Counteract of bone marrow of blotchy mice against the increases of plasma copper levels induced by high-fat diets in LDLR-/- mice

Lipid-related metabolism during zebrafish embryogenesis under unbalanced copper homeostasis

Copper (Cu) is an essential trace element, playing an important role in lipid metabolism, and its transporters ATP7A and ATP7B, as Cu-transporting P-type ATPases, are involved in maintaining the Cu homeostasis in cells. Numerous studies in mammals have shown that Cu homeostasis and lipid metabolism are closely related, but studies on the link between the effects of excess Cu, ATP7A, and ATP7B on lipid metabolism during vertebrate embryogenesis are scarce. In this study, zebrafish disease models with Cu overload and ATP7A and ATP7B inactivation, respectively, were used to study the lipid metabolism-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs) which were enriched in the models. The dynamic and spatiotemporal expressions of the DEGs in WTs, atp7a^-/-, and atp7b^-/- mutants with or without Cu stress were unveiled in this study and they mostly distributed in brain at 24 hpf then in liver and intestine at 96 hpf, suggesting their potential roles in lipid and glycogen metabolism to apply energy for normal development in zebrafish. Meanwhile, the correlation analysis for the DEGs among the three groups unveiled that most of the DEGs were involved in the glyceride metabolism pathway. This is the first report to establish the relationship between atp7a and atp7b with Cu-stimulated intestinal and liver lipid metabolism during fish embryogenesis, and this study will provide a theoretical basis for fish embryonic development and lipid metabolism disorders under unbalanced copper homeostasis.

Mechanism of Astragalus membranaceus Alleviating Acquired Hyperlipidemia Induced by High-Fat Diet through Regulating Lipid Metabolism

Astragalus membranaceus (AM) is a food and medicinal homologous plant. The current research is aimed to investigate the beneficial effects and mechanisms of AM in treating acquired hyperlipidemia. The network pharmacology and bioinformatics analysis results showed 481 AM-related targets and 474 acquired hyperlipidemia-associated targets, and 101 candidate targets were obtained through the intersection, mainly enriched in endocrine resistance, AGE-RAGE in diabetic complications and p53 signaling pathways. Quercetin, kaempferol, calycosin, formononetin and isorhamnetin were determined as the candidate active components of AM in the treatment of acquired hyperlipidemia. Moreover, key targets of AM, namely, AKT serine/threonine kinase 1 (AKT1), vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA), cyclin D1 (CCND1) and estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1), were screened out, which were closely related to adipogenesis, fatty acid metabolism and bile acid metabolism. The subsequent animal experiments showed that AM extract treatment improved the lipid profiles of the high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice by reducing lipogenesis and increasing lipolysis and lipid β-oxidation, which were associated with the downregulating of AKT1 and CCND1, and the upregulating of VEGFA and ESR1 in liver and adipose tissue. Overall, AM alleviated acquired hyperlipidemia through regulating lipid metabolism, and AKT1, VEGFA, CCND1 and ESR1 might be the key targets.

Copper and lipid metabolism: A reciprocal relationship

BACKGROUND

Copper and lipid metabolism are intimately linked, sharing a complex, inverse relationship in the periphery (outside of the central nervous system), which remains to be fully elucidated.

SCOPE

Copper and lipids have independently been implicated in the pathogenesis of diseases involving dyslipidaemia, including obesity, cardiovascular disease and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and also in Wilson disease, an inherited disorder of copper overload. Here we review the relationship between copper and lipid regulatory pathways, which are potential druggable targets for therapeutic intervention.

MAJOR CONCLUSIONS

While the inverse relationship between copper and lipids is apparent, tissue-specific roles for the copper regulatory protein, ATP7B provide further insight into the association between copper and lipid metabolism.

GENERAL SIGNIFICANCE

Understanding the relationship between copper and lipid metabolism is important for identifying druggable targets for diseases with disrupted copper and/or lipid metabolism; and may reveal similar connections within the brain and in neurological diseases with impaired copper and lipid transport.