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Nilsson A, Olsson T, Ulfstedt M, Thelander M, Ronne H. Two novel types of hexokinases in the moss Physcomitrella patens. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2011; 11:32. [PMID: 21320325 PMCID: PMC3045890 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2229-11-32] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2010] [Accepted: 02/14/2011] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Hexokinase catalyzes the phosphorylation of glucose and fructose, but it is also involved in sugar sensing in both fungi and plants. We have previously described two types of hexokinases in the moss Physcomitrella. Type A, exemplified by PpHxk1, the major hexokinase in Physcomitrella, is a soluble protein that localizes to the chloroplast stroma. Type B, exemplified by PpHxk2, has an N-terminal membrane anchor. Both types are found also in vascular plants, and localize to the chloroplast stroma and mitochondrial membranes, respectively. RESULTS We have now characterized all 11 hexokinase encoding genes in Physcomitrella. Based on their N-terminal sequences and intracellular localizations, three of the encoded proteins are type A hexokinases and four are type B hexokinases. One of the type B hexokinases has a splice variant without a membrane anchor, that localizes to the cytosol and the nucleus. However, we also found two new types of hexokinases with no obvious orthologs in vascular plants. Type C, encoded by a single gene, has neither transit peptide nor membrane anchor, and is found in the cytosol and in the nucleus. Type D hexokinases, encoded by three genes, have membrane anchors and localize to mitochondrial membranes, but their sequences differ from those of the type B hexokinases. Interestingly, all moss hexokinases are more similar to each other in overall sequence than to hexokinases from other plants, even though characteristic sequence motifs such as the membrane anchor of the type B hexokinases are highly conserved between moss and vascular plants, indicating a common origin for hexokinases of the same type. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that the hexokinase gene family is more diverse in Physcomitrella, encoding two additional types of hexokinases that are absent in vascular plants. In particular, the presence of a cytosolic and nuclear hexokinase (type C) sets Physcomitrella apart from vascular plants, and instead resembles yeast, where all hexokinases localize to the cytosol. The fact that all moss hexokinases are more similar to each other than to hexokinases from vascular plants, even though both type A and type B hexokinases are present in all plants, further suggests that the hexokinase gene family in Physcomitrella has undergone concerted evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anders Nilsson
- Department of Microbiology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Box 7025, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Tina Olsson
- Department of Plant Biology and Forest Genetics, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Box 7080, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Mikael Ulfstedt
- Department of Microbiology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Box 7025, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Mattias Thelander
- Department of Plant Biology and Forest Genetics, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Box 7080, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Hans Ronne
- Department of Microbiology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Box 7025, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden
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102
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Wu W, Zhou T, Berliner A, Banerjee P, Zhou S. Glucose-mediated assembly of phenylboronic acid modified CdTe/ZnTe/ZnS quantum dots for intracellular glucose probing. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2011; 49:6554-8. [PMID: 20669205 DOI: 10.1002/anie.201001508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Weitai Wu
- Department of Chemistry, College of Staten Island of The City University of New York, Staten Island, NY 10314, USA
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103
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Matschinsky FM, Zelent B, Doliba NM, Kaestner KH, Vanderkooi JM, Grimsby J, Berthel SJ, Sarabu R. Research and development of glucokinase activators for diabetes therapy: theoretical and practical aspects. Handb Exp Pharmacol 2011:357-401. [PMID: 21484579 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-17214-4_15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Glucokinase Glucokinase (GK GK ; EC 2.7.1.1.) phosphorylates and regulates glucose metabolism in insulin-producing pancreatic beta-cells, hepatocytes, and certain cells of the endocrine and nervous systems allowing it to play a central role in glucose homeostasis glucose homeostasis . Most importantly, it serves as glucose sensor glucose sensor in pancreatic beta-cells mediating glucose-stimulated insulin biosynthesis and release and it governs the capacity of the liver to convert glucose to glycogen. Activating and inactivating mutations of the glucokinase gene cause autosomal dominant hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia and hypoinsulinemic hyperglycemia in humans, respectively, illustrating the preeminent role of glucokinase in the regulation of blood glucose and also identifying the enzyme as a potential target for developing antidiabetic drugs antidiabetic drugs . Small molecules called glucokinase activators (GKAs) glucokinase activators (GKAs) which bind to an allosteric activator allosteric activator site of the enzyme have indeed been discovered and hold great promise as new antidiabetic agents. GKAs increase the enzyme's affinity for glucose and also its maximal catalytic rate. Consequently, they stimulate insulin biosynthesis and secretion, enhance hepatic glucose uptake, and augment glucose metabolism and related processes in other glucokinase-expressing cells. Manifestations of these effects, most prominently a lowering of blood glucose, are observed in normal laboratory animals and man but also in animal models of diabetes and patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM T2DM ) type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) . These compelling concepts and results sustain a strong R&D effort by many pharmaceutical companies to generate GKAs with characteristics allowing for a novel drug treatment of T2DM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franz M Matschinsky
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Pennsylvania, Institute for Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 415 Curie Blvd, 605 CRB, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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Reidel B, Thompson JW, Farsiu S, Moseley MA, Skiba NP, Arshavsky VY. Proteomic profiling of a layered tissue reveals unique glycolytic specializations of photoreceptor cells. Mol Cell Proteomics 2010; 10:M110.002469. [PMID: 21173383 DOI: 10.1074/mcp.m110.002469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The retina is a highly ordered tissue whose outermost layers are formed by subcellular compartments of photoreceptors generating light-evoked electrical responses. We studied protein distributions among individual photoreceptor compartments by separating the entire photoreceptor layer of a flat-mounted frozen retina into a series of thin tangential cryosections and analyzing protein compositions of each section by label-free quantitative mass spectrometry. Based on 5038 confidently identified peptides assigned to 896 protein database entries, we generated a quantitative proteomic database (a "map") correlating the distribution profiles of identified proteins with the profiles of marker proteins representing individual compartments of photoreceptors and adjacent cells. We evaluated the applicability of several common peptide-to-protein quantification algorithms in the context of our database and found that the highest reliability was obtained by summing the intensities of all peptides representing a given protein, using at least the 5-6 most intense peptides when applicable. We used this proteome map to investigate the distribution of glycolytic enzymes, critical in fulfilling the extremely high metabolic demands of photoreceptor cells, and obtained two major findings. First, unlike the majority of neurons rich in hexokinase I, but similar to other highly metabolically active cells, photoreceptors express hexokinase II. Hexokinase II has a very high catalytic activity when associated with mitochondria, and indeed we found it colocalized with mitochondria in photoreceptors. Second, photoreceptors contain very little triosephosphate isomerase, an enzyme converting dihydroxyacetone phosphate into glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate. This may serve as a functional adaptation because dihydroxyacetone phosphate is a major precursor in phospholipid biosynthesis, a process particularly active in photoreceptors because of the constant renewal of their light-sensitive membrane disc stacks. Overall, our approach for proteomic profiling of very small tissue amounts at a resolution of a few microns, combining cryosectioning and liquid chromatography-tandem MS, can be applied for quantitative investigation of proteomes where spatial resolution is paramount.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boris Reidel
- Albert Eye Research Institute, 2310 Erwin Road, Durham NC 27710, USA
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105
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Extension of the substrate utilization range of Ralstonia eutropha strain H16 by metabolic engineering to include mannose and glucose. Appl Environ Microbiol 2010; 77:1325-34. [PMID: 21169447 DOI: 10.1128/aem.01977-10] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The gram-negative facultative chemolithoautotrophic bacterium Ralstonia eutropha strain H16 is known for its narrow carbohydrate utilization range, which limits its use for biotechnological production of polyhydroxyalkanoates and possibly other products from renewable resources. To broaden its substrate utilization range, which is for carbohydrates and related compounds limited to fructose, N-acetylglucosamine, and gluconate, strain H16 was engineered to use mannose and glucose as sole carbon sources for growth. The genes for a facilitated diffusion protein (glf) from Zymomonas mobilis and for a glucokinase (glk), mannofructokinase (mak), and phosphomannose isomerase (pmi) from Escherichia coli were alone or in combination constitutively expressed in R. eutropha strain H16 under the control of the neokanamycin or lac promoter, respectively, using an episomal broad-host-range vector. Recombinant strains harboring pBBR1MCS-3::glf::mak::pmi or pBBR1MCS-3::glf::pmi grew on mannose, whereas pBBR1MCS-3::glf::mak and pBBR1MCS-3::glf did not confer the ability to utilize mannose as a carbon source to R. eutropha. The recombinant strain harboring pBBR1MCS-3::glf::pmi exhibited slower growth on mannose than the recombinant strain harboring pBBR1MCS-3::glf::mak::pmi. These data indicated that phosphomannose isomerase is required to convert mannose-6-phosphate into fructose-6-phosphate for subsequent catabolism via the Entner-Doudoroff pathway. In addition, all plasmids also conferred to R. eutropha the ability to grow in the presence of glucose. The best growth was observed with a recombinant R. eutropha strain harboring plasmid pBBR1MCS-2::P(nk)::glk::glf. In addition, expression of the respective enzymes was demonstrated at the transcriptional and protein levels and by measuring the activities of mannofructokinase (0.622 ± 0.063 U mg(-1)), phosphomannose isomerase (0.251 ± 0.017 U mg(-1)), and glucokinase (0.518 ± 0.040 U mg(-1)). Cells of recombinant strains of R. eutropha synthesized poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) to ca. 65 to 67% (wt/wt) of the cell dry mass in the presence of 1% (wt/vol) glucose or mannose as the sole carbon sources.
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106
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Rideau N, Derouet M, Grimsby J, Simon J. Glucokinase activation induces potent hypoglycemia without recruiting insulin and inhibits food intake in chicken. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2010; 169:276-83. [PMID: 20850445 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2010.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2010] [Revised: 08/27/2010] [Accepted: 09/09/2010] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Glucose homeostasis exhibits several peculiarities in chickens (in short, presence of high glycemia and resistance to high doses of exogenous insulin). Though the full chicken glucokinase gene sequence is still lacking, several results suggest its existence. The functionality of chicken glucokinase (GK) has been further investigated using an activator of mammalian GK (GKA). In vitro, GKA decreased GK's S0.5(a) in a glucose-dependent manner in liver homogenates from either fasted or fed chickens; it also increased GK Vmax(a) in homogenates from fed chickens. In vivo, acute oral GKA administration (10-100 mg/kg) induced a potent and dose dependent hypoglycemic effect in fed chickens (starting between 15 and 45 min with a maximum effect at 40 mg/kg, P<0.0001). At this dose, plasma insulin levels showed erratic and minor changes in the early times (an increase at 5 min and a decrease at 10 min, P<0.05). At 90 min, when hypoglycemia had developed plasma insulin levels decreased under controls and plasma pancreatic glucagon levels increased over controls. Also at 40 mg/kg, GKA transiently inhibited food intake at about 3h (P<0.0001). In conclusion, GKA is a potent activator of chicken GK evidencing that the structure and the activity of chicken GK are similar to those of mammalian GK. At variance with results obtained in mammals, the potent GKA hypoglycemic action appears to rely mostly on an effect on liver GK in chicken. This fits with previous results and further support the hypothesis of a "deficient coupling" between Β-cell metabolism and insulin release in this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Rideau
- INRA, UR83 Recherches Avicoles, 37380 Nouzilly, France.
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107
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Abstract
BACKGROUND Hexokinases (HKs) catalyze the first step in glucose metabolism. Of the three mammalian 100-kDa HK isoforms, HKI and II can bind to mitochondria and protect against cell death. HKIII does not bind mitochondria, and little is known about its regulation or cytoprotective effects. We studied the regulation of HKIII at the transcriptional and protein levels and investigated its role in cellular protection. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS We show that like HKII, HKIII expression is regulated by hypoxia, but other factors that regulate HKII expression have no effect on HKIII levels. This transcriptional regulation is partially dependent on hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) signaling. We also demonstrate regulation at the protein level, as mutations in putative N-terminal substrate binding residues altered C-terminal catalytic activity, suggesting that HKIII activity is governed, in part, by interactions between these two domains. Overexpression of HKIII reduced oxidant-induced cell death, increased ATP levels, decreased the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and preserved mitochondrial membrane potential. HKIII overexpression was also associated with higher levels of transcription factors that regulate mitochondrial biogenesis, and greater total mitochondrial DNA content. Attempts to target HKIII to the mitochondria by replacing its N-terminal 32-amino-acid sequence with the mitochondrial-targeting sequence of HKII led to protein aggregation, suggesting that this region is necessary to maintain proper protein folding and solubility. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE These results suggest that HKIII is regulated by hypoxia and there are functional interactions between its two halves. Furthermore, HKIII exerts protective effects against oxidative stress, perhaps by increasing ATP levels, reducing oxidant-induced ROS production, preserving mitochondrial membrane potential, and increasing mitochondrial biogenesis.
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108
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Michel G, Tonon T, Scornet D, Cock JM, Kloareg B. Central and storage carbon metabolism of the brown alga Ectocarpus siliculosus: insights into the origin and evolution of storage carbohydrates in Eukaryotes. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2010; 188:67-81. [PMID: 20618908 DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2010.03345.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 122] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
• Brown algae exhibit a unique carbon (C) storage metabolism. The photoassimilate D-fructose 6-phosphate is not used to produce sucrose but is converted into D-mannitol. These seaweeds also store C as β-1,3-glucan (laminarin), thus markedly departing from most living organisms, which use α-1,4-glucans (glycogen or starch). • Using a combination of bioinformatic and phylogenetic approaches, we identified the candidate genes for the enzymes involved in C storage in the genome of the brown alga Ectocarpus siliculosus and traced their evolutionary origins. • Ectocarpus possesses a complete set of enzymes for synthesis of mannitol, laminarin and trehalose. By contrast, the pathways for sucrose, starch and glycogen are completely absent. • The synthesis of β-1,3-glucans appears to be a very ancient eukaryotic pathway. Brown algae inherited the trehalose pathway from the red algal progenitor of phaeoplasts, while the mannitol pathway was acquired by lateral gene transfer from Actinobacteria. The starch metabolism of the red algal endosymbiont was entirely lost in the ancestor of Stramenopiles. In light of these novel findings we question the validity of the 'Chromalveolate hypothesis'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gurvan Michel
- UPMC University Paris 6, UMR 7139 Marine Plants and Biomolecules, Station Biologique de Roscoff, F-29682 Roscoff, Bretagne, France.
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109
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Characterization of non-cytosolic hexokinase activity in white skeletal muscle from goldfish (Carassius auratus L.) and the effect of cold acclimation. Biosci Rep 2010; 30:413-23. [DOI: 10.1042/bsr20090128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
HK (hexokinase) is an enzyme involved in the first step in the glucose metabolism pathway, converting glucose into G6P (glucose 6-phosphate). Owing to the importance of skeletal muscle for fish swimming and acclimation processes, we used goldfish (Carassius auratus L.) white muscle in order to investigate subcellular distribution and kinetics of HK. In this study, we report that HK activity is predominantly localized in the mitochondrial fraction [NC-HK (non-cytosolic HK)] in goldfish white muscle. Studies of the kinetic parameters revealed that the Km (Michaelis–Menten constant) for glucose was 0.41±0.03 mM and that for mannose was 3-fold lower, whereas the affinity for fructose was too low to be measured. The Km for ATP was 0.88±0.05 mM, whereas no activity was observed when either GTP or ITP was used as a phosphate donor. A moderate inhibition (20–40%) was found for ADP and AMP. Similar to mammalian HK, G6P and glucose analogues were able to promote an inhibition of between 85 and 100% of activity. Here, we found that acclimation of goldfish at 5°C promoted a 2.5-fold increase in NC-HK compared with its counterpart acclimated at 25°C. However, cytosolic HK activity was not altered after thermal acclimation. In summary, our results suggest that the goldfish has a constitutive NC-HK that shows some similarities to mammalian HK-II and, curiously, may play a role in the broad metabolic changes required during the cold acclimation process.
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110
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Wu W, Zhou T, Berliner A, Banerjee P, Zhou S. Glucose-Mediated Assembly of Phenylboronic Acid Modified CdTe/ZnTe/ZnS Quantum Dots for Intracellular Glucose Probing. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2010. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.201001508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
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111
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112
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Giuliani MC, Jourlin-Castelli C, Leroy G, Hachani A, Giudici-Orticoni MT. Characterization of a new periplasmic single-domain rhodanese encoded by a sulfur-regulated gene in a hyperthermophilic bacterium Aquifex aeolicus. Biochimie 2010; 92:388-97. [PMID: 20060433 DOI: 10.1016/j.biochi.2009.12.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2009] [Accepted: 12/22/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Rhodaneses (thiosulfate cyanide sulfurtransferases) are enzymes involved in the production of the sulfur in sulfane form, which has been suggested to be the relevant biologically active sulfur species. Rhodanese domains occur in the three major domains of life. We have characterized a new periplasmic single-domain rhodanese from a hyperthermophile bacterium, Aquifex aeolicus, with thiosulfate:cyanide transferase activity, Aq-1599. The oligomeric organization of the enzyme is stabilized by a disulfide bridge. To date this is the first characterization from a hyperthermophilic bacterium of a periplasmic sulfurtransferase with a disulfide bridge. The aq-1599 gene belongs to an operon that also contains a gene for a prepilin peptidase and that is up-regulated when sulfur is used as electron acceptor. Finally, we have observed a sulfur-dependent bacterial adherence linked to an absence of flagellin suggesting a possible role for sulfur detection by A. aeolicus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Cécile Giuliani
- Laboratoire de Bioénergétique et Ingénierie des Protéines, IMM-CNRS, 31 chemin Joseph Aiguier, Marseille cedex 20, France
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113
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Guanidine hydrochloride and urea-induced unfolding of Brugia malayi hexokinase. EUROPEAN BIOPHYSICS JOURNAL: EBJ 2009; 39:289-97. [DOI: 10.1007/s00249-009-0539-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2008] [Revised: 05/25/2009] [Accepted: 08/26/2009] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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114
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Tumor cell energy metabolism and its common features with yeast metabolism. Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer 2009; 1796:252-65. [PMID: 19682552 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2009.07.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2009] [Revised: 07/28/2009] [Accepted: 07/31/2009] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
During the last decades a considerable amount of research has been focused on cancer. A number of genetic and signaling defects have been identified. This has allowed the design and screening of a number of anti-tumor drugs for therapeutic use. One of the main challenges of anti-cancer therapy is to specifically target these drugs to malignant cells. Recently, tumor cell metabolism has been considered as a possible target for cancer therapy. It is widely accepted that tumors display an enhanced glycolytic activity and oxidative phosphorylation down-regulation (Warburg effect). Therefore, it seems reasonable that disruption of glycolysis might be a promising candidate for specific anti-cancer therapy. Nonetheless, the concept of aerobic glycolysis as the paradigm of tumor cell metabolism has been challenged, as some tumor cells use oxidative phosphorylation. Mitochondria are of special interest in cancer cell energy metabolism, as their physiology is linked to the Warburg effect. Besides, their central role in apoptosis makes these organelles a promising "dual hit target" for selectively eliminate tumor cells. Thus, it is desirable to have an easy-to-use and reliable model in order to do the screening for energy metabolism-inhibiting drugs to be used in cancer therapy. From a metabolic point of view, the fermenting yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and tumor cells share several features. In this paper we will review these common metabolic properties and we will discuss the possibility of using S. cerevisiae as an early screening test in the research for novel anti-tumor compounds used for the inhibition of tumor cell metabolism.
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115
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Ahn KJ, Kim J, Yun M, Park JH, Lee JD. Enzymatic properties of the N- and C-terminal halves of human hexokinase II. BMB Rep 2009; 42:350-5. [PMID: 19558793 DOI: 10.5483/bmbrep.2009.42.6.350] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Although previous studies on hexokinase (HK) II indicate both the N- and C-terminal halves are catalytically active, we show in this study the N-terminal half is significantly more catalytic than the C-terminal half in addition to having a significantly higher Km for ATP and Glu. Furthermore, truncated forms of intact HK II lacking its first N-terminal 18 amino acids (delta18) and a truncated N-terminal half lacking its first 18 amino acids (delta18N) have higher catalytic activity than other mutants tested. Similar results were obtained by PET-scan analysis using (18)FFDG. Our results collectively suggest that each domain of HK II possesses enzyme activity, unlike HK I, with the N-terminal half showing higher enzyme activity than the C-terminal half.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keun Jae Ahn
- Division of Nuclear Medicine, Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Research Institute of Radiological Science, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 120-752, Korea
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116
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Chen G, Zhang Y, Lu D, Li NQ, Ross AC. Retinoids synergize with insulin to induce hepatic Gck expression. Biochem J 2009; 419:645-53. [PMID: 19173678 PMCID: PMC3789248 DOI: 10.1042/bj20082368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Hepatic GK (glucokinase) plays a key role in maintaining glucose homoeostasis. Many stimuli regulate GK activity by controlling its gene transcription. We hypothesized that endogenous lipophilic molecules modulate hepatic Gck expression. Lipophilic molecules were extracted from rat livers, saponified and re-constituted as an LE (lipophilic extract). LE synergized with insulin to induce primary hepatocyte, but not beta-cell, Gck expression in an SREBP-1c (sterol-regulatory-element-binding protein-1c)-independent manner. The dramatic induction of Gck mRNA resulted in a significant increase in GK activity. Subsequently, the active molecules were identified as retinol and retinal by MS after the purification of the active LE fractions. Retinoids synergized with insulin to induce Gck expression by the activation of both RAR [RA (retinoic acid) receptor] and RXR (retinoid X receptor). Inhibition of RAR activation completely abolished the effect of retinal. The hepatic GK specific activity and Gck mRNA levels of Zucker lean rats fed with a VAD [VA (vitamin A)-deficient] diet were significantly lower than those of rats fed with VAS (VA-sufficient) diet. Additionally, the hepatic Gck mRNA expression of Sprague-Dawley rats fed with a VAD diet was lower than that of rats fed with VA-marginal, -adequate or -supplemented diets. The reduced expression of Gck mRNA was increased after an intraperitoneal dose of RA in VAD rats. Furthermore, an intravenous injection of RA rapidly raised hepatic Gck expression in rats fed with a VAS control diet. Understanding the underlying mechanism that mediates the synergy may be helpful for developing a treatment strategy for patients with diabetes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guoxun Chen
- Department of Nutrition, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996, U.S.A.
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117
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Abstract
Glucokinase, a unique isoform of the hexokinase enzymes, which are known to phosphorylate D-glucose and other hexoses, was identified during the past three to four decades as a new, promising drug target for type 2 diabetes. Glucokinase serves as a glucose sensor of the insulin-producing pancreatic islet beta-cells, controls the conversion of glucose to glycogen in the liver and regulates hepatic glucose production. Guided by this fundamental knowledge, several glucokinase activators are now being developed, and have so far been shown to lower blood glucose in several animal models of type 2 diabetes and in initial trials in humans with the disease. Here, the scientific basis and current status of this new approach to diabetes therapy are discussed.
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118
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Abstract
The glucokinase (GCK) gene was one of the first candidate genes to be identified as a human “diabetes gene". Subsequently, important advances were made in understanding the impact of GCK in the regulation of glucose metabolism. Structure elucidation by crystallography provided insight into the kinetic properties of GCK. Protein interaction partners of GCK were discovered. Gene expression studies revealed new facets of the tissue distribution of GCK, including in the brain, and its regulation by insulin in the liver. Metabolic control analysis coupled to gene overexpression and knockout experiments highlighted the unique impact of GCK as a regulator of glucose metabolism. Human GCK mutants were studied biochemically to understand disease mechanisms. Drug development programs identified small molecule activators of GCK as potential antidiabetics. These advances are summarized here, with the aim of offering an integrated view of the role of GCK in the molecular physiology and medicine of glucose homeostasis.
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Affiliation(s)
- P B Iynedjian
- Department of Cell Physiolgy and Metabolism, University of Geneva School of Medicine, CMU 1 Rue Michel-Servet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland.
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119
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Pillich RT, Scarsella G, Risuleo G. Overexpression of the Pdx-1 homeodomain transcription factor impairs glucose metabolism in cultured rat hepatocytes. Molecules 2008; 13:2659-73. [PMID: 18971862 PMCID: PMC6245418 DOI: 10.3390/molecules13102659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2008] [Revised: 10/20/2008] [Accepted: 10/24/2008] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The Pdx-1 transcription factor plays crucial functions both during pancreas development and in the adult β cells. Previous studies have indicated that ectopic Pdx-1 expression in liver or intestinal primary and immortalized cells is sufficient to promote activation of insulin gene expression. This work is focused on the molecular and physiological consequences of Pdx-1 overexpression in liver cells. We present evidence that Pdx-1 affects the level of expression of one of the four mammalian hexokinase isozymes. These are glucose phosphorylating enzymes involved in essential cellular functions such as glucose sensing, metabolic energy production and apoptosis. Specifically, our data show that over-expression of Pdx-1 in cultured hepatocytes is able to repress the expression of hexokinase 2 (Hxk 2) and the phenomenon is mediated via binding of Pdx-1 to a specific sequence on the Hxk 2 gene promoter. As a consequence, liver cells over-expressing Pdx-1 present interesting alterations concerning glucose metabolism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rudolf Tito Pillich
- Dipartimento di Biologia Cellulare e dello Sviluppo, Sapienza Università di Roma, P.le Aldo Moro, 5 – 00185 Roma, Italy; E-mail: (R-T. P.), (G. S.)
| | - Gianfranco Scarsella
- Dipartimento di Biologia Cellulare e dello Sviluppo, Sapienza Università di Roma, P.le Aldo Moro, 5 – 00185 Roma, Italy; E-mail: (R-T. P.), (G. S.)
| | - Gianfranco Risuleo
- Dipartimento di Genetica e Biologia Molecolare, Sapienza Università di Roma, P.le Aldo Moro, 5 – 00185 Roma, Italy
- Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-mails: or ; Tel.: +39 0649912234; Fax: +39 064440812
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Rideau N, Berradi H, Skiba-Cassy S, Panserat S, Cailleau-Audouin E, Dupont J. Induction of glucokinase in chicken liver by dietary carbohydrates. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2008; 158:173-7. [PMID: 18662691 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2008.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2008] [Revised: 06/26/2008] [Accepted: 07/01/2008] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
We recently provided evidence of the presence of glucokinase (GCK) in the chicken liver [Berradi, H., Taouis, M., Cassy, S., Rideau, N., 2005. Glucokinase in chicken (Gallus gallus). Partial cDNA cloning, immunodetection and activity determination. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. B Biochem. Mol. Biol. 141, 129-139]. In the present study we addressed the question of whether nutritional regulation of GCK occurs. Several nutritional conditions were compared in chickens (5 weeks old) previously trained to meal-feeding. One group was left in the fasted state (F: 24h) and one was tested at the end of the 2h meal (refed: RF). Two other 2h meal-refed groups received an acute oral saccharose load (6ml/kg BW) just before the 2h meal and were sacrificed either at the end of the meal (Saccharose refed, SRF) or 3h later (SRF+3). Liver GCK mRNA and protein levels did not differ between F, RF and SRF chickens but were significantly increased in SRF+3 chickens (2-fold, p<0.05). GCK activity did not differ between F and RF chickens but increased significantly in SRF and SRF+3 chickens (1.7-fold, p<0.05). Chicken liver GCK expression (mRNA and protein) and activity were therefore inducible in these chickens by feeding a meal with acute oral administration of carbohydrate. These and recent findings demonstrating insulin dependency of the liver GCK mRNA and protein strongly suggest that GCK may have an important role in carbohydrate metabolism, including that of the chicken. However, even in these highly stimulatory conditions, liver GCK activity remained relatively low in comparison with other species. The latter result may partly explain the high plasma glucose level in the chicken.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Rideau
- INRA, UR83 Recherches Avicoles, F-37380 Nouzilly, France.
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121
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Karve A, Rauh BL, Xia X, Kandasamy M, Meagher RB, Sheen J, Moore BD. Expression and evolutionary features of the hexokinase gene family in Arabidopsis. PLANTA 2008; 228:411-25. [PMID: 18481082 PMCID: PMC2953952 DOI: 10.1007/s00425-008-0746-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2008] [Revised: 04/24/2008] [Accepted: 04/24/2008] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
Arabidopsis hexokinase1 (HXK1) is a moonlighting protein that has separable functions in glucose signaling and in glucose metabolism. In this study, we have characterized expression features and glucose phosphorylation activities of the six HXK gene family members in Arabidopsis thaliana. Three of the genes encode catalytically active proteins, including a stromal-localized HXK3 protein that is expressed mostly in sink organs. We also show that three of the genes encode hexokinase-like (HKL) proteins, which are about 50% identical to AtHXK1, but do not phosphorylate glucose or fructose. Expression studies indicate that both HKL1 and HKL2 transcripts occur in most, if not all, plant tissues and that both proteins are targeted within cells to mitochondria. The HKL1 and HKL2 proteins have 6-10 amino acid insertions/deletions (indels) at the adenosine binding domain. In contrast, HKL3 transcript was detected only in flowers, the protein lacks the noted indels, and the protein has many other amino acid changes that might compromise its ability even to bind glucose or ATP. Activity measurements of HXKs modified by site-directed mutagenesis suggest that the lack of catalytic activities in the HKL proteins might be attributed to any of numerous existing changes. Sliding windows analyses of coding sequences in A. thaliana and A. lyrata ssp. lyrata revealed a differential accumulation of nonsynonymous changes within exon 8 of both HKL1 and HXK3 orthologs. We further discuss the possibility that the non-catalytic HKL proteins have regulatory functions instead of catalytic functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abhijit Karve
- Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
| | - Bradley L. Rauh
- Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
| | - Xiaoxia Xia
- Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
| | | | | | - Jen Sheen
- Department of Molecular Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Brandon d. Moore
- Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
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122
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Yang Y, Xiao M, Mao Y, Li H, Zhao S, Gu Y, Wang R, Yu J, Zhang X, Irwin DM, Niu G, Tan H. Resistin and insulin resistance in hepatocytes: resistin disturbs glycogen metabolism at the protein level. Biomed Pharmacother 2008; 63:366-74. [PMID: 18672341 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2008.06.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2008] [Accepted: 06/12/2008] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Resistin has been considered to link obesity with type 2 diabetes. Liver glycogen metabolism plays an essential role in maintaining glucose homeostasis, we investigated the effect of resistin on liver glycogen metabolism and attempted to identify its role in initiating insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. Primary culture of rat hepatocytes was treated by resistin and insulin. Glycogen content was determined by the anthrone-reagent method. Real-time PCR, Western blot and enzymatic activity assay were used to detect key enzymes and genes involved in glucose metabolism. Hepatocytes exposed to resistin, but only in the presence of insulin, show a decrease in insulin-stimulated glycogen content. Decreased insulin receptor expression and GS activity and elevated GP activity was observed after the treatment of hepatocytes with resistin. No significant changes in the expression of the genes for these proteins were observed. These results strongly suggest that resistin effects glycogen metabolism at the protein level, and resistin is highly associated with insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes and is a candidate for the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes. Our results should lead to the development of novel strategies for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Yang
- Department of Pharmacology, Peking University, Health Science Center, Beijing 100191, China.
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123
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Rodriguez-Gil JE. Mammalian sperm energy resources management and survival during conservation in refrigeration. Reprod Domest Anim 2008; 41 Suppl 2:11-20. [PMID: 16984465 DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0531.2006.00765.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
The present review has as its main aim to present an overview regarding the mechanisms utilized by mammalian sperm to manage its intracellular energy levels. This management will strongly influence the sperm's ability to maintain its overall function during its entire life span. Thus, the precise knowledge of these mechanisms will be of the utmost interest to optimize the systems utilized to conserve mammalian sperm for a medium-to-long time-lapse. Briefly, utilization of hexoses as energy substrates by mammalian sperm is very finely regulated from the very first step of its metabolization. Furthermore, the equilibrium among the separate, monosaccharide metabolization pathways in mammalian sperm depends on many factors. This prevents the possibility to draw a general vision of sperm energy utilization, which explains the results of all mammalian species in all points of the sperm life-cycle. To complicate the matter further, there are separate energy phenotypes among mammalian spermatozoa. The precise knowledge of these phenotypes is of the greatest importance in order to optimize the design of new extenders for sperm conservation in refrigerated conditions. Moreover, sugars can act on sperm not only as passive metabolic substrates, but also as direct function activators through mechanisms like specific changes in the tyrosine phosphorylation status of distinct proteins. Finally, mammalian sperm utilizes non-glucidic substrates like citrate and lactate to obtain energy in a regular form. This utilization is also finely regulated and of importance to maintain overall sperm function. This implies that the exact proportion of glucidic and non-glucidic energy substrates could be very important to optimize the survival ability of these cells in conservation.
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Affiliation(s)
- J E Rodriguez-Gil
- Unit of Animal Reproduction, Department Animal Medicine and Surgery, School of Veterinary Medicine, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain.
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124
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Deng H, Yu F, Chen J, Zhao Y, Xiang J, Lin A. Phosphorylation of Bad at Thr-201 by JNK1 promotes glycolysis through activation of phosphofructokinase-1. J Biol Chem 2008; 283:20754-60. [PMID: 18469002 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m800024200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
The mitogen-activated protein kinase JNK1 suppresses interleukin-3 withdrawal-induced cell death through phosphorylation of the BH3-only pro-apoptotic Bcl-2 family protein Bad at Thr-201. It is unknown whether JNK1 regulates glycolysis, an important metabolic process that is involved in cell survival, and if so, whether the regulation depends on Thr-201 phosphorylation of Bad. Here we report that phosphorylation of Bad by JNK1 is required for glycolysis through activation of phosphofructokinase-1 (PFK-1), one of the key enzymes that catalyze glycolysis. Genetic disruption of Jnk1 alleles or silencing of Jnk1 by small interfering RNA abrogates glycolysis induced by growth/survival factors such as serum or interleukin-3. Proteomic analysis identifies PFK-1 as a novel Bad-associated protein. Although the interaction between PFK-1 and Bad is independent of JNK1, Thr-201 phosphorylation of Bad by JNK1 is required for PFK-1 activation. Thus, our results provide a novel molecular mechanism by which JNK1 promotes glycolysis for cell survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongbin Deng
- Ben May Department for Cancer Research, The University of Chicago, 929 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
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125
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Chambers JW, Kearns MT, Morris MT, Morris JC. Assembly of heterohexameric trypanosome hexokinases reveals that hexokinase 2 is a regulable enzyme. J Biol Chem 2008; 283:14963-70. [PMID: 18387941 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m802124200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Glycolysis is essential to Trypanosoma brucei, the protozoan parasite that causes African sleeping sickness in humans and nagana in cattle. Hexokinase (HK), the first enzyme in glycolysis, catalyzes the phosphorylation of glucose to form glucose 6-phosphate. T. brucei harbors two HKs that are 98% identical at the amino acid level, T. brucei hexokinase 1 (TbHK1) and TbHK2. Recombinant TbHK1 (rTbHK1) has HK activity, whereas rTbHK2 does not. Unlike other eukaryotic HKs, TbHK1 is not subject to inhibition by ADP and glucose 6-phosphate. However, TbHK1 is inhibited by myristate, a critical fatty acid in T. brucei biology. We report here that rTbHKs, similar to authentic TbHK, form oligomers. Myristate dissociated these assemblies when incubated with either ATP or glucose. Furthermore, oligomer disruption was reversible by removal of myristate. Mixing of rTbHK1 and rTbHK2 monomers followed by reassembly yielded enzyme with an approximately 3-fold increase in specific activity compared with similarly treated rTbHK1 alone. Surprisingly, reassembly of rTbHK2 with an inactive rTbHK1 variant yielded an active HK, revealing for the first time that rTbHK2 is competent for HK activity. Finally, pyrophosphate inhibits active reassembled rTbHK2 oligomers but not oligomeric rTbHK1, suggesting that the two enzymes have distinct regulatory mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy W Chambers
- Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, 51 New Cherry Street, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
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126
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Kroth PG, Chiovitti A, Gruber A, Martin-Jezequel V, Mock T, Parker MS, Stanley MS, Kaplan A, Caron L, Weber T, Maheswari U, Armbrust EV, Bowler C. A model for carbohydrate metabolism in the diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum deduced from comparative whole genome analysis. PLoS One 2008; 3:e1426. [PMID: 18183306 PMCID: PMC2173943 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0001426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 281] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2007] [Accepted: 12/11/2007] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Diatoms are unicellular algae responsible for approximately 20% of global carbon fixation. Their evolution by secondary endocytobiosis resulted in a complex cellular structure and metabolism compared to algae with primary plastids. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS The whole genome sequence of the diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum has recently been completed. We identified and annotated genes for enzymes involved in carbohydrate pathways based on extensive EST support and comparison to the whole genome sequence of a second diatom, Thalassiosira pseudonana. Protein localization to mitochondria was predicted based on identified similarities to mitochondrial localization motifs in other eukaryotes, whereas protein localization to plastids was based on the presence of signal peptide motifs in combination with plastid localization motifs previously shown to be required in diatoms. We identified genes potentially involved in a C4-like photosynthesis in P. tricornutum and, on the basis of sequence-based putative localization of relevant proteins, discuss possible differences in carbon concentrating mechanisms and CO(2) fixation between the two diatoms. We also identified genes encoding enzymes involved in photorespiration with one interesting exception: glycerate kinase was not found in either P. tricornutum or T. pseudonana. Various Calvin cycle enzymes were found in up to five different isoforms, distributed between plastids, mitochondria and the cytosol. Diatoms store energy either as lipids or as chrysolaminaran (a beta-1,3-glucan) outside of the plastids. We identified various beta-glucanases and large membrane-bound glucan synthases. Interestingly most of the glucanases appear to contain C-terminal anchor domains that may attach the enzymes to membranes. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE Here we present a detailed synthesis of carbohydrate metabolism in diatoms based on the genome sequences of Thalassiosira pseudonana and Phaeodactylum tricornutum. This model provides novel insights into acquisition of dissolved inorganic carbon and primary metabolic pathways of carbon in two different diatoms, which is of significance for an improved understanding of global carbon cycles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter G Kroth
- Fachbereich Biologie, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.
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Cifuentes D, Martínez-Pons C, García-Rocha M, Galina A, Ribas de Pouplana L, Guinovart JJ. Hepatic glycogen synthesis in the absence of glucokinase: the case of embryonic liver. J Biol Chem 2007; 283:5642-9. [PMID: 18165236 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m706334200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Glucokinase (GK, hexokinase type IV) is required for the accumulation of glycogen in adult liver and hepatoma cells. Paradoxically, mammalian embryonic livers store glycogen successfully in the absence of GK. Here we address how mammalian embryonic livers, but not adult livers or hepatoma cells, manage to accumulate glycogen in the absence of this enzyme. Hexokinase type I or II (HKI, HKII) substitutes for GK in hepatomas and in embryonic livers. We engineered FTO2B cells, a hepatoma cell line in which GK is not expressed, to unveil the modifications required to allow them to accumulate glycogen. In the light of these results, we then examined glycogen metabolism in embryonic liver. Glycogen accumulation in FTO2B cells can be triggered through elevated expression of HKI or either of the protein phosphatase 1 regulatory subunits, namely PTG or G L. Between these two strategies to activate glycogen deposition in the absence of GK, embryonic livers choose to express massive levels of HKI and HKII. We conclude that although the GK/liver glycogen synthase tandem is ideally suited to store glycogen in liver when blood glucose is high, the substitution of HKI for GK in embryonic livers allows the HKI/liver glycogen synthase tandem to make glycogen independently of the glucose concentration in blood, although it requires huge levels of HK. Moreover, the physiological consequence of the HK isoform switch is that the embryonic liver safeguards its glycogen deposits, required as the main source of energy at birth, from maternal starvation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Cifuentes
- Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia 08028, Spain
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128
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Irwin DM, Tan H. Molecular evolution of the vertebrate hexokinase gene family: Identification of a conserved fifth vertebrate hexokinase gene. COMPARATIVE BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY D-GENOMICS & PROTEOMICS 2007; 3:96-107. [PMID: 20483211 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbd.2007.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2007] [Revised: 11/12/2007] [Accepted: 11/13/2007] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Hexokinases (HK) phosphorylate sugar immediately upon its entry into cells allowing these sugars to be metabolized. A total of four hexokinases have been characterized in a diversity of vertebrates-HKI, HKII, HKIII, and HKIV. HKIV is often called glucokinase (GCK) and has half the molecular weight of the other hexokinases, as it only has one hexokinase domain, while other vertebrate HKs have two. Differing hypothesis has been proposed to explain the diversification of the hexokinase gene family. We used a genomic approach to characterize hexokinase genes in a diverse array of vertebrate species and close relatives. Surprisingly we identified a fifth hexokinase-like gene, HKDC1 that exists and is expressed in diverse vertebrates. Analysis of the amino acid sequence of HKDC1 suggests that it may function as a hexokinase. To understand the evolution of the vertebrate hexokinase gene family we established a phylogeny of the hexokinase domain in all of the vertebrate hexokinase genes, as well as hexokinase genes from close relatives of the vertebrates. Our phylogeny demonstrates that duplication of the hexokinase domain, yielding a HK with two hexokinase domains, occurred prior to the diversification of the hexokinase gene family. We also establish that GCK evolved from a two hexokinase domain-containing gene, but has lost its N-terminal hexokinase domain. We also show that parallel changes in enzymatic function of HKI and HKIII have occurred.
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Affiliation(s)
- David M Irwin
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Banting and Best Diabetes Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
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129
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Berradi H, Bernadet MD, Guy G, Rideau N. Expression of the glucokinase gene in mule duck liver and glucokinase activities in chicken and mule duck livers. Poult Sci 2007; 86:2216-20. [PMID: 17878452 DOI: 10.1093/ps/86.10.2216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The presence of glucokinase (GK), a critical enzyme controlling glucose homeostasis, particularly liver glucose utilization in mammals, has long been a matter of debate in avian species because a number of investigators have failed to detect GK activity in the livers of chickens and several other avian species. In this study, we cloned a partial GK cDNA from mule duck livers and measured GK-like activity in the livers of mule ducks and broiler chickens under 2 nutritional states. Liver samples from 5-wk-old meal-fed male broiler chickens (Ross) were obtained from overnight-fasted chickens (BC) and 5 h after an oral saccharose load (6 mL/kg of BW of a 50% saccharose solution) given just before the meal (BS). Liver samples from 15-wk-old mule ducks were collected after an overnight fast (DC) and 12 h after the last overfeeding meal (DO). A partial cDNA ( approximately 600 bp) was obtained from duck livers. It presented 99% identity with chicken partial GK cDNA (gi 44888789) and 82% identity with human GK (gi 15967158). Chicken liver weights represented 1.8 and 3.3% of BW, respectively, for BC and BS (n = 8, P < 0.05). Glucokinase and low-Michaelis constant hexokinase (HK) activity levels were similar in BC (respectively, 0.88 and 1.00 mU/mg of protein). In response to the meal load, GK activity increased significantly (+57%), whereas HK decreased (-46%) in BS. Duck liver weights represented 1.4 and 7.6% of BW, respectively, for DC and DO (n = 8, P < 0.05). In DC livers, GK activity was significantly higher than HK activity (respectively, 1.76 and 0.63 mU/mg of protein). Both activities were significantly increased in DO (2 times, n = 8, P < 0.05). In conclusion, GK is present in ducks as well as chickens, and it is nutritionally regulated in avian species as well as in mammals. Further work will determine whether the higher liver GK activity and GK:HK ratio in DC compared with BC is related to age or BW or linked to the high lipogenic capacity of the duck liver.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Berradi
- INRA, UR83 Recherches Avicoles, F-37380 Nouzilly, France
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130
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Glucokinase activators: molecular tools for studying the physiology of insulin-secreting cells. Biochem Soc Trans 2007; 35:1208-10. [DOI: 10.1042/bst0351208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
GK (glucokinase) catalyses the phosphorylation of glucose to glucose 6-phosphate in glucosensitive cells. In pancreatic β-cells, this reaction is the rate-limiting step of insulin release. Recent work has led to the discovery of synthetic small-molecule activators of GK that stimulate β-cell physiology and subsequently enhance the glucose-dependent release of insulin. It is currently recognized that these compounds may represent a significant advance in the development of new agents in the treatment of diabetes. In addition, GKAs (GK activators) are emerging as reagents that are useful tools with which to probe the function of pancreatic β-cells and other glucosensitive cells. This includes providing insights into the physiology of the β-cell by helping to elucidate the kinetic cycle of GK, confirming the central role of glucose metabolism to the β-cell and highlighting subtle species-dependent differences in insulin secretion between rodent and human islets of Langerhans.
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132
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Cordeiro AT, Cáceres AJ, Vertommen D, Concepción JL, Michels PAM, Versées W. The crystal structure of Trypanosoma cruzi glucokinase reveals features determining oligomerization and anomer specificity of hexose-phosphorylating enzymes. J Mol Biol 2007; 372:1215-26. [PMID: 17761195 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2007.07.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2007] [Revised: 07/06/2007] [Accepted: 07/11/2007] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Glucose is an essential substrate for Trypanosoma cruzi, the protozoan organism responsible for Chagas' disease. The glucose is intracellularly phosphorylated to glucose 6-phosphate. Previously, a hexokinase responsible for this phosphorylation has been characterized. Recently, we identified an ATP-dependent glucokinase in T. cruzi exhibiting a tenfold lower substrate affinity compared to the hexokinase. Both enzymes, which belong to very different groups of the same family, are located inside glycosomes, the peroxisome-like organelles of Kinetoplastida that are known to contain the first seven glycolytic steps as well as enzymes of the oxidative branch of the pentose phosphate pathway. Here, we present the crystallographic structure of T. cruzi glucokinase, in complex with glucose and ADP. The structure suggests a loose tetrameric assembly formed by the association of two tight dimers. TcGlcK was previously reported to exist in a concentration-dependent equilibrium of monomeric and dimeric states. Here, we used mass spectrometry analysis to confirm the existence of TcGlcK monomeric and dimeric states. The analysis of subunit interactions and comparison with the bacterial glucokinases give insights into the forces promoting the stability of the different oligomeric states. Each T. cruzi glucokinase monomer contains one glucose and one ADP molecule. In contrast to hexokinases, which show a moderate preference for the alpha anomer of glucose, the electron density clearly shows the d-glucose bound in the beta configuration in the T.cruzi glucokinase. Kinetic assays with alpha and beta-d-glucose further confirm a moderate preference of the T. cruzi glucokinase for the beta anomer. Structural comparison of the glucokinase and hexokinases permits the identification of a possible mechanism for anomer selectivity in these hexose-phosphorylating enzymes. The preference for distinct anomers suggests that in T. cruzi hexokinase and glucokinase are not directly competing for the same substrate and are probably both present because they exert distinct physiological functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Artur T Cordeiro
- Research Unit for Tropical Diseases, Christian de Duve Institute of Cellular Pathology, Avenue Hippocrate 74, B-1200 Brussels, Belgium
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133
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Rezende GL, Logullo C, Meyer L, Machado LB, Oliveira-Carvalho AL, Zingali RB, Cifuentes D, Galina A. Partial purification of tightly bound mitochondrial hexokinase from maize (Zea mays L.) root membranes. Braz J Med Biol Res 2007; 39:1159-69. [PMID: 16981044 DOI: 10.1590/s0100-879x2006000900003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2005] [Accepted: 05/18/2006] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
In mammals, hexokinase (HK) is strategically located at the outer membrane of mitochondria bound to the porin protein. The mitochondrial HK is a crucial modulator of apoptosis and reactive oxygen species generation. In plants, these properties related to HK are unknown. In order to better understand the physiological role of non-cytosolic hexokinase (NC-HK) in plants, we developed a purification strategy here described. Crude extract of 400 g of maize roots (230 mg protein) contained a specific activity of 0.042 micromol G6P min(-1) mg PTN(-1). After solubilization with detergent two fractions were obtained by DEAE column chromatography, NC-HK 1 (specific activity = 3.6 micromol G6P min(-1) mg PTN(-1) and protein recovered = 0.7 mg) and NC-HK 2. A major purification (yield = 500-fold) was obtained after passage of NC-HK 1 through the hydrophobic phenyl-Sepharose column. The total amount of protein and activity recovered were 0.04 and 18%, respectively. The NC-HK 1 binds to the hydrophobic phenyl-Sepharose matrix, as observed for rat brain HK. Mild chymotrypsin digestion did not affect adsorption of NC-HK 1 to the hydrophobic column as it does for rat HK I. In contrast to mammal mitochondrial HK, glucose-6-phosphate, clotrimazole or thiopental did not dissociate NC-HK from maize (Zea mays) or rice (Oryza sativa) mitochondrial membranes. These data show that the interaction between maize or rice NC-HK to mitochondria differs from that reported in mammals, where the mitochondrial enzyme can be displaced by modulators or pharmacological agents known to interfere with the enzyme binding properties with the mitochondrial porin protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- G L Rezende
- Instituto de Bioquímica Médica, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil
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Medrano A, García-Gil N, Ramió L, Montserrat Rivera M, Fernández-Novell JM, Ramírez A, Peña A, Dolors Briz M, Pinart E, Concha II, Bonet S, Rigau T, Rodríguez-Gil JE. Hexose-specificity of hexokinase and ADP-dependence of pyruvate kinase play important roles in the control of monosaccharide utilization in freshly diluted boar spermatozoa. Mol Reprod Dev 2007; 73:1179-94. [PMID: 16804879 DOI: 10.1002/mrd.20480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Incubation of boar sperm from fresh ejaculates in a minimal medium with 10 mM glucose induced a fast and intense activation of glycolysis, as indicated by the observed increases in the intracellular levels of glucose 6-phosphate (G 6-P) and ATP and the rate of formation of extracellular L-lactate. The effect of glucose was much more intense than that induced by fructose, sorbitol, and mannose. The greater utilization of glucose was related to a much greater sensitivity to hexokinase when compared with the other monosaccharides. Thus, the presence of 0.5 mM glucose induced total hexokinase activity in supernatants from sperm extracts of 1.7 +/- 0.1 mIU/mg protein, while the same concentration of both fructose, mannose, and sorbitol induced total hexokinase activity from 0.3 +/- 0.1 mIU/mg protein to 0.60 +/- 1 mIU/mg protein. Kinetic analysis of the total pyruvate kinase activity indicated that this activity was greatly dependent on the presence of ADP and also showed a great affinity for PEP, with an estimated Km in supernatants of 0.15-0.20 mM. Immunological location of proteins closely related to glycolysis, like GLUT-3 hexose transporter and hexokinase-I, indicated that these proteins showed the trend to be distributed around or in the cellular membranes of both head and midpiece in a grouped manner. We conclude that glycolysis is regulated by both the specific availability of a concrete sugar and the internal equilibrium between ATP and ADP levels. Furthermore, localization of proteins involved in the control of monosaccharide uptake and phosphorylation suggests that glycolysis starts at concrete points in the boar-sperm surface.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Medrano
- Department Animal Medicine and Surgery, Unit of Animal Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain
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135
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Nishimasu H, Fushinobu S, Shoun H, Wakagi T. Crystal structures of an ATP-dependent hexokinase with broad substrate specificity from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus tokodaii. J Biol Chem 2007; 282:9923-9931. [PMID: 17229727 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m610678200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Hexokinase catalyzes the phosphorylation of glucose to glucose 6-phosphate by using ATP as a phosphoryl donor. Recently, we identified and characterized an ATP-dependent hexokinase (StHK) from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus tokodaii, which can phosphorylate a broad range of sugar substrates, including glucose, mannose, glucosamine, and N-acetylglucosamine. Here we present the crystal structures of StHK in four different forms: (i) apo-form, (ii) binary complex with glucose, (iii) binary complex with ADP, and (iv) quaternary complex with xylose, Mg(2+), and ADP. Forms i and iii are in the open state, and forms ii and iv are in the closed state, indicating that sugar binding induces a large conformational change, whereas ADP binding does not. The four different crystal structures of the same enzyme provide "snapshots" of the conformational changes during the catalytic cycle. StHK exhibits a core fold characteristic of the hexokinase family, but the structures of several loop regions responsible for substrate binding are significantly different from those of other known hexokinase family members. Structural comparison of StHK with human N-acetylglucosamine kinase and other hexokinases provides an explanation for the ability of StHK to phosphorylate both glucose and N-acetylglucosamine. A Mg(2+) ion and coordinating water molecules are well defined in the electron density of the quaternary complex structure. This structure represents the first direct visualization of the binding mode for magnesium to hexokinase and thus allows for a better understanding of the catalytic mechanism proposed for the entire hexokinase family.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroshi Nishimasu
- Department of Biotechnology, the University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
| | - Shinya Fushinobu
- Department of Biotechnology, the University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
| | - Hirofumi Shoun
- Department of Biotechnology, the University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
| | - Takayoshi Wakagi
- Department of Biotechnology, the University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan.
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136
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Stechmann A, Baumgartner M, Silberman JD, Roger AJ. The glycolytic pathway of Trimastix pyriformis is an evolutionary mosaic. BMC Evol Biol 2006; 6:101. [PMID: 17123440 PMCID: PMC1665464 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2148-6-101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2006] [Accepted: 11/23/2006] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Glycolysis and subsequent fermentation is the main energy source for many anaerobic organisms. The glycolytic pathway consists of ten enzymatic steps which appear to be universal amongst eukaryotes. However, it has been shown that the origins of these enzymes in specific eukaryote lineages can differ, and sometimes involve lateral gene transfer events. We have conducted an expressed sequence tag (EST) survey of the anaerobic flagellate Trimastix pyriformis to investigate the nature of the evolutionary origins of the glycolytic enzymes in this relatively unstudied organism. Results We have found genes in the Trimastix EST data that encode enzymes potentially catalyzing nine of the ten steps of the glycolytic conversion of glucose to pyruvate. Furthermore, we have found two different enzymes that in principle could catalyze the conversion of phosphoenol pyruvate (PEP) to pyruvate (or the reverse reaction) as part of the last step in glycolysis. Our phylogenetic analyses of all of these enzymes revealed at least four cases where the relationship of the Trimastix genes to homologs from other species is at odds with accepted organismal relationships. Although lateral gene transfer events likely account for these anomalies, with the data at hand we were not able to establish with confidence the bacterial donor lineage that gave rise to the respective Trimastix enzymes. Conclusion A number of the glycolytic enzymes of Trimastix have been transferred laterally from bacteria instead of being inherited from the last common eukaryotic ancestor. Thus, despite widespread conservation of the glycolytic biochemical pathway across eukaryote diversity, in a number of protist lineages the enzymatic components of the pathway have been replaced by lateral gene transfer from disparate evolutionary sources. It remains unclear if these replacements result from selectively advantageous properties of the introduced enzymes or if they are neutral outcomes of a gene transfer 'ratchet' from food or endosymbiotic organisms or a combination of both processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Stechmann
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dalhousie University, Sir Charles Tupper Building, Halifax, Canada
| | - Manuela Baumgartner
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dalhousie University, Sir Charles Tupper Building, Halifax, Canada
- Department für Biologie I, Botanik, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Menzingerstraße 67, D-80638 München, Germany
| | - Jeffrey D Silberman
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dalhousie University, Sir Charles Tupper Building, Halifax, Canada
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
| | - Andrew J Roger
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dalhousie University, Sir Charles Tupper Building, Halifax, Canada
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Evolutionary Biology Program, Dalhousie University, Sir Charles Tupper Building, Halifax, Canada
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137
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Pabón MA, Cáceres AJ, Gualdrón M, Quiñones W, Avilán L, Concepción JL. Purification and characterization of hexokinase from Leishmania mexicana. Parasitol Res 2006; 100:803-10. [PMID: 17061112 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-006-0351-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2006] [Accepted: 09/26/2006] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Hexokinase from Leishmania mexicana was purified to homogeneity from a glycosome-enriched fraction obtained after a differential centrifugation of promastigote form. The kinetic properties of the pure enzyme were determined and the Km values for glucose (Km = 66 microM) and ATP (Km = 303 muM) were comparable to those from hexokinase of Trypanosoma cruzi. L. mexicana hexokinase was able to use fructose (Km = 142 microM), which reflects the condition found in the insect host. In contrast with hexokinases from other trypanosomatids, the enzyme exhibited a moderate sensitivity to inhibition by glucose 6-phosphate. This inhibition was competitive with respect to both ATP and glucose, indicating that an allosteric site for glucose 6-phosphate does not exist in this enzyme. The enzyme was also inhibited by inorganic pyrophosphate, the inhibition being higher than that observed for T. cruzi enzyme. As expected, the enzyme was localized, by immunofluorescence analysis, in glycosomes and is present in both promastigotes and true amastigotes obtained from hamster lesion. Hexokinase specific activity increased with the aging of promastigote culture, and this increment was related to glucose consumption. However, the level of the hexokinase protein remains constant as determined by Western blotting. Several hypotheses are discussed to explain this result.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miguel A Pabón
- Laboratorio de Enzimología de Parásitos, Centro de Ingeniería Genética, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Los Andes, La Hechicera, Mérida, 5101, Venezuela
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138
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Morris MT, DeBruin C, Yang Z, Chambers JW, Smith KS, Morris JC. Activity of a second Trypanosoma brucei hexokinase is controlled by an 18-amino-acid C-terminal tail. EUKARYOTIC CELL 2006; 5:2014-23. [PMID: 17028241 PMCID: PMC1694814 DOI: 10.1128/ec.00146-06] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Trypanosoma brucei expresses two hexokinases that are 98% identical, namely, TbHK1 and TbHK2. Homozygous null TbHK2-/- procyclic-form parasites exhibit an increased doubling time, a change in cell morphology, and, surprisingly, a twofold increase in cellular hexokinase activity. Recombinant TbHK1 enzymatic activity is similar to that of other hexokinases, with apparent Km values for glucose and ATP of 0.09 +/- 0.02 mM and 0.28 +/- 0.1 mM, respectively. The k(cat) value for TbHK1 is 2.9 x 10(4) min(-1). TbHK1 can use mannose, fructose, 2-deoxyglucose, and glucosamine as substrates. In addition, TbHK1 is inhibited by fatty acids, with lauric, myristic, and palmitic acids being the most potent (with 50% inhibitory concentrations of 75.8, 78.4, and 62.4 microM, respectively). In contrast to TbHK1, recombinant TbHK2 lacks detectable enzymatic activity. Seven of the 10 amino acid differences between TbHK1 and TbHK2 lie within the C-terminal 18 amino acids of the polypeptides. Modeling of the proteins maps the C-terminal tails near the interdomain cleft of the enzyme that participates in the conformational change of the enzyme upon substrate binding. Replacing the last 18 amino acids of TbHK2 with the corresponding residues of TbHK1 yields an active recombinant protein with kinetic properties similar to those of TbHK1. Conversely, replacing the C-terminal tail of TbHK1 with the TbHK2 tail inactivates the enzyme. These findings suggest that the C-terminal tail of TbHK1 is important for hexokinase activity. The altered C-terminal tail of TbHK2, along with the phenotype of the knockout parasites, suggests a distinct function for the protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meredith T Morris
- Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson University, 214 Biosystems Research Complex, 51 New Cherry Street, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
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139
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Pancera SM, Gliemann H, Schimmel T, Petri DFS. Adsorption behavior and activity of hexokinase. J Colloid Interface Sci 2006; 302:417-23. [PMID: 16876812 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2006.06.066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2006] [Revised: 06/09/2006] [Accepted: 06/29/2006] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The study on the adsorption of hexokinase (HK) onto silicon wafers was carried out by means of in situ ellipsometry and atomic force microscopy in the liquid. The thickness values of the adsorbed HK layer determined by both techniques were in excellent agreement and evidenced HK monolayer formation. The adsorption of HK onto Si wafers was favored at low ionic strength, indicating that the adsorption is mainly driven by electrostatic forces, since salt screens not only the segment-segment repulsion but also the segment-surface attraction when the salt concentration increases. The enzymatic activity of free HK and of adsorbed HK was measured as a function of time. Free HK in solution lost activity upon storage. Contrarily, adsorbed HK kept its activity level even after 48 h storage at room temperature. This outstanding behavior was attributed to specific orientation of the HK active site to the solution.
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Affiliation(s)
- S M Pancera
- Institut für Nanotechnologie, Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe GmbH, D-76021 Karlsruhe, Germany
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140
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Abstract
Most cancer cells exhibit increased glycolysis and use this metabolic pathway for generation of ATP as a main source of their energy supply. This phenomenon is known as the Warburg effect and is considered as one of the most fundamental metabolic alterations during malignant transformation. In recent years, there are significant progresses in our understanding of the underlying mechanisms and the potential therapeutic implications. Biochemical and molecular studies suggest several possible mechanisms by which this metabolic alteration may evolve during cancer development. These mechanisms include mitochondrial defects and malfunction, adaptation to hypoxic tumor microenvironment, oncogenic signaling, and abnormal expression of metabolic enzymes. Importantly, the increased dependence of cancer cells on glycolytic pathway for ATP generation provides a biochemical basis for the design of therapeutic strategies to preferentially kill cancer cells by pharmacological inhibition of glycolysis. Several small molecules have emerged that exhibit promising anticancer activity in vitro and in vivo, as single agent or in combination with other therapeutic modalities. The glycolytic inhibitors are particularly effective against cancer cells with mitochondrial defects or under hypoxic conditions, which are frequently associated with cellular resistance to conventional anticancer drugs and radiation therapy. Because increased aerobic glycolysis is commonly seen in a wide spectrum of human cancers and hypoxia is present in most tumor microenvironment, development of novel glycolytic inhibitors as a new class of anticancer agents is likely to have broad therapeutic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Pelicano
- The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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141
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Robey RB, Hay N. Mitochondrial hexokinases, novel mediators of the antiapoptotic effects of growth factors and Akt. Oncogene 2006; 25:4683-96. [PMID: 16892082 DOI: 10.1038/sj.onc.1209595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 388] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Cell survival has been closely linked to both trophic growth factor signaling and cellular metabolism. Such couplings have obvious physiologic and pathophysiologic implications, but their underlying molecular bases remain incompletely defined. As a common mediator of both the metabolic and anti-apoptotic effects of growth factors, the serine/threonine kinase Akt - also known as protein kinase B or PKB - is capable of regulating and coordinating these inter-related processes. The glucose dependence of the antiapoptotic effects of growth factors and Akt plus a strong correlation between Akt-regulated mitochondrial hexokinase association and apoptotic susceptibility suggest a major role for hexokinases in these effects. Mitochondrial hexokinases catalyse the first obligatory step of glucose metabolism and directly couple extramitochondrial glycolysis to intramitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation, and are thus well suited to play this role. The ability of Akt to regulate energy metabolism appears to have evolutionarily preceded the capacity to control cell survival. This suggests that Akt-dependent metabolic regulatory functions may have given rise to glucose-dependent antiapoptotic effects that evolved as an adaptive sensing system involving hexokinases and serve to ensure mitochondrial homeostasis, thereby coupling metabolism to cell survival. We hypothesize that the enlistment of Akt and hexokinase in the control of mammalian cell apoptosis evolved as a response to the recruitment of mitochondria to the apoptotic cascade. The central importance of mitochondrial hexokinases in cell survival also suggests that they may represent viable therapeutic targets in cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- R B Robey
- Research and Development Service, White River Junction VA Medical Center, White River Junction, VT 05009-0001, USA
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142
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Cho JI, Ryoo N, Ko S, Lee SK, Lee J, Jung KH, Lee YH, Bhoo SH, Winderickx J, An G, Hahn TR, Jeon JS. Structure, expression, and functional analysis of the hexokinase gene family in rice (Oryza sativa L.). PLANTA 2006; 224:598-611. [PMID: 16552590 DOI: 10.1007/s00425-006-0251-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2005] [Accepted: 01/30/2006] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
Hexokinase (HXK) is a dual-function enzyme that both phosphorylates hexose to form hexose 6-phosphate and plays an important role in sugar sensing and signaling. To investigate the roles of hexokinases in rice growth and development, we analyzed rice sequence databases and isolated ten rice hexokinase cDNAs, OsHXK1 (Oryza sativa Hexokinase 1) through OsHXK10. With the exception of the single-exon gene OsHXK1, the OsHXKs all have a highly conserved genomic structure consisting of nine exons and eight introns. Gene expression profiling revealed that OsHXK2 through OsHXK9 are expressed ubiquitously in various organs, whereas OsHXK10 expression is pollen-specific. Sugars induced the expression of three OsHXKs, OsHXK2, OsHXK5, and OsHXK6, in excised leaves, while suppressing OsHXK7 expression in excised leaves and immature seeds. The hexokinase activity of the OsHXKs was confirmed by functional complementation of the hexokinase-deficient yeast strain YSH7.4-3C (hxk1, hxk2, glk1). OsHXK4 was able to complement this mutant only after the chloroplast-transit peptide was removed. The subcellular localization of OsHXK4 and OsHXK7, observed with green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion constructs, indicated that OsHXK4 is a plastid-stroma-targeted hexokinase while OsHXK7 localizes to the cytosol.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jung-Il Cho
- Plant Metabolism Research Center & Graduate School of Biotechnology, Kyung Hee University, 449-701 Yongin, Republic of South Korea
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143
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Bae J, Kim D, Choi Y, Koh S, Park JE, Su Kim J, Moon SH, Park BH, Park M, Song HE, Hong SI, Lee DS. A hexokinase with broad sugar specificity from a thermophilic bacterium. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2006; 334:754-63. [PMID: 16053915 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2005.06.160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2005] [Accepted: 06/25/2005] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
A recombinant thermophilic Thermus caldophilus GK24 hexokinase, one of the ROK-type (repressor protein, open reading frames, and sugar kinase) proteins, exists uniquely as a 120 kDa molecule with four subunits (31 kDa), in contrast to eukaryotic and bacterial sugar kinases which are monomers or dimers. The optimal temperature and pH for the enzyme reaction are 70-80 degrees C and 7.5, respectively. This enzyme shows broad specificity toward glucose, mannose, glucosamine, allose, 2-deoxyglucose, and fructose. To understand the sugar specificity at a structural level, the enzyme-ATP/Mg2+-sugar binding complex models have been constructed. It has been shown that the sugar specificity is probably dependent on the interaction energy occurred by the positional proximity of sugars bound in the active site of the enzyme, which exhibits a tolerance to modification at C2 or C3 of glucose.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jungdon Bae
- Genome Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Daejeon 305-333, Republic of Korea
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144
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Medrano A, Fernández-Novell JM, Ramió L, Alvarez J, Goldberg E, Montserrat Rivera M, Guinovart JJ, Rigau T, Rodríguez-Gil JE. Utilization of citrate and lactate through a lactate dehydrogenase and ATP-regulated pathway in boar spermatozoa. Mol Reprod Dev 2006; 73:369-78. [PMID: 16362974 DOI: 10.1002/mrd.20414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Incubation of boar spermatozoa in Krebs-Ringer-Henseleit medium with either 10 mM lactate or 10 mM citrate induced a fast and robust increase in the intracellular levels of ATP in both cases, which reached a peak after 30 sec of incubation. Utilization of both citrate and lactate resulted in the export of CO(2) to the extracellular medium, indicating that both substrates were metabolized through the Krebs cycle. Incubation with citrate resulted in the generation of extracellular lactate, which was inhibited in the presence of phenylacetic acid. This indicates that lactate is produced through the pyruvate carboxylase step. In addition, there was also a significant increase in tyrosine phosphorylation induced by both citrate and lactate. Boar sperm has a sperm-specific isoform of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), mainly located in the principal piece of the tail. Kinetic studies showed that boar sperm has at least two distinct LDH activities. The major activity (with an estimated Km of 0.51 mM) was located in the supernatants of sperm extracts. The minor LDH activity (with an estimated Km of 5.9 mM) was associated with the nonsoluble fraction of sperm extracts. Our results indicate that boar sperm efficiently metabolizes citrate and lactate through a metabolic pathway regulated by LDH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Medrano
- Department of Animal Medicine and Surgery, Unit of Animal Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain
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145
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Steinke D, Hoegg S, Brinkmann H, Meyer A. Three rounds (1R/2R/3R) of genome duplications and the evolution of the glycolytic pathway in vertebrates. BMC Biol 2006; 4:16. [PMID: 16756667 PMCID: PMC1508162 DOI: 10.1186/1741-7007-4-16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2006] [Accepted: 06/06/2006] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Evolution of the deuterostome lineage was accompanied by an increase in systematic complexity especially with regard to highly specialized tissues and organs. Based on the observation of an increased number of paralogous genes in vertebrates compared with invertebrates, two entire genome duplications (2R) were proposed during the early evolution of vertebrates. Most glycolytic enzymes occur as several copies in vertebrate genomes, which are specifically expressed in certain tissues. Therefore, the glycolytic pathway is particularly suitable for testing theories of the involvement of gene/genome duplications in enzyme evolution. Results We assembled datasets from genomic databases of at least nine vertebrate species and at least three outgroups (one deuterostome and two protostomes), and used maximum likelihood and Bayesian methods to construct phylogenies of the 10 enzymes of the glycolytic pathway. Through this approach, we intended to gain insights into the vertebrate specific evolution of enzymes of the glycolytic pathway. Many of the obtained gene trees generally reflect the history of two rounds of duplication during vertebrate evolution, and were in agreement with the hypothesis of an additional duplication event within the lineage of teleost fish. The retention of paralogs differed greatly between genes, and no direct link to the multimeric structure of the active enzyme was found. Conclusion The glycolytic pathway has subsequently evolved by gene duplication and divergence of each constituent enzyme with taxon-specific individual gene losses or lineage-specific duplications. The tissue-specific expression might have led to an increased retention for some genes since paralogs can subdivide the ancestral expression domain or find new functions, which are not necessarily related to the original function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dirk Steinke
- Lehrstuhl für Evolutionsbiologie und Zoologie, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Canadian Centre for DNA Barcoding, Biodiversity Institute of Ontario, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Simone Hoegg
- Lehrstuhl für Evolutionsbiologie und Zoologie, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Henner Brinkmann
- Département de biochimie. Université de Montreal, Montreal, QC, H3C3J7, Canada
| | - Axel Meyer
- Lehrstuhl für Evolutionsbiologie und Zoologie, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
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146
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Nishimasu H, Fushinobu S, Shoun H, Wakagi T. Identification and characterization of an ATP-dependent hexokinase with broad substrate specificity from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus tokodaii. J Bacteriol 2006; 188:2014-9. [PMID: 16484213 PMCID: PMC1426560 DOI: 10.1128/jb.188.5.2014-2019.2006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
As a new member of the glucose-phosphorylating enzymes, the ATP-dependent hexokinase from the hyperthermophilic crenarchaeon Sulfolobus tokodaii was purified, identified, and characterized. Our results revealed that the enzyme differs from other known enzymes in primary structure and its broad substrate specificity for both phosphoryl donors and acceptors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroshi Nishimasu
- Department of Biotechnology, The University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
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147
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Umasankar PK, Jayakumar PC, Shouche YS, Patole MS. Molecular characterization of the hexokinase gene from Leishmania major. J Parasitol 2006; 91:1504-9. [PMID: 16539044 DOI: 10.1645/ge-502r1.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
The coding sequence for hexokinase enzyme was cloned from Leishmania major. The sequence was found to encode an enzyme with a molecular mass of 51.74 kDa. Amino acid sequence showed maximum homology with known trypanosome and plant hexokinases. It has a calculated isoelectric point of 8.46 and contains an N-terminal peroxisome-targeting signal, the characteristics frequently associated with glycosomal proteins. The sequence indicated the presence of conserved amino acid residues and motifs that are present in plant and mammalian hexokinases; these are apparently involved in the binding of different substrates. The L. major genome was found to have 2 copies of hexokinase coding sequences in tandem with an intergenic spacer of 2.58 kb. Both the genes in the hexokinase locus were transcribed as individual transcripts in a monocistronic form, having the same size as seen by Northern blot analysis. The hexokinase gene was transcribed in large amounts in the promastigote stage, whereas there is only weak expression in the amastigote stage as determined by RT-PCR analysis. Sequencing of hexokinase loci from different Leishmania species (e.g., L. donovani, L. infantum, L. tropica, and L. mexicana) revealed that the hexokinase locus is highly conserved at the DNA and protein levels among species of Leishmania compared with trypanosomes.
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148
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Berrone E, Beltramo E, Solimine C, Ape AU, Porta M. Regulation of intracellular glucose and polyol pathway by thiamine and benfotiamine in vascular cells cultured in high glucose. J Biol Chem 2006; 281:9307-13. [PMID: 16452468 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m600418200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Hyperglycemia is a causal factor in the development of the vascular complications of diabetes. One of the biochemical mechanisms activated by excess glucose is the polyol pathway, the key enzyme of which, aldose reductase, transforms d-glucose into d-sorbitol, leading to imbalances of intracellular homeostasis. We aimed at verifying the effects of thiamine and benfotiamine on the polyol pathway, transketolase activity, and intracellular glucose in endothelial cells and pericytes under high ambient glucose. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells and bovine retinal pericytes were cultured in normal (5.6 mmol/liter) or high (28 mmol/liter) glucose, with or without thiamine or benfotiamine 50 or 100 mumol/liter. Transketolase and aldose reductase mRNA expression was determined by reverse transcription-PCR, and their activity was measured spectrophotometrically; sorbitol concentrations were quantified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and intracellular glucose concentrations by fluorescent enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. Thiamine and benfotiamine reduce aldose reductase mRNA expression, activity, sorbitol concentrations, and intracellular glucose while increasing the expression and activity of transketolase, for which it is a coenzyme, in human endothelial cells and bovine retinal pericytes cultured in high glucose. Thiamine and benfotiamine correct polyol pathway activation induced by high glucose in vascular cells. Activation of transketolase may shift excess glycolytic metabolites into the pentose phosphate cycle, accelerate the glycolytic flux, and reduce intracellular free glucose, thereby preventing its conversion to sorbitol. This effect on the polyol pathway, together with other beneficial effects reported for thiamine in high glucose, could justify testing thiamine as a potential approach to the prevention and/or treatment of diabetic complications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Berrone
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Turin, I-10126 Turin, Italy.
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149
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Letelier JC, Soto-Andrade J, Guíñez Abarzúa F, Cornish-Bowden A, Luz Cárdenas M. Organizational invariance and metabolic closure: Analysis in terms of systems. J Theor Biol 2006; 238:949-61. [PMID: 16122760 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2005.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2005] [Revised: 07/05/2005] [Accepted: 07/07/2005] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
This article analyses the work of Robert Rosen on an interpretation of metabolic networks that he called (M,R) systems. His main contribution was an attempt to prove that metabolic closure (or metabolic circularity) could be explained in purely formal terms, but his work remains very obscure and we try to clarify his line of thought. In particular, we clarify the algebraic formulation of (M,R) systems in terms of mappings and sets of mappings, which is grounded in the metaphor of metabolism as a mathematical mapping. We define Rosen's central result as the mathematical expression in which metabolism appears as a mapping f that is the solution to a fixed-point functional equation. Crucially, our analysis reveals the nature of the mapping, and shows that to have a solution the set of admissible functions representing a metabolism must be drastically smaller than Rosen's own analysis suggested that it needed to be. For the first time, we provide a mathematical example of an (M,R) system with organizational invariance, and we analyse a minimal (three-step) autocatalytic set in the context of (M,R) systems. In addition, by extending Rosen's construction, we show how one might generate self-referential objects f with the remarkable property f(f)=f, where f acts in turn as function, argument and result. We conclude that Rosen's insight, although not yet in an easily workable form, represents a valuable tool for understanding metabolic networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan-Carlos Letelier
- Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Casilla 653, Santiago, Chile.
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150
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Pancera SM, Gliemann H, Schimmel T, Petri DFS. Effect of pH on the Adsorption and Activity of Creatine Phosphokinase. J Phys Chem B 2006; 110:2674-80. [PMID: 16471871 DOI: 10.1021/jp0532364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The combination of in situ ellipsometry with atomic force microscopy in the liquid for the study of adsorption of creatine phosphokinase (CPK) onto silicon wafers was shown for the first time. The thickness, adsorbed amount, and topographic information of the adsorbed CPK layers were obtained under different pH conditions. The thickness values of adsorbed CPK layer determined by both techniques were in excellent agreement. At pH 4, CPK monomers present in solution adsorb, forming a very thin (approximately 0.8 nm) layer, indicating CPK unfolding. Upon increasing the pH to 6.8, the adsorbed layer is composed of a mixture of CPK dimers (native structure) and intermediates, increasing the film thickness (approximately 2.4 nm). At pH 9, CPK dimers form monolayers with the highest thickness (approximately 4.0 nm). The nature of interactions between CPK and Si wafers associated with the hydration force seems to control the degree of CPK unfolding upon adsorbing. The enzymatic activity of free CPK and of adsorbed CPK at pH 4, pH 6.8, and pH 9 was measured as a function of pH. In comparison to free CPK in solution, adsorbed CPK presented a shift of the optimal pH from 6.8 toward alkaline pH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabrina M Pancera
- Instituto de Química, Universidade de São Paulo, P.O. Box 26077, São Paulo, SP, 05513-970, Brazil
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