectional study was undertaken in women with (n = 30) or without (n = 29) PCOS across lean and overweight BMIs. A subset of participants with (n = 8) or without (n = 8) PCOS who were overweight completed 12 weeks of aerobic exercise training. Muscle was sampled before and 30 min into a euglycaemic-hyperinsulinaemic clamp pre and post training. Results We found reduced signalling in PCOS of mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR). Exercise training augmented but did not completely rescue this signalling defect in women with PCOS. Genes in the TGFβ signalling network were upregulated in skeletal muscle in the overweight women with PCOS but were unresponsive to exercise training except for genes encoding LOX, collagen 1 and 3. Conclusions We provide new insights into defects in early insulin signalling, tissue fibrosis, and hyperandrogenism in PCOS-specific insulin resistance in lean and overweight women. PCOS-specific insulin signalling defects were isolated to mTOR, while gene expression implicated TGFβ ligand regulating a fibrosis in the PCOS-obesity synergy in insulin resistance and altered responses to exercise. Interestingly, there was little evidence for hyperandrogenism as a mechanism for insulin resistance.


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