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Ortega-Cuellar D, González-Sánchez I, Piñón-Zárate G, Cerbón MA, De la Rosa V, Franco-Juárez Y, Castell-Rodríguez A, Islas LD, Coronel-Cruz C. Protector Role of Cx30.2 in Pancreatic β-Cell against Glucotoxicity-Induced Apoptosis. BIOLOGY 2024; 13:468. [PMID: 39056663 PMCID: PMC11273625 DOI: 10.3390/biology13070468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2024] [Revised: 06/07/2024] [Accepted: 06/16/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024]
Abstract
Glucotoxicity may exert its deleterious effects on pancreatic β-cell function via a myriad of mechanisms, leading to impaired insulin secretion and, eventually, type 2 diabetes. β-cell communication requires gap junction channels to be present among these cells. Gap junctions are constituted by transmembrane proteins of the connexins (Cxs) family. Two Cx genes have been identified in β cells, Cx36 and Cx30.2. We have found evidence that the glucose concentration on its own is sufficient to regulate Cx30.2 gene expression in mouse islets. In this work, we examine the involvement of the Cx30.2 protein in the survival of β cells (RIN-m5F). METHODS RIN-m5F cells were cultured in 5 mM D-glucose (normal) or 30 mM D-glucose (high glucose) for 24 h. Cx30.2 siRNAs was used to downregulate Cx30.2 expression. Apoptosis was measured by means of TUNEL, an annexin V staining method, and the cleaved form of the caspase-3 protein was determined using Western blot. RESULTS High glucose did not induce apoptosis in RIN-m5F β cells after 24 h; interestingly, high glucose increased the Cx30.2 total protein levels. Moreover, this work found that the downregulation of Cx30.2 expression in high glucose promoted apoptosis in RIN-m5F cells. CONCLUSION The data suggest that the upregulation of Cx30.2 protects β cells from hyperglycemia-induced apoptosis. Furthermore, Cx30.2 may be a promising avenue of therapeutic investigation for the treatment of glucose metabolic disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Ortega-Cuellar
- Laboratorio de Nutrición Experimental, Instituto Nacional de Pediatría, Secretaría de Salud, Mexico City 04530, Mexico; (D.O.-C.); (Y.F.-J.)
| | - Ignacio González-Sánchez
- Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Química, UNAM, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (I.G.-S.); (M.A.C.)
| | - Gabriela Piñón-Zárate
- Departamento de Biología Celular y Tisular, Facultad de Medicina, UNAM, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (G.P.-Z.); (A.C.-R.)
| | - Marco A. Cerbón
- Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Química, UNAM, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (I.G.-S.); (M.A.C.)
| | - Víctor De la Rosa
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, UNAM, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (V.D.l.R.); (L.D.I.)
| | - Yuliana Franco-Juárez
- Laboratorio de Nutrición Experimental, Instituto Nacional de Pediatría, Secretaría de Salud, Mexico City 04530, Mexico; (D.O.-C.); (Y.F.-J.)
| | - Andrés Castell-Rodríguez
- Departamento de Biología Celular y Tisular, Facultad de Medicina, UNAM, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (G.P.-Z.); (A.C.-R.)
| | - León D. Islas
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, UNAM, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (V.D.l.R.); (L.D.I.)
| | - Cristina Coronel-Cruz
- Departamento de Biología Celular y Tisular, Facultad de Medicina, UNAM, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (G.P.-Z.); (A.C.-R.)
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2
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Leighton SE, Wong RS, Lucaciu SA, Hauser A, Johnston D, Stathopulos PB, Bai D, Penuela S, Laird DW. Cx31.1 can selectively intermix with co-expressed connexins to facilitate its assembly into gap junctions. J Cell Sci 2024; 137:jcs261631. [PMID: 38533727 PMCID: PMC11058089 DOI: 10.1242/jcs.261631] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 03/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Connexins are channel-forming proteins that function to facilitate gap junctional intercellular communication. Here, we use dual cell voltage clamp and dye transfer studies to corroborate past findings showing that Cx31.1 (encoded by GJB5) is defective in gap junction channel formation, illustrating that Cx31.1 alone does not form functional gap junction channels in connexin-deficient mammalian cells. Rather Cx31.1 transiently localizes to the secretory pathway with a subpopulation reaching the cell surface, which is rarely seen in puncta reminiscent of gap junctions. Intracellular retained Cx31.1 was subject to degradation as Cx31.1 accumulated in the presence of proteasomal inhibition, had a faster turnover when Cx43 was present and ultimately reached lysosomes. Although intracellularly retained Cx31.1 was found to interact with Cx43, this interaction did not rescue its delivery to the cell surface. Conversely, the co-expression of Cx31 dramatically rescued the assembly of Cx31.1 into gap junctions where gap junction-mediated dye transfer was enhanced. Collectively, our results indicate that the localization and functional status of Cx31.1 is altered through selective interplay with co-expressed connexins, perhaps suggesting Cx31.1 is a key regulator of intercellular signaling in keratinocytes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie E. Leighton
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
| | - Robert S. Wong
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
| | - Sergiu A. Lucaciu
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
| | - Alexandra Hauser
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
| | - Danielle Johnston
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
| | - Peter B. Stathopulos
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
| | - Donglin Bai
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
| | - Silvia Penuela
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
- Western's Bone and Joint Institute, The Dr. Sandy Kirkley Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, University Hospital, London, ON N6A 5B9, Canada
- Division of Experimental Oncology, Department of Oncology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5W9, Canada
| | - Dale W. Laird
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
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3
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Agerskov RH, Nyeng P. Innervation of the pancreas in development and disease. Development 2024; 151:dev202254. [PMID: 38265192 DOI: 10.1242/dev.202254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
The autonomic nervous system innervates the pancreas by sympathetic, parasympathetic and sensory branches during early organogenesis, starting with neural crest cell invasion and formation of an intrinsic neuronal network. Several studies have demonstrated that signals from pancreatic neural crest cells direct pancreatic endocrinogenesis. Likewise, autonomic neurons have been shown to regulate pancreatic islet formation, and have also been implicated in type I diabetes. Here, we provide an overview of recent progress in mapping pancreatic innervation and understanding the interactions between pancreatic neurons, epithelial morphogenesis and cell differentiation. Finally, we discuss pancreas innervation as a factor in the development of diabetes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rikke Hoegsberg Agerskov
- Roskilde University, Department of Science and Environment, Universitetsvej 1, building 28, Roskilde 4000, Denmark
| | - Pia Nyeng
- Roskilde University, Department of Science and Environment, Universitetsvej 1, building 28, Roskilde 4000, Denmark
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4
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Skelin Klemen M, Kopecky J, Dolenšek J, Stožer A. Human Beta Cell Functional Adaptation and Dysfunction in Insulin Resistance and Its Reversibility. Nephron Clin Pract 2023; 148:78-84. [PMID: 37883937 PMCID: PMC10860743 DOI: 10.1159/000534667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2023] [Accepted: 10/07/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Beta cells play a key role in the pathophysiology of diabetes since their functional adaptation is able to maintain euglycemia in the face of insulin resistance, and beta cell decompensation or dysfunction is a necessary condition for full-blown type 2 diabetes (T2D). The mechanisms behind compensation and decompensation are incompletely understood, especially for human beta cells, and even less is known about influences of chronic kidney disease (CKD) or immunosupressive therapy after transplantation on these processes and the development of posttransplant diabetes. SUMMARY During compensation, beta cell sensitivity to glucose becomes left-shifted, i.e., their sensitivity to stimulation increases, and this is accompanied by enhanced signals along the stimulus-secretion coupling cascade from membrane depolarization to intracellular calcium and the most distal insulin secretion dynamics. There is currently no clear evidence regarding changes in intercellular coupling during this stage of disease progression. During decompensation, intracellular stimulus-secretion coupling remains enhanced to some extent at low or basal glucose concentrations but seems to become unable to generate effective signals to stimulate insulin secretion at high or otherwise stimulatory glucose concentrations. Additionally, intercellular coupling becomes disrupted, lowering the number of cells that contribute to secretion. During progression of CKD, beta cells also seem to drift from a compensatory left-shift to failure, and immunosupressants can further impair beta cell function following kidney transplantation. KEY MESSAGES Beta cell stimulus-secretion coupling is enhanced in compensated insulin resistance. With worsening insulin resistance, both intra- and intercellular coupling become disrupted. CKD can progressively disrupt beta cell function, but further studies are needed, especially regarding changes in intercellular coupling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maša Skelin Klemen
- Institute of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia,
| | - Jan Kopecky
- Institute of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
| | - Jurij Dolenšek
- Institute of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
- Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
| | - Andraž Stožer
- Institute of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
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Lee YH, Kothmann WW, Lin YP, Chuang AZ, Diamond JS, O'Brien J. Sources of Calcium at Connexin 36 Gap Junctions in the Retina. eNeuro 2023; 10:ENEURO.0493-22.2023. [PMID: 37527925 PMCID: PMC10450809 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0493-22.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2022] [Revised: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 07/20/2023] [Indexed: 08/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Synaptic plasticity is a fundamental feature of the CNS that controls the magnitude of signal transmission between communicating cells. Many electrical synapses exhibit substantial plasticity that modulates the degree of coupling within groups of neurons, alters the fidelity of signal transmission, or even reconfigures functional circuits. In several known examples, such plasticity depends on calcium and is associated with neuronal activity. Calcium-driven signaling is known to promote potentiation of electrical synapses in fish Mauthner cells, mammalian retinal AII amacrine cells, and inferior olive neurons, and to promote depression in thalamic reticular neurons. To measure local calcium dynamics in situ, we developed a transgenic mouse expressing a GCaMP calcium biosensor fused to Connexin 36 (Cx36) at electrical synapses. We examined the sources of calcium for activity-dependent plasticity in retina slices using confocal or Super-Resolution Radial Fluctuations imaging. More than half of Cx36-GCaMP gap junctions responded to puffs of glutamate with transient increases in fluorescence. The responses were strongly dependent on NMDA receptors, in keeping with known activity-dependent signaling in some amacrine cells. We also found that some responses depended on the activity of voltage-gated calcium channels, representing a previously unrecognized source of calcium to control retinal electrical synaptic plasticity. The high prevalence of calcium signals at electrical synapses in response to glutamate application indicates that a large fraction of electrical synapses has the potential to be regulated by neuronal activity. This provides a means to tune circuit connectivity dynamically based on local activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuan-Hao Lee
- Richard S. Ruiz, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas 77030
| | - W Wade Kothmann
- Synaptic Physiology Section, National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
| | - Ya-Ping Lin
- Richard S. Ruiz, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas 77030
| | - Alice Z Chuang
- Richard S. Ruiz, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas 77030
| | - Jeffrey S Diamond
- Synaptic Physiology Section, National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
| | - John O'Brien
- Richard S. Ruiz, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas 77030
- MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, Texas 77030
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Jiang H, Jiang FX. Human pluripotent stem cell-derived β cells: Truly immature islet β cells for type 1 diabetes therapy? World J Stem Cells 2023; 15:182-195. [PMID: 37180999 PMCID: PMC10173812 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v15.i4.182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2022] [Revised: 01/30/2023] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023] Open
Abstract
A century has passed since the Nobel Prize winning discovery of insulin, which still remains the mainstay treatment for type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) to this day. True to the words of its discoverer Sir Frederick Banting, “insulin is not a cure for diabetes, it is a treatment”, millions of people with T1DM are dependent on daily insulin medications for life. Clinical donor islet transplantation has proven that T1DM is curable, however due to profound shortages of donor islets, it is not a mainstream treatment option for T1DM. Human pluripotent stem cell derived insulin-secreting cells, pervasively known as stem cell-derived β cells (SC-β cells), are a promising alternative source and have the potential to become a T1DM treatment through cell replacement therapy. Here we briefly review how islet β cells develop and mature in vivo and several types of reported SC-β cells produced using different ex vivo protocols in the last decade. Although some markers of maturation were expressed and glucose stimulated insulin secretion was shown, the SC-β cells have not been directly compared to their in vivo counterparts, generally have limited glucose response, and are not yet fully matured. Due to the presence of extra-pancreatic insulin-expressing cells, and ethical and technological issues, further clarification of the true nature of these SC-β cells is required.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen Jiang
- Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, University of Western Australia, Perth 6009, Australia
| | - Fang-Xu Jiang
- School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Western Australia, Perth 6009, Australia
- School of Health and Medical Sciences, Edith Cowan University, Perth 6027, Australia
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7
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Functional architecture of pancreatic islets identifies a population of first responder cells that drive the first-phase calcium response. PLoS Biol 2022; 20:e3001761. [PMID: 36099294 PMCID: PMC9506623 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001761] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2022] [Revised: 09/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Insulin-secreting β-cells are functionally heterogeneous. Whether there exist cells driving the first-phase calcium response in individual islets, has not been examined. We examine “first responder” cells, defined by the earliest [Ca2+] response during first-phase [Ca2+] elevation, distinct from previously identified “hub” and “leader” cells. We used islets isolated from Mip-CreER; Rosa-Stop-Lox-Stop-GCamP6s mice (β-GCamP6s) that show β-cell-specific GCamP6s expression following tamoxifen-induced CreER-mediated recombination. First responder cells showed characteristics of high membrane excitability and lower electrical coupling to their neighbors. The first-phase response time of β-cells in the islet was spatially organized, dependent on the cell’s distance to the first responder cell, and consistent over time up to approximately 24 h. When first responder cells were laser ablated, the first-phase [Ca2+] was slowed down, diminished, and discoordinated compared to random cell ablation. Cells that were next earliest to respond often took over the role of the first responder upon ablation. In summary, we discover and characterize a distinct first responder β-cell state, critical for the islet first-phase response to glucose. A hallmark of the early stages in diabetes is the disruption of the first-phase peak of insulin secretion. This study reveals a state of beta cells that drives the first-phase calcium response (a precursor to insulin secretion), challenging the existing paradigm that first-phase calcium response to glucose is not organized within the islet.
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8
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Farnsworth NL, Piscopio RA, Schleicher WE, Ramirez DG, Miranda JG, Benninger RKP. Modulation of Gap Junction Coupling Within the Islet of Langerhans During the Development of Type 1 Diabetes. Front Physiol 2022; 13:913611. [PMID: 35837011 PMCID: PMC9274093 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2022.913611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
In type 1 diabetes (T1D), islet dysfunction occurs prior to diabetes onset. Pro-inflammatory cytokines can disrupt insulin secretion and Ca2+ homeostasis. Connexin36 (Cx36) gap junctions electrically couple β-cells to coordinate glucose-stimulated Ca2+ and insulin secretion. Cx36 gap junction coupling can also protect against cytokine-induced apoptosis. Our goal was to determine how islet gap junction coupling and Ca2+ dynamics are altered in mouse models of T1D prior to diabetes. Glucose tolerance was assessed in NOD and immunodeficient NOD-RAG1KO mice at 6-12 weeks age. Glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, Ca2+ dynamics, and gap junction coupling were measured in islets isolated at each age. Gap junction coupling was also measured in islets from mice that underwent transfer of diabetogenic splenocytes and from chromograninA knockout NOD mice. Cell death was measured in islets isolated from wild-type, Cx36 knockout or Cx36 over-expression mice, each treated with a cocktail of pro-inflammatory cytokines and KATP or SERCA activators/inhibitors. NOD mice over-expressing Cx36 were also monitored for diabetes development, and islets assessed for insulitis and apoptosis. NOD and NOD-RAG1KO controls showed similar glucose tolerance at all ages. Ca2+ dynamics and gap junction coupling were disrupted in islets of NOD mice at 9 weeks, compared to controls. Transfer of diabetogenic splenocytes also decreased gap junction coupling. Islets from chromograninA knockout mice displayed normal coupling. Overexpression of Cx36 protected islets from cytokine-induced apoptosis. A knockout of Cx36 amplified cytokine-induced apoptosis, which was reversed by KATP activation or SERCA activation. Cx36 overexpression in NOD mice delayed diabetes development compared to NOD controls. However, apoptosis and insulitis were not improved. Decreases in islet gap junction coupling occur prior to T1D onset. Such decreases alter islet susceptibility to apoptosis due to altered Ca2+. Future studies will determine if increasing Cx36 gap junction coupling in combination with restoring Ca2+ homeostasis protects against islet decline in T1D.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikki L. Farnsworth
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO, United States,Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, Universty of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States
| | - Robert A. Piscopio
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, Universty of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States,Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States
| | - Wolfgang E. Schleicher
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, Universty of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States,Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States
| | - David G. Ramirez
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, Universty of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States,Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States
| | - Jose G. Miranda
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, Universty of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States,Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States
| | - Richard K. P. Benninger
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, Universty of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States,Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States,*Correspondence: Richard K. P. Benninger,
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Abstract
The pancreatic β-cells are essential for regulating glucose homeostasis through the coordinated release of the insulin hormone. Dysfunction of the highly specialized β-cells results in diabetes mellitus, a growing global health epidemic. In this review, we describe the development and function of β-cells the emerging concept of heterogeneity within insulin-producing cells, and the potential of other cell types to assume β-cell functionality via transdifferentiation. We also discuss emerging routes to design cells with minimal β-cell properties and human stem cell differentiation efforts that carry the promise to restore normoglycemia in patients suffering from diabetes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natanya Kerper
- Diabetes Center, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143, USA
| | - Sudipta Ashe
- Diabetes Center, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143, USA
| | - Matthias Hebrok
- Diabetes Center, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143, USA
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10
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Collares-Buzato CB, Carvalho CP. Is type 2 diabetes mellitus another intercellular junction-related disorder? Exp Biol Med (Maywood) 2022; 247:743-755. [PMID: 35466731 DOI: 10.1177/15353702221090464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) is nowadays a worldwide epidemic and has become a major challenge for health systems around the world. It is a multifactorial disorder, characterized by a chronic state of hyperglycemia caused by defects in the production as well as in the peripheral action of insulin. This minireview highlights the experimental and clinical evidence that supports the novel idea that intercellular junctions (IJs)-mediated cell-cell contacts play a role in the pathogenesis of T2D. It focuses on IJs repercussion for endocrine pancreas, intestinal barrier, and kidney dysfunctions that contribute to the onset and evolution of this metabolic disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carla B Collares-Buzato
- Department of Biochemistry and Tissue Biology, Institute of Biology, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, SP, CEP 13083-970, Brazil
| | - Carolina Pf Carvalho
- Department of Biosciences, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Santos, SP, CEP 11015-020, Brazil
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11
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Kraujalis T, Gudaitis L, Kraujaliene L, Snipas M, Palacios-Prado N, Verselis VK. The Amino Terminal Domain and Modulation of Connexin36 Gap Junction Channels by Intracellular Magnesium Ions. Front Physiol 2022; 13:839223. [PMID: 35264979 PMCID: PMC8899287 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2022.839223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Electrical synapses between neurons in the mammalian CNS are predominantly formed of the connexin36 (Cx36) gap junction (GJ) channel protein. Unique among GJs formed of a number of other members of the Cx gene family, Cx36 GJs possess a high sensitivity to intracellular Mg2+ that can robustly act to modulate the strength of electrical synaptic transmission. Although a putative Mg2+ binding site was previously identified to reside in the aqueous pore in the first extracellular (E1) loop domain, the involvement of the N-terminal (NT) domain in the atypical response of Cx36 GJs to pH was shown to depend on intracellular levels of Mg2+. In this study, we examined the impact of amino acid substitutions in the NT domain on Mg2+ modulation of Cx36 GJs, focusing on positions predicted to line the pore funnel, which constitutes the cytoplasmic entrance of the channel pore. We find that charge substitutions at the 8th, 13th, and 18th positions had pronounced effects on Mg2+ sensitivity, particularly at position 13 at which an A13K substitution completely abolished sensitivity to Mg2+. To assess potential mechanisms of Mg2+ action, we constructed and tested a series of mathematical models that took into account gating of the component hemichannels in a Cx36 GJ channel as well as Mg2+ binding to each hemichannel in open and/or closed states. Simultaneous model fitting of measurements of junctional conductance, gj, and transjunctional Mg2+ fluxes using a fluorescent Mg2+ indicator suggested that the most viable mechanism for Cx36 regulation by Mg2+ entails the binding of Mg2+ to and subsequent stabilization of the closed state in each hemichannel. Reduced permeability to Mg2+ was also evident, particularly for the A13K substitution, but homology modeling of all charge-substituted NT variants showed only a moderate correlation between a reduction in the negative electrostatic potential and a reduction in the permeability to Mg2+ ions. Given the reported role of the E1 domain in Mg2+ binding together with the impact of NT substitutions on gating and the apparent state-dependence of Mg2+ binding, this study suggests that the NT domain can be an integral part of Mg2+ modulation of Cx36 GJs likely through the coupling of conformational changes between NT and E1 domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tadas Kraujalis
- Institute of Cardiology, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania
- Department of Applied Informatics, Kaunas University of Technology, Kaunas, Lithuania
- *Correspondence: Tadas Kraujalis,
| | - Lukas Gudaitis
- Institute of Cardiology, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania
| | - Lina Kraujaliene
- Institute of Cardiology, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania
| | - Mindaugas Snipas
- Institute of Cardiology, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania
- Department of Mathematical Modelling, Kaunas University of Technology, Kaunas, Lithuania
| | - Nicolás Palacios-Prado
- Department of Physiology, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencias de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaiso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Vytas K. Verselis
- Dominick P. Purpura Department of Neuroscience, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, NY, United States
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12
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Benninger RKP, Kravets V. The physiological role of β-cell heterogeneity in pancreatic islet function. Nat Rev Endocrinol 2022; 18:9-22. [PMID: 34667280 PMCID: PMC8915749 DOI: 10.1038/s41574-021-00568-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Endocrine cells within the pancreatic islets of Langerhans are heterogeneous in terms of transcriptional profile, protein expression and the regulation of hormone release. Even though this heterogeneity has long been appreciated, only within the past 5 years have detailed molecular analyses led to an improved understanding of its basis. Although we are beginning to recognize why some subpopulations of endocrine cells are phenotypically different to others, arguably the most important consideration is how this heterogeneity affects the regulation of hormone release to control the homeostasis of glucose and other energy-rich nutrients. The focus of this Review is the description of how endocrine cell heterogeneity (and principally that of insulin-secreting β-cells) affects the regulation of hormone secretion within the islets of Langerhans. This discussion includes an overview of the functional characteristics of the different islet cell subpopulations and describes how they can communicate to influence islet function under basal and glucose-stimulated conditions. We further discuss how changes to the specific islet cell subpopulations or their numbers might underlie islet dysfunction in type 2 diabetes mellitus. We conclude with a discussion of several key open questions regarding the physiological role of islet cell heterogeneity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard K P Benninger
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA.
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA.
| | - Vira Kravets
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA.
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA.
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13
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Abstract
Intra-islet communication via electrical, paracrine and autocrine signals, is highly dependent on the organization of cells within the islets and is key for an adequate response to changes in blood glucose and other stimuli. In spite of the fact that relevant structural differences between mouse and human islet architectures have been described, the functional implications of these differences remain only partially understood. In this work, aiming to contribute to a better understanding of the relationship between structural and functional properties of pancreatic islets, we reconstructed human and mice islets in order to perform a structural comparison based on both morphologic and network-derived metrics. According to our results, human islets constitute a more efficient network from a connectivity viewpoint, mainly due to the higher proportion of heterotypic contacts between islet cells in comparison to mice islets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerardo J. Félix-Martínez
- Cátedras CONACYT, Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología, México City, México
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, México City, México
- CONTACT Gerardo J. Félix-Martínez Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Unidad Iztapalapa. San Rafael Atlixco 186, Col. Vicentina 09340, México City, México
| | - J. R. Godínez-Fernández
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, México City, México
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14
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de Boer P, Giepmans BN. State-of-the-art microscopy to understand islets of Langerhans: what to expect next? Immunol Cell Biol 2021; 99:509-520. [PMID: 33667022 PMCID: PMC8252556 DOI: 10.1111/imcb.12450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2020] [Revised: 03/03/2021] [Accepted: 03/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The discovery of Langerhans and microscopic description of islets in the pancreas were crucial steps in the discovery of insulin. Over the past 150 years, many discoveries in islet biology and type 1 diabetes have been made using powerful microscopic techniques. In the past decade, combination of new probes, animal and tissue models, application of new biosensors and automation of light and electron microscopic methods and other (sub)cellular imaging modalities have proven their potential in understanding the beta cell under (patho)physiological conditions. The imaging evolution, from fluorescent jellyfish to real‐time intravital functional imaging, the revolution in automation and data handling and the increased resolving power of analytical imaging techniques are now converging. Here, we review innovative approaches that address islet biology from new angles by studying cells and molecules at high spatiotemporal resolution and in live models. Broad implementation of these cellular imaging techniques will shed new light on cause/consequence of (mal)function in islets of Langerhans in the years to come.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pascal de Boer
- Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Ben Ng Giepmans
- Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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15
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Small subpopulations of β-cells do not drive islet oscillatory [Ca2+] dynamics via gap junction communication. PLoS Comput Biol 2021; 17:e1008948. [PMID: 33939712 PMCID: PMC8118513 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2020] [Revised: 05/13/2021] [Accepted: 04/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The islets of Langerhans exist as multicellular networks that regulate blood glucose levels. The majority of cells in the islet are excitable, insulin-producing β-cells that are electrically coupled via gap junction channels. β-cells are known to display heterogeneous functionality. However, due to gap junction coupling, β-cells show coordinated [Ca2+] oscillations when stimulated with glucose, and global quiescence when unstimulated. Small subpopulations of highly functional β-cells have been suggested to control [Ca2+] dynamics across the islet. When these populations were targeted by optogenetic silencing or photoablation, [Ca2+] dynamics across the islet were largely disrupted. In this study, we investigated the theoretical basis of these experiments and how small populations can disproportionality control islet [Ca2+] dynamics. Using a multicellular islet model, we generated normal, skewed or bimodal distributions of β-cell heterogeneity. We examined how islet [Ca2+] dynamics were disrupted when cells were targeted via hyperpolarization or populations were removed; to mimic optogenetic silencing or photoablation, respectively. Targeted cell populations were chosen based on characteristics linked to functional subpopulation, including metabolic rate of glucose oxidation or [Ca2+] oscillation frequency. Islets were susceptible to marked suppression of [Ca2+] when ~10% of cells with high metabolic activity were hyperpolarized; where hyperpolarizing cells with normal metabolic activity had little effect. However, when highly metabolic cells were removed from the model, [Ca2+] oscillations remained. Similarly, when ~10% of cells with either the highest frequency or earliest elevations in [Ca2+] were removed from the islet, the [Ca2+] oscillation frequency remained largely unchanged. Overall, these results indicate small populations of β-cells with either increased metabolic activity or increased frequency are unable to disproportionately control islet-wide [Ca2+] via gap junction coupling. Therefore, we need to reconsider the physiological basis for such small β-cell populations or the mechanism by which they may be acting to control normal islet function. Many biological systems can be studied using network theory. How heterogeneous cell subpopulations come together to create complex multicellular behavior is of great value in understanding function and dysfunction in tissues. The pancreatic islet of Langerhans is a highly coupled structure that is important for maintaining blood glucose homeostasis. β-cell electrical activity is coordinated via gap junction communication. The function of the insulin-producing β-cell within the islet is disrupted in diabetes. As such, to understand the causes of islet dysfunction we need to understand how different cells within the islet contribute to its overall function via gap junction coupling. Using a computational model of β-cell electrophysiology, we investigated how small highly functional β-cell populations within the islet contribute to its function. We found that when small populations with greater functionality were introduced into the islet, they displayed signatures of this enhanced functionality. However, when these cells were removed, the islet, retained near-normal function. Thus, in a highly coupled system, such as an islet, the heterogeneity of cells allows small subpopulations to be dispensable, and thus their absence is unable to disrupt the larger cellular network. These findings can be applied to other electrical systems that have heterogeneous cell populations.
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16
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Miranda MA, Macias-Velasco JF, Lawson HA. Pancreatic β-cell heterogeneity in health and diabetes: classes, sources, and subtypes. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2021; 320:E716-E731. [PMID: 33586491 PMCID: PMC8238131 DOI: 10.1152/ajpendo.00649.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Pancreatic β-cells perform glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, a process at the center of type 2 diabetes etiology. Efforts to understand how β-cells behave in healthy and stressful conditions have revealed a wide degree of morphological, functional, and transcriptional heterogeneity. Sources of heterogeneity include β-cell topography, developmental origin, maturation state, and stress response. Advances in sequencing and imaging technologies have led to the identification of β-cell subtypes, which play distinct roles in the islet niche. This review examines β-cell heterogeneity from morphological, functional, and transcriptional perspectives, and considers the relevance of topography, maturation, development, and stress response. It also discusses how these factors have been used to identify β-cell subtypes, and how heterogeneity is impacted by diabetes. We examine open questions in the field and discuss recent technological innovations that could advance understanding of β-cell heterogeneity in health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario A Miranda
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Juan F Macias-Velasco
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Heather A Lawson
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, Missouri
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17
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Yang W, Lampe PD, Kensel-Hammes P, Hesson J, Ware CB, Crisa L, Cirulli V. Connexin 43 Functions as a Positive Regulator of Stem Cell Differentiation into Definitive Endoderm and Pancreatic Progenitors. iScience 2019; 19:450-460. [PMID: 31430690 PMCID: PMC6708988 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2019.07.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2018] [Revised: 05/04/2019] [Accepted: 07/18/2019] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Efficient stem cell differentiation into pancreatic islet cells is of critical importance for the development of cell replacement therapies for diabetes. Here, we identify the expression pattern of connexin 43 (Cx43), a gap junction (GJ) channel protein, in human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-derived definitive endoderm (DE) and primitive gut tube cells, representing early lineages for posterior foregut (PF), pancreatic progenitors (PP), pancreatic endocrine progenitors (PE), and islet cells. As the function of GJ channels is dependent on their gating status, we tested the impact of supplementing hESC-derived PP cell cultures with AAP10, a peptide that promotes Cx43 GJ channel opening. We found that this treatment promotes the expression of DE markers FoxA2 and Sox17, leads to a more efficient derivation of DE, and improves the yield of PF, PP, and PE cells. These results demonstrate a functional involvement of GJ channels in the differentiation of embryonic stem cells into pancreatic cell lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wendy Yang
- Department of Medicine, UW Diabetes Institute, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, S475, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Paul D Lampe
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Patricia Kensel-Hammes
- Department of Medicine, UW Diabetes Institute, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, S475, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Jennifer Hesson
- Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, S480, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Carol B Ware
- Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, S480, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Laura Crisa
- Department of Medicine, UW Diabetes Institute, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, S475, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, S480, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
| | - Vincenzo Cirulli
- Department of Medicine, UW Diabetes Institute, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, S475, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, S480, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
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18
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Da Silva Xavier G, Rutter GA. Metabolic and Functional Heterogeneity in Pancreatic β Cells. J Mol Biol 2019; 432:1395-1406. [PMID: 31419404 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2019.08.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2019] [Revised: 07/17/2019] [Accepted: 08/05/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Metabolic and secretory heterogeneity are fundamental properties of pancreatic islet β cells. Emerging data suggest that stable differences in the transcriptome and proteome of individual cells may create cellular hierarchies, which, in turn, establish coordinated functional networks. These networks appear to govern the secretory activity of the whole islet and be affected in some forms of diabetes mellitus. Functional imaging, for example, of intracellular calcium dynamics, has led to the demonstration of "small worlds" behavior, and the identification of highly connected "hub" (or "leader") cells and of follower populations subservient to them. Subsequent inactivation of members of either population, for example, using optogenetic approaches or photoablation, has confirmed the importance of hub cells as possible pacemakers. Hub cells appear to be enriched for the glucose phosphorylating enzyme glucokinase and for genes encoding other enzymes involved in glucose metabolism compared to follower cells. Recent findings have shown the relevance of cellular hierarchy in islets from multiple species including human, mouse and fish, and shown that it is preserved in vivo in the context of the fully vascularized and innervated islet. Importantly, connectivity is impaired by insults, which mimic the diabetic milieu, including high glucose and/or fatty levels, and by the ablation of genes associated with type 2 diabetes risk in genome-wide association studies. We discuss here the evidence for the existence of these networks and their failure in disease settings. We also briefly survey the challenges in understanding their properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriela Da Silva Xavier
- Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research (IMSR), University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, United Kingdom.
| | - Guy A Rutter
- Section of Cell Biology and Functional Genomics, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Hospital, Du Cane Road, London, W12 0NN, United Kingdom; Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nan Yang Technological University, Singapore
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19
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW To discuss the current understanding of "β cell identity" and factors underlying altered identity of pancreatic β cells in diabetes, especially in humans. RECENT FINDINGS Altered identity of β cells due to dedifferentiation and/or transdifferentiation has been proposed as a mechanism of loss of β cells in diabetes. In dedifferentiation, β cells do not undergo apoptosis; rather, they lose their identity and function. Dedifferentiation is well characterized by the decrease in expression of key β cell markers such as genes encoding major transcription factors, e.g., MafA, NeuroD1, Nkx6.1, and Foxo1, and an increase in atypical or "disallowed" genes for β cells such as lactate dehydrogenase, monocarboxylate transporter MCT1, or progenitor cell genes (Neurog3, Pax4, or Sox9). Moreover, altered identity of mature β cells in diabetes also involves transdifferentiation of β cells into other islet hormone producing cells. For example, overexpression of α cell specific transcription factor Arx or ablation of Pdx1 resulted in an increase of α cell numbers and a decrease in β cell numbers in rodents. The frequency of α-β double-positive cells was also prominent in human subjects with T2D. These altered identities of β cells likely serve as a compensatory response to enhance function/expand cell numbers and may also camouflage/protect cells from ongoing stress. However, it is equally likely that this may be a reflection of new cell formation as a frank regenerative response to ongoing tissue injury. Physiologically, all these responses are complementary. In diabetes, (1) endocrine identity recapitulates the less mature/less-differentiated fetal/neonatal cell type, possibly representing an adaptive mechanism; (2) residual β cells may be altered in their subtype proportions or other molecular features; (3) in humans, "altered identity" is a preferable term to dedifferentiation as their cellular fate (differentiated cells losing identity or progenitors becoming more differentiated) is unclear as yet.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abu Saleh Md Moin
- Diabetes Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, PO Box 34110 Doha, Qatar
| | - Alexandra E. Butler
- Diabetes Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, PO Box 34110 Doha, Qatar
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20
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Loppini A, Chiodo L. Biophysical modeling of β-cells networks: Realistic architectures and heterogeneity effects. Biophys Chem 2019; 254:106247. [PMID: 31472460 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpc.2019.106247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2019] [Revised: 08/06/2019] [Accepted: 08/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The β-cells dynamics is the regulator of insulin secretion in the pancreas, and its investigation is a central aspect in designing effective treatment strategies for diabetes. Despite great efforts, much is still unknown about the complex organization of such endocrine cells and realistic mathematical modeling represents a useful tool to elucidate key aspects of glucose control in humans. In this contribution, we study the human β-cells collective behaviour, by modeling their electric and metabolic coupling in a cluster, of size and architecture similar to human islets of Langerhans. We focus on the effect of coupling on various dynamics regimes observed in the islets, that are spiking and bursting on multiple timescales. In particular, we test the effect of hubs, that are highly glucose-sensitive β-cells, on the overall network dynamics, observing different modulation depending on the timescale of the dynamics. By properly taking into account the role of cells heterogeneity, recently emerged, our model effectively describes the effect of hubs on the synchronization of the islet response and the correlation of β-cells activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Loppini
- Department of Engineering, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Á. del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy.
| | - L Chiodo
- Department of Engineering, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Via Á. del Portillo 21, 00128 Rome, Italy
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21
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Farnsworth NL, Walter R, Piscopio RA, Schleicher WE, Benninger RKP. Exendin-4 overcomes cytokine-induced decreases in gap junction coupling via protein kinase A and Epac2 in mouse and human islets. J Physiol 2019; 597:431-447. [PMID: 30412665 PMCID: PMC6332825 DOI: 10.1113/jp276106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 11/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
KEY POINTS The pancreatic islets of Langerhans maintain glucose homeostasis through insulin secretion, where insulin secretion dynamics are regulated by intracellular Ca2+ signalling and electrical coupling of the insulin producing β-cells in the islet. We have previously shown that cytokines decrease β-cell coupling and that compounds which increase cAMP can increase coupling. In both mouse and human islets exendin-4, which increases cAMP, protected against cytokine-induced decreases in coupling and in mouse islets preserved glucose-stimulated calcium signalling by increasing connexin36 gap junction levels on the plasma membrane. Our data indicate that protein kinase A regulates β-cell coupling through a fast mechanism, such as channel gating or membrane organization, while Epac2 regulates slower mechanisms of regulation, such as gap junction turnover. Increases in β-cell coupling with exendin-4 may protect against cytokine-mediated β-cell death as well as preserve insulin secretion dynamics during the development of diabetes. ABSTRACT The pancreatic islets of Langerhans maintain glucose homeostasis. Insulin secretion from islet β-cells is driven by glucose metabolism, depolarization of the cell membrane and an influx of calcium, which initiates the release of insulin. Gap junctions composed of connexin36 (Cx36) electrically couple β-cells, regulating calcium signalling and insulin secretion dynamics. Cx36 coupling is decreased in pre-diabetic mice, suggesting a role for altered coupling in diabetes. Our previous work has shown that pro-inflammatory cytokines decrease Cx36 coupling and that compounds which increase cAMP can increase Cx36 coupling. The goal of this study was to determine if exendin-4, which increases cAMP, can protect against cytokine-induced decreases in Cx36 coupling and altered islet function. In both mouse and human islets, exendin-4 protected against cytokine-induced decreases in coupling and preserved glucose-stimulated calcium signalling. Exendin-4 also protected against protein kinase Cδ-mediated decreases in Cx36 coupling. Exendin-4 preserved coupling in mouse islets by preserving Cx36 levels on the plasma membrane. Exendin-4 regulated Cx36 coupling via both protein kinase A (PKA)- and Epac2-mediated mechanisms in cytokine-treated islets. In mouse islets, modulating Epac2 had a greater impact in mediating Cx36 coupling, while in human islets modulating PKA had a greater impact on Cx36 coupling. Our data indicate that PKA regulates Cx36 coupling through a fast mechanism, such as channel gating, while Epac2 regulates slower mechanisms of regulation, such as Cx36 turnover in the membrane. Increases in Cx36 coupling with exendin-4 may protect against cytokine-mediated β-cell dysfunction to insulin secretion dynamics during the development of diabetes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikki L. Farnsworth
- Barbara Davis Center for Childhood DiabetesUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusAuroraCO80045USA
| | - Rachelle Walter
- Department of BioengineeringUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusAuroraCO80045USA
| | - Robert A. Piscopio
- Department of BioengineeringUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusAuroraCO80045USA
| | - Wolfgang E. Schleicher
- Department of BioengineeringUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusAuroraCO80045USA
| | - Richard K. P. Benninger
- Barbara Davis Center for Childhood DiabetesUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusAuroraCO80045USA
- Department of BioengineeringUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusAuroraCO80045USA
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22
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Hughes JW, Ustione A, Lavagnino Z, Piston DW. Regulation of islet glucagon secretion: Beyond calcium. Diabetes Obes Metab 2018; 20 Suppl 2:127-136. [PMID: 30230183 PMCID: PMC6148361 DOI: 10.1111/dom.13381] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2018] [Revised: 05/03/2018] [Accepted: 05/23/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The islet of Langerhans plays a key role in glucose homeostasis through regulated secretion of the hormones insulin and glucagon. Islet research has focused on the insulin-secreting β-cells, even though aberrant glucagon secretion from α-cells also contributes to the aetiology of diabetes. Despite its importance, the mechanisms controlling glucagon secretion remain controversial. Proper α-cell function requires the islet milieu, where β- and δ-cells drive and constrain α-cell dynamics. The response of glucagon to glucose is similar between isolated islets and that measured in vivo, so it appears that the glucose dependence requires only islet-intrinsic factors and not input from blood flow or the nervous system. Elevated intracellular free Ca2+ is needed for α-cell exocytosis, but interpreting Ca2+ data is tricky since it is heterogeneous among α-cells at all physiological glucose levels. Total Ca2+ activity in α-cells increases slightly with glucose, so Ca2+ may serve a permissive, rather than regulatory, role in glucagon secretion. On the other hand, cAMP is a more promising candidate for controlling glucagon secretion and is itself driven by paracrine signalling from β- and δ-cells. Another pathway, juxtacrine signalling through the α-cell EphA receptors, stimulated by β-cell ephrin ligands, leads to a tonic inhibition of glucagon secretion. We discuss potential combinations of Ca2+ , cAMP, paracrine and juxtacrine factors in the regulation of glucagon secretion, focusing on recent data in the literature that might unify the field towards a quantitative understanding of α-cell function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing W. Hughes
- Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Lipid Research, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Alessandro Ustione
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Zeno Lavagnino
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - David W. Piston
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
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23
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Khan D, Moffet CR, Flatt PR, Kelly C. Role of islet peptides in beta cell regulation and type 2 diabetes therapy. Peptides 2018; 100:212-218. [PMID: 29412821 DOI: 10.1016/j.peptides.2017.11.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2017] [Revised: 11/22/2017] [Accepted: 11/22/2017] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
The endocrine pancreas is composed of islets of Langerhans, which secrete a variety of peptide hormones critical for the maintenance of glucose homeostasis. Insulin is the primary regulator of glucose and its secretion from beta-cells is tightly regulated in response to physiological demands. Direct cell-cell communication within islets is essential for glucose-induced insulin secretion. Emerging data suggest that islet connectivity is also important in the regulating the release of other islet hormones including glucagon and somatostatin. Autocrine and paracrine signals exerted by secreted peptides within the islet also play a key role. A great deal of attention has focused on classical islet peptides, namely insulin, glucagon and somatostatin. Recently, it has become clear that islets also synthesise and secrete a range of non-classical peptides, which regulate beta-cell function and insulin release. The current review summarises the roles of islet cell connectivity and islet peptide-driven autocrine and paracrine signalling in beta-cell function and survival. The potential to harness the paracrine effects of non-classical islet peptides for the treatment of type 2 diabetes is also briefly discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dawood Khan
- Northern Ireland Centre for Stratified Medicine, Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, C-TRIC Building, Altnagelvin Area Hospital, Glenshane Road, L/Derry, BT47 6SB, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Charlotte R Moffet
- SAAD Centre for Pharmacy and Diabetes, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Ulster, Coleraine, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Peter R Flatt
- SAAD Centre for Pharmacy and Diabetes, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Ulster, Coleraine, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Catriona Kelly
- Northern Ireland Centre for Stratified Medicine, Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, C-TRIC Building, Altnagelvin Area Hospital, Glenshane Road, L/Derry, BT47 6SB, Northern Ireland, UK.
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24
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Tang SC, Baeyens L, Shen CN, Peng SJ, Chien HJ, Scheel DW, Chamberlain CE, German MS. Human pancreatic neuro-insular network in health and fatty infiltration. Diabetologia 2018; 61:168-181. [PMID: 28852792 DOI: 10.1007/s00125-017-4409-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2017] [Accepted: 07/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
AIMS/HYPOTHESIS Identification of a pancreatic neuro-insular network in mice suggests that a similar integration of islets and nerves may be present in the human pancreas. To characterise the neuro-insular network and the intra-pancreatic ganglia in a clinically related setting, we examined human pancreases in health and with fatty infiltration via 3-dimensional (3D) histology and compared the human pancreatic microenvironment with its counterpart in mice. METHODS Human pancreatic specimens from individuals with normal BMI, high BMI (≥ 25) and type 2 diabetes were used to investigate the neuro-insular network. Transparent specimens were prepared by tissue clearing for transmitted light and deep-tissue fluorescence imaging to simultaneously visualise infiltrated adipocytes, islets and neurovascular networks. RESULTS High-definition images of human islets reveal that both the sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves enter the islet core and reside in the immediate microenvironment of islet cells. Around the islets, the neuro-insular network is visualised with 3D histology to identify the intra-pancreatic ganglia (peri-lobular and intra-parenchymal ganglia) and the islet-ganglionic association. In humans, but not in mice, pancreatic fatty infiltration (BMI dependent) features adipocytes infiltrating into the parenchyma and accumulating in the peri-lobular space, in which the peri-lobular ganglia also reside. We identified the formation of adipose-ganglionic complexes in the peri-lobular space and enlargement of ganglia around adipocytes. In the specimen from the individual with type 2 diabetes, an increase in the number of nerve projections from the intra-parenchymal ganglia is associated with severe fatty infiltration. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION We present new perspectives of human pancreas and islet innervation via 3D histology. Our results strongly suggest that fatty infiltration in the human pancreas creates a neurotrophic microenvironment and promotes remodelling of pancreatic innervation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiue-Cheng Tang
- Connectomics Research Center, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
- Institute of Biotechnology, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
- Department of Medical Science, National Tsing Hua University, 101, Sec. 2, Kuang Fu Rd, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan.
| | - Luc Baeyens
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Diabetes Center, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Chia-Ning Shen
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Shih-Jung Peng
- Connectomics Research Center, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
- Institute of Biotechnology, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
| | - Hung-Jen Chien
- Institute of Biotechnology, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
| | - David W Scheel
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Diabetes Center, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Chester E Chamberlain
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Diabetes Center, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Michael S German
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Diabetes Center, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
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Skelin Klemen M, Dolenšek J, Slak Rupnik M, Stožer A. The triggering pathway to insulin secretion: Functional similarities and differences between the human and the mouse β cells and their translational relevance. Islets 2017; 9:109-139. [PMID: 28662366 PMCID: PMC5710702 DOI: 10.1080/19382014.2017.1342022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
In β cells, stimulation by metabolic, hormonal, neuronal, and pharmacological factors is coupled to secretion of insulin through different intracellular signaling pathways. Our knowledge about the molecular machinery supporting these pathways and the patterns of signals it generates comes mostly from rodent models, especially the laboratory mouse. The increased availability of human islets for research during the last few decades has yielded new insights into the specifics in signaling pathways leading to insulin secretion in humans. In this review, we follow the most central triggering pathway to insulin secretion from its very beginning when glucose enters the β cell to the calcium oscillations it produces to trigger fusion of insulin containing granules with the plasma membrane. Along the way, we describe the crucial building blocks that contribute to the flow of information and focus on their functional role in mice and humans and on their translational implications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maša Skelin Klemen
- Institute of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
| | - Jurij Dolenšek
- Institute of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
| | - Marjan Slak Rupnik
- Institute of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
- Institute of Physiology; Center for Physiology and Pharmacology; Medical University of Vienna; Vienna, Austria
| | - Andraž Stožer
- Institute of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
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Briant LJB, Reinbothe TM, Spiliotis I, Miranda C, Rodriguez B, Rorsman P. δ-cells and β-cells are electrically coupled and regulate α-cell activity via somatostatin. J Physiol 2017; 596:197-215. [PMID: 28975620 PMCID: PMC5767697 DOI: 10.1113/jp274581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2017] [Accepted: 09/25/2017] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Key points We used a mouse expressing a light‐sensitive ion channel in β‐cells to understand how α‐cell activity is regulated by β‐cells. Light activation of β‐cells triggered a suppression of α‐cell activity via gap junction‐dependent activation of δ‐cells. Mathematical modelling of human islets suggests that 23% of the inhibitory effect of glucose on glucagon secretion is mediated by β‐cells via gap junction‐dependent activation of δ‐cells/somatostatin secretion.
Abstract Glucagon, the body's principal hyperglycaemic hormone, is released from α‐cells of the pancreatic islet. Secretion of this hormone is dysregulated in type 2 diabetes mellitus but the mechanisms controlling secretion are not well understood. Regulation of glucagon secretion by factors secreted by neighbouring β‐ and δ‐cells (paracrine regulation) have been proposed to be important. In this study, we explored the importance of paracrine regulation by using an optogenetic strategy. Specific light‐induced activation of β‐cells in mouse islets expressing the light‐gated channelrhodopsin‐2 resulted in stimulation of electrical activity in δ‐cells but suppression of α‐cell activity. Activation of the δ‐cells was rapid and sensitive to the gap junction inhibitor carbenoxolone, whereas the effect on electrical activity in α‐cells was blocked by CYN 154806, an antagonist of the somatostatin‐2 receptor. These observations indicate that optogenetic activation of the β‐cells propagates to the δ‐cells via gap junctions, and the consequential stimulation of somatostatin secretion inhibits α‐cell electrical activity by a paracrine mechanism. To explore whether this pathway is important for regulating α‐cell activity and glucagon secretion in human islets, we constructed computational models of human islets. These models had detailed architectures based on human islets and consisted of a collection of >500 α‐, β‐ and δ‐cells. Simulations of these models revealed that this gap junctional/paracrine mechanism accounts for up to 23% of the suppression of glucagon secretion by high glucose. We used a mouse expressing a light‐sensitive ion channel in β‐cells to understand how α‐cell activity is regulated by β‐cells. Light activation of β‐cells triggered a suppression of α‐cell activity via gap junction‐dependent activation of δ‐cells. Mathematical modelling of human islets suggests that 23% of the inhibitory effect of glucose on glucagon secretion is mediated by β‐cells via gap junction‐dependent activation of δ‐cells/somatostatin secretion.
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Affiliation(s)
- L J B Briant
- Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX3 7LE, UK.,Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3QD, UK
| | - T M Reinbothe
- Metabolic Physiology, Department of Physiology, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Gothenburg, SE-405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - I Spiliotis
- Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX3 7LE, UK
| | - C Miranda
- Metabolic Physiology, Department of Physiology, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Gothenburg, SE-405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - B Rodriguez
- Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3QD, UK
| | - P Rorsman
- Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX3 7LE, UK.,Metabolic Physiology, Department of Physiology, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Gothenburg, SE-405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden
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Makhmutova M, Liang T, Gaisano H, Caicedo A, Almaça J. Confocal Imaging of Neuropeptide Y-pHluorin: A Technique to Visualize Insulin Granule Exocytosis in Intact Murine and Human Islets. J Vis Exp 2017. [PMID: 28930993 DOI: 10.3791/56089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Insulin secretion plays a central role in glucose homeostasis under normal physiological conditions as well as in disease. Current approaches to study insulin granule exocytosis either use electrophysiology or microscopy coupled to the expression of fluorescent reporters. However most of these techniques have been optimized for clonal cell lines or require dissociating pancreatic islets. In contrast, the method presented here allows for real time visualization of insulin granule exocytosis in intact pancreatic islets. In this protocol, we first describe the viral infection of isolated pancreatic islets with adenovirus that encodes a pH-sensitive green fluorescent protein (GFP), pHluorin, coupled to neuropeptide Y (NPY). Second, we describe the confocal imaging of islets five days after viral infection and how to monitor the insulin granule secretion. Briefly, the infected islets are placed on a coverslip on an imaging chamber and imaged under an upright laser-scanning confocal microscope while being continuously perfused with extracellular solution containing various stimuli. Confocal images spanning 50 µm of the islet are acquired as time-lapse recordings using a fast-resonant scanner. The fusion of insulin granules with the plasma membrane can be followed over time. This procedure also allows for testing a battery of stimuli in a single experiment, is compatible with both mouse and human islets, and can be combined with various dyes for functional imaging (e.g., membrane potential or cytosolic calcium dyes).
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tao Liang
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto
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28
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Loppini A, Pedersen MG, Braun M, Filippi S. Gap-junction coupling and ATP-sensitive potassium channels in human β-cell clusters: Effects on emergent dynamics. Phys Rev E 2017; 96:032403. [PMID: 29346932 DOI: 10.1103/physreve.96.032403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
The importance of gap-junction coupling between β cells in pancreatic islets is well established in mouse. Such ultrastructural connections synchronize cellular activity, confine biological heterogeneity, and enhance insulin pulsatility. Dysfunction of coupling has been associated with diabetes and altered β-cell function. However, the role of gap junctions between human β cells is still largely unexplored. By using patch-clamp recordings of β cells from human donors, we previously estimated electrical properties of these channels by mathematical modeling of pairs of human β cells. In this work we revise our estimate by modeling triplet configurations and larger heterogeneous clusters. We find that a coupling conductance in the range 0.005-0.020 nS/pF can reproduce experiments in almost all the simulated arrangements. We finally explore the consequence of gap-junction coupling of this magnitude between β cells with mutant variants of the ATP-sensitive potassium channels involved in some metabolic disorders and diabetic conditions, translating studies performed on rodents to the human case. Our results are finally discussed from the perspective of therapeutic strategies. In summary, modeling of more realistic clusters with more than two β cells slightly lowers our previous estimate of gap-junction conductance and gives rise to patterns that more closely resemble experimental traces.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Loppini
- Nonlinear Physics and Mathematical Modeling Laboratory, Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome, I-00128 Rome, Italy
| | - M G Pedersen
- Department of Information Engineering, University of Padua, I-35131 Padua, Italy
| | - M Braun
- Alberta Diabetes Institute, Department of Pharmacology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, T6G 2H7 Alberta, Canada
| | - S Filippi
- Nonlinear Physics and Mathematical Modeling Laboratory, Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome, I-00128 Rome, Italy
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29
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Umrani MR, Joglekar MV, Somerville Glover E, Wong W, Hardikar AA. Connexins and microRNAs: Interlinked players in regulating islet function? Islets 2017; 9:99-108. [PMID: 28686518 PMCID: PMC5624287 DOI: 10.1080/19382014.2017.1331192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2017] [Revised: 05/10/2017] [Accepted: 05/11/2017] [Indexed: 02/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Pancreatic β-cells are connected to neighboring endocrine cells through the adherin proteins and gap junctions. Connexin 36 (Cx36) is one of the most well-studied and abundantly expressed gap-junction proteins within rodent islets, which is important in coordinated insulin secretion. The expression of connexins is regulated at various levels and by several mechanisms; one of which is via microRNAs. In past 2 decades, microRNAs (miRNAs) have emerged as key molecules in developmental, physiologic and pathological processes. However, very few studies have demonstrated miRNA-mediated regulation of connexins. Even though there are no reports yet on miRNAs and Cx36; we envisage that considering the important role of connexins and microRNAs in insulin secretion, there would be common pathways interlinking these biomolecules. Here, we discuss the current literature on connexins and miRNAs specifically with reference to islet function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Malati R. Umrani
- National centre for cell science, Ganeshkhind, Pune University Campus, Pune, India
- Diabetes and Islet Biology Group, NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Mugdha V. Joglekar
- Diabetes and Islet Biology Group, NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Ella Somerville Glover
- Diabetes and Islet Biology Group, NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Wilson Wong
- Diabetes and Islet Biology Group, NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Anandwardhan A. Hardikar
- Diabetes and Islet Biology Group, NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
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30
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Westacott MJ, Farnsworth NL, St Clair JR, Poffenberger G, Heintz A, Ludin NW, Hart NJ, Powers AC, Benninger RKP. Age-Dependent Decline in the Coordinated [Ca 2+] and Insulin Secretory Dynamics in Human Pancreatic Islets. Diabetes 2017; 66:2436-2445. [PMID: 28588099 PMCID: PMC5566297 DOI: 10.2337/db17-0137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2017] [Accepted: 05/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Aging is associated with increased risk for type 2 diabetes, resulting from reduced insulin sensitivity and secretion. Reduced insulin secretion can result from reduced proliferative capacity and reduced islet function. Mechanisms underlying altered β-cell function in aging are poorly understood in mouse and human islets, and the impact of aging on intraislet communication has not been characterized. Here, we examine how β-cell [Ca2+] and electrical communication are impacted during aging in mouse and human islets. Islets from human donors and from mice were studied using [Ca2+] imaging, static and perifusion insulin secretion assays, and gap junction permeability measurements. In human islets, [Ca2+] dynamics were coordinated within distinct subregions of the islet, invariant with islet size. There was a marked decline in the coordination of [Ca2+] dynamics, gap junction coupling, and insulin secretion dynamics with age. These age-dependent declines were reversed by pharmacological gap junction activation. These results show that human islet function declines with aging, which can reduce insulin action and may contribute to increased risk of type 2 diabetes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Westacott
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Nikki L Farnsworth
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Joshua R St Clair
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Greg Poffenberger
- Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
- VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System, Nashville, TN
| | - Audrey Heintz
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Nurin W Ludin
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Nathaniel J Hart
- Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
| | - Alvin C Powers
- Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
- VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System, Nashville, TN
| | - Richard K P Benninger
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
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Abstract
Type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients who receive pancreatic islet transplant experience significant improvement in their quality-of-life. This comes primarily through improved control of blood sugar levels, restored awareness of hypoglycemia, and prevention of serious and potentially life-threatening diabetes-associated complications, such as kidney failure, heart and vascular disease, stroke, nerve damage, and blindness. Therefore, beta cell replacement through transplantation of isolated islets is an important option in the treatment of T1D. However, lasting success of this promising therapy depends on durable survival and efficacy of the transplanted islets, which are directly influenced by the islet isolation procedures. Thus, isolating pancreatic islets with consistent and reliable quality is critical in the clinical application of islet transplantation.Quality of isolated islets is important in pre-clinical studies as well, as efforts to advance and improve clinical outcomes of islet transplant therapy have relied heavily on animal models ranging from rodents, to pigs, to nonhuman primates. As a result, pancreatic islets have been isolated from these and other species and used in a variety of in vitro or in vivo applications for this and other research purposes. Protocols for islet isolation have been somewhat similar across species, especially, in mammals. However, given the increasing evidence about the distinct structural and functional features of human and mouse islets, using similar methods of islet isolation may contribute to inconsistencies in the islet quality, immunogenicity, and experimental outcomes. This may also contribute to the discrepancies commonly observed between pre-clinical findings and clinical outcomes. Therefore, it is prudent to consider the particular features of pancreatic islets from different species when optimizing islet isolation protocols.In this chapter, we explore the structural and functional features of pancreatic islets from mice, pigs, nonhuman primates, and humans because of their prevalent use in nonclinical, preclinical, and clinical applications.
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32
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Meda P. Gap junction proteins are key drivers of endocrine function. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOMEMBRANES 2017; 1860:124-140. [PMID: 28284720 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2017.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2016] [Revised: 03/03/2017] [Accepted: 03/06/2017] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
It has long been known that the main secretory cells of exocrine and endocrine glands are connected by gap junctions, made by a variety of connexin species that ensure their electrical and metabolic coupling. Experiments in culture systems and animal models have since provided increasing evidence that connexin signaling contributes to control the biosynthesis and release of secretory products, as well as to the life and death of secretory cells. More recently, genetic studies have further provided the first lines of evidence that connexins also control the function of human glands, which are central to the pathogenesis of major endocrine diseases. Here, we summarize the recent information gathered on connexin signaling in these systems, since the last reviews on the topic, with particular regard to the pancreatic beta cells which produce insulin, and the renal cells which produce renin. These cells are keys to the development of various forms of diabetes and hypertension, respectively, and combine to account for the exploding, worldwide prevalence of the metabolic syndrome. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Gap Junction Proteins edited by Jean Claude Herve.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo Meda
- Department of Cell Physiology and Metabolism, University of Geneva Medical School, Switzerland.
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33
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Lamprianou S, Gysemans C, Bou Saab J, Pontes H, Mathieu C, Meda P. Glibenclamide Prevents Diabetes in NOD Mice. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0168839. [PMID: 28006000 PMCID: PMC5178991 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0168839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2016] [Accepted: 12/07/2016] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous work has revealed that Cx36, the sole connexin expressed in the insulin-producing beta cells, enhances the secretion of insulin, and promotes the resistance of beta cells against pro-inflammatory cytokines. In parallel, the anti-diabetic sulphonylurea glibenclamide was shown to promote the assembly and function of Cx36 channels. Here, we assessed whether glibenclamide could protect the insulin-producing cells against conditions mimicking those expected at the onset of type 1 diabetes. We found that the drug 1) protected in vitro the mouse MIN6 cells from the apoptosis and loss of Cx36, which are induced by Th1 cytokines; 2) prevented the development of hyperglycemia as well as the loss of beta cells and Cx36, which rapidly develop with aging in untreated NOD mice; 3) modified the proportion of effector CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in pancreatic draining lymph nodes. The data imply that an early glibenclamide treatment may help protecting beta cells against the autoimmune attack, which triggers the development of type 1 diabetes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Smaragda Lamprianou
- Departement of Cell Physiology and Metabolism, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- * E-mail:
| | - Conny Gysemans
- Laboratory of Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KULEUVEN), Leuven, Belgium
| | - Joanna Bou Saab
- Departement of Cell Physiology and Metabolism, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Helena Pontes
- Departement of Cell Physiology and Metabolism, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Chantal Mathieu
- Laboratory of Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KULEUVEN), Leuven, Belgium
| | - Paolo Meda
- Departement of Cell Physiology and Metabolism, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
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Roscioni SS, Migliorini A, Gegg M, Lickert H. Impact of islet architecture on β-cell heterogeneity, plasticity and function. Nat Rev Endocrinol 2016; 12:695-709. [PMID: 27585958 DOI: 10.1038/nrendo.2016.147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 134] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Although β-cell heterogeneity was discovered more than 50 years ago, the underlying principles have been explored only during the past decade. Islet-cell heterogeneity arises during pancreatic development and might reflect the existence of distinct populations of progenitor cells and the developmental pathways of endocrine cells. Heterogeneity can also be acquired in the postnatal period owing to β-cell plasticity or changes in islet architecture. Furthermore, β-cell neogenesis, replication and dedifferentiation represent alternative sources of β-cell heterogeneity. In addition to a physiological role, β-cell heterogeneity influences the development of diabetes mellitus and its response to treatment. Identifying phenotypic and functional markers to discriminate distinct β-cell subpopulations and the mechanisms underpinning their regulation is warranted to advance current knowledge of β-cell function and to design novel regenerative strategies that target subpopulations of β cells. In this context, the Wnt/planar cell polarity (PCP) effector molecule Flattop can distinguish two unique β-cell subpopulations with specific transcriptional signatures, functional properties and differential responses to environmental stimuli. In vivo targeting of these β-cell subpopulations might, therefore, represent an alternative strategy for the future treatment of diabetes mellitus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara S Roscioni
- Institute of Diabetes and Regeneration Research, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
- German Center for Diabetes Research, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Adriana Migliorini
- Institute of Diabetes and Regeneration Research, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
- German Center for Diabetes Research, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Moritz Gegg
- Institute of Diabetes and Regeneration Research, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
- German Center for Diabetes Research, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
- Institute of Stem Cell Research, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Heiko Lickert
- Institute of Diabetes and Regeneration Research, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
- German Center for Diabetes Research, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
- Institute of Stem Cell Research, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
- Technische Universität München, 81675 München, Germany
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Heileman KL, Daoud J, Tabrizian M. Elaboration of a finite element model of pancreatic islet dielectric response to gap junction expression and insulin release. Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces 2016; 148:474-480. [PMID: 27665380 DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2016.09.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2016] [Revised: 09/07/2016] [Accepted: 09/08/2016] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Dielectric spectroscopy could potentially be a powerful tool to monitor isolated human pancreatic islets for applications in diabetes therapy and research. Isolated intact human islets provide the most relevant means to understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms associated with diabetes. The advantages of dielectric spectroscopy for continuous islet monitoring are that it is a non-invasive, inexpensive and real-time technique. We have previously assessed the dielectric response of human islet samples during stimulation and differentiation. Because of the complex geometry of islets, analytical solutions are not sufficiently representative to provide a pertinent model of islet dielectric response. Here, we present a finite element dielectric model of a single intact islet that takes into account the tight packing of islet cells and intercellular junctions. The simulation yielded dielectric spectra characteristic of cell aggregates, similar to those produced with islets. In addition, the simulation showed that both exocytosis, such as what occurs during insulin secretion, and differential gap junction expression have significant effects on islet dielectric response. Since the progression of diabetes has some connections with dysfunctional islet gap junctions and insulin secretion, the ability to monitor these islet features with dielectric spectroscopy would benefit diabetes research.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Maryam Tabrizian
- Biomedical Engineering Department, Canada; Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada.
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Notary AM, Westacott MJ, Hraha TH, Pozzoli M, Benninger RKP. Decreases in Gap Junction Coupling Recovers Ca2+ and Insulin Secretion in Neonatal Diabetes Mellitus, Dependent on Beta Cell Heterogeneity and Noise. PLoS Comput Biol 2016; 12:e1005116. [PMID: 27681078 PMCID: PMC5040430 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1005116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2016] [Accepted: 08/23/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Diabetes is caused by dysfunction to β-cells in the islets of Langerhans, disrupting insulin secretion and glucose homeostasis. Gap junction-mediated electrical coupling between β-cells in the islet plays a major role in coordinating a pulsatile secretory response at elevated glucose and suppressing insulin secretion at basal glucose. Previously, we demonstrated that a critical number of inexcitable cells can rapidly suppress the overall islet response, as a result of gap junction coupling. This was demonstrated in a murine model of Neonatal Diabetes Mellitus (NDM) involving expression of ATP-insensitive KATP channels, and by a multi-cellular computational model of islet electrical activity. Here we examined the mechanisms by which gap junction coupling contributes to islet dysfunction in NDM. We first verified the computational model against [Ca2+] and insulin secretion measurements in islets expressing ATP-insensitive KATP channels under different levels of gap junction coupling. We then applied this model to predict how different KATP channel mutations found in NDM suppress [Ca2+], and the role of gap junction coupling in this suppression. We further extended the model to account for stochastic noise and insulin secretion dynamics. We found experimentally and in the islet model that reductions in gap junction coupling allow progressively greater glucose-stimulated [Ca2+] and insulin secretion following expression of ATP-insensitive KATP channels. The model demonstrated good correspondence between suppression of [Ca2+] and clinical presentation of different NDM mutations. Significant recoveries in [Ca2+] and insulin secretion were predicted for many mutations upon reductions in gap junction coupling, where stochastic noise played a significant role in the recoveries. These findings provide new understanding how the islet functions as a multicellular system and for the role of gap junction channels in exacerbating the effects of decreased cellular excitability. They further suggest novel therapeutic options for NDM and other monogenic forms of diabetes. Diabetes is a disease reaching a global epidemic, which results from dysfunction to the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas and their ability to secrete the hormone insulin to regulate glucose homeostasis. Islets are multicellular structures that show extensive coupling between heterogeneous cellular units; and central to the causes of diabetes is a dysfunction to these cellular units and their interactions. Understanding the inter-relationship between structure and function is challenging in biological systems, but is crucial to the cause of disease and discovering therapeutic targets. With the goal of further characterizing the islet of Langerhans and its excitable behavior, we examined the role of important channels in the islet where dysfunction is linked to or causes diabetes. Advances in our ability to computationally model perturbations in physiological systems has allowed for the testing of hypothesis quickly, in systems that are not experimentally accessible. Using an experimentally validated model and modeling human mutations, we discover that monogenic forms of diabetes may be remedied by a reduction in electrical coupling between cells; either alone or in conjunction with pharmacological intervention. Knowledge of biological systems in general is also helped by these findings, in that small changes to cellular elements may lead to major disruptions in the overall system. This may then be overcome by allowing the system components to function independently in the presence of dysfunction to individual cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleena M. Notary
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Matthew J. Westacott
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Thomas H. Hraha
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Marina Pozzoli
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Richard K. P. Benninger
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America
- Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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37
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Cigliola V, Populaire C, Pierri CL, Deutsch S, Haefliger JA, Fadista J, Lyssenko V, Groop L, Rueedi R, Thorel F, Herrera PL, Meda P. A Variant of GJD2, Encoding for Connexin 36, Alters the Function of Insulin Producing β-Cells. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0150880. [PMID: 26959991 PMCID: PMC4784816 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0150880] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2015] [Accepted: 02/20/2016] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Signalling through gap junctions contributes to control insulin secretion and, thus, blood glucose levels. Gap junctions of the insulin-producing β-cells are made of connexin 36 (Cx36), which is encoded by the GJD2 gene. Cx36-null mice feature alterations mimicking those observed in type 2 diabetes (T2D). GJD2 is also expressed in neurons, which share a number of common features with pancreatic β-cells. Given that a synonymous exonic single nucleotide polymorphism of human Cx36 (SNP rs3743123) associates with altered function of central neurons in a subset of epileptic patients, we investigated whether this SNP also caused alterations of β-cell function. Transfection of rs3743123 cDNA in connexin-lacking HeLa cells resulted in altered formation of gap junction plaques and cell coupling, as compared to those induced by wild type (WT) GJD2 cDNA. Transgenic mice expressing the very same cDNAs under an insulin promoter revealed that SNP rs3743123 expression consistently lead to a post-natal reduction of islet Cx36 levels and β-cell survival, resulting in hyperglycemia in selected lines. These changes were not observed in sex- and age-matched controls expressing WT hCx36. The variant GJD2 only marginally associated to heterogeneous populations of diabetic patients. The data document that a silent polymorphism of GJD2 is associated with altered β-cell function, presumably contributing to T2D pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Cigliola
- Department of Genetic Medicine and Development, University of Geneva Faculty of Medicine, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Celine Populaire
- Centre Hospitalier Régional Universitaire Besançon, Besançon, France
| | - Ciro L. Pierri
- Department of Biosciences, Biotechnologies and Biopharmaceutics, University of Bari, Bari, Italy
| | - Samuel Deutsch
- Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek, California, United States of America
| | | | - João Fadista
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Diabetes and Endocrinology, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden
| | - Valeriya Lyssenko
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Diabetes and Endocrinology, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden
- Steno Diabetes Center A/S, Gentofte, Denmark
| | - Leif Groop
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Diabetes and Endocrinology, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden
| | - Rico Rueedi
- Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Rue du Bugnon 27, 1011, Lausanne, Switzerland
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Fabrizio Thorel
- Department of Genetic Medicine and Development, University of Geneva Faculty of Medicine, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Pedro Luis Herrera
- Department of Genetic Medicine and Development, University of Geneva Faculty of Medicine, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Paolo Meda
- Department of Cell Physiology and Metabolism, University of Geneva Faculty of Medicine, Geneva, Switzerland
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Almaça J, Liang T, Gaisano HY, Nam HG, Berggren PO, Caicedo A. Spatial and temporal coordination of insulin granule exocytosis in intact human pancreatic islets. Diabetologia 2015; 58:2810-8. [PMID: 26376795 PMCID: PMC6132229 DOI: 10.1007/s00125-015-3747-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2015] [Accepted: 08/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
AIMS/HYPOTHESIS Insulin secretion is widely studied because it plays a central role in glucose homeostasis and diabetes. Processes from insulin granule fusion in beta cells to in vivo insulin secretion have been elucidated, but data at the cellular level do not fully account for several aspects of the macroscopic secretory pattern. Here we investigated how individual secretory events are coordinated spatially and temporally within intact human islets. METHODS We used the fluorescent probe neuropeptide Y (NPY)-pHluorin to visualise insulin granule secretion in isolated intact human islets. RESULTS We found that individual beta cells respond to increases in glucose concentration by releasing insulin granules in very discrete bursts with periods consistent with in vivo pulsatile insulin secretion. In successive secretory bursts during prolonged exposure to high glucose levels, secretory events progressively localised to preferential release sites, coinciding with the transition to second phase insulin secretion. Granule secretion was very synchronised in neighbouring beta cells, forming discrete regional clusters of activity. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION These results reveal how individual secretory events are coordinated to produce pulsatile insulin secretion from human islets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joana Almaça
- Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, 1580 NW 10th Ave, Miami, FL, 33136, USA.
- Diabetes Research Institute, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, 1450 NW 10th Ave, Miami, FL, 33136, USA.
- Center for Plant Aging Research, Institute for Basic Science and Department of New Biology, DGIST, Daegu, Republic of Korea.
| | - Tao Liang
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | | | - Hong Gil Nam
- Center for Plant Aging Research, Institute for Basic Science and Department of New Biology, DGIST, Daegu, Republic of Korea
| | - Per-Olof Berggren
- Diabetes Research Institute, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, 1450 NW 10th Ave, Miami, FL, 33136, USA.
- Rolf Luft Research Center for Diabetes & Endocrinology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
- Lee Kong Chien School of Medicine, Nanyang Technical University, Singapore, Singapore.
- Imperial College, London, UK.
| | - Alejandro Caicedo
- Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, 1580 NW 10th Ave, Miami, FL, 33136, USA.
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA.
- Program in Neuroscience, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA.
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Abstract
The pancreas produces enzymes with a digestive function and hormones with a metabolic function, which are produced by distinct cell types of acini and islets, respectively. Within these units, secretory cells coordinate their functioning by exchanging information via signals that flow in the intercellular spaces and are generated either at distance (several neural and hormonal inputs) or nearby the pancreatic cells themselves (inputs mediated by membrane ionic-specific channels and by ionic- and metabolite-permeant pannexin channels and connexin "hemichannels"). Pancreatic secretory cells further interact via the extracellular matrix of the pancreas (inputs mediated by integrins) and directly with neighboring cells, by mechanisms that do not require extracellular mediators (inputs mediated by gap and tight junction channels). Here, we review the expression and function of the connexins and pannexins that are expressed by the main secretory cells of the exocrine and endocrine pancreatic cells. Available data show that the patterns of expression of these proteins differ in acini and islets, supporting distinct functions in the physiological secretion of pancreatic enzymes and hormones. Circumstantial evidence further suggests that alterations in the signaling provided by these proteins are involved in pancreatic diseases.
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Loppini A, Braun M, Filippi S, Pedersen MG. Mathematical modeling of gap junction coupling and electrical activity in human β-cells. Phys Biol 2015; 12:066002. [PMID: 26403477 DOI: 10.1088/1478-3975/12/6/066002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Coordinated insulin secretion is controlled by electrical coupling of pancreatic β-cells due to connexin-36 gap junctions. Gap junction coupling not only synchronizes the heterogeneous β-cell population, but can also modify the electrical behavior of the cells. These phenomena have been widely studied with mathematical models based on data from mouse β-cells. However, it is now known that human β-cell electrophysiology shows important differences to its rodent counterpart, and although human pancreatic islets express connexin-36 and show evidence of β-cell coupling, these aspects have been little investigated in human β-cells. Here we investigate theoretically, the gap junction coupling strength required for synchronizing electrical activity in a small cluster of cells simulated with a recent mathematical model of human β-cell electrophysiology. We find a lower limit for the coupling strength of approximately 20 pS (i.e., normalized to cell size, ∼2 pS pF(-1)) below which spiking electrical activity is asynchronous. To confront this theoretical lower bound with data, we use our model to estimate from an experimental patch clamp recording that the coupling strength is approximately 100-200 pS (10-20 pS pF(-1)), similar to previous estimates in mouse β-cells. We then investigate the role of gap junction coupling in synchronizing and modifying other forms of electrical activity in human β-cell clusters. We find that electrical coupling can prolong the period of rapid bursting electrical activity, and synchronize metabolically driven slow bursting, in particular when the metabolic oscillators are in phase. Our results show that realistic coupling conductances are sufficient to promote synchrony in small clusters of human β-cells as observed experimentally, and provide motivation for further detailed studies of electrical coupling in human pancreatic islets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Loppini
- Nonlinear Physics and Mathematical Modeling Laboratory, University Campus Bio-Medico, I-00128, Rome, Italy
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Striegel DA, Hara M, Periwal V. The Beta Cell in Its Cluster: Stochastic Graphs of Beta Cell Connectivity in the Islets of Langerhans. PLoS Comput Biol 2015; 11:e1004423. [PMID: 26266953 PMCID: PMC4534467 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1004423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2014] [Accepted: 07/02/2015] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Pancreatic islets of Langerhans consist of endocrine cells, primarily α, β and δ cells, which secrete glucagon, insulin, and somatostatin, respectively, to regulate plasma glucose. β cells form irregular locally connected clusters within islets that act in concert to secrete insulin upon glucose stimulation. Due to the central functional significance of this local connectivity in the placement of β cells in an islet, it is important to characterize it quantitatively. However, quantification of the seemingly stochastic cytoarchitecture of β cells in an islet requires mathematical methods that can capture topological connectivity in the entire β-cell population in an islet. Graph theory provides such a framework. Using large-scale imaging data for thousands of islets containing hundreds of thousands of cells in human organ donor pancreata, we show that quantitative graph characteristics differ between control and type 2 diabetic islets. Further insight into the processes that shape and maintain this architecture is obtained by formulating a stochastic theory of β-cell rearrangement in whole islets, just as the normal equilibrium distribution of the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process can be viewed as the result of the interplay between a random walk and a linear restoring force. Requiring that rearrangements maintain the observed quantitative topological graph characteristics strongly constrained possible processes. Our results suggest that β-cell rearrangement is dependent on its connectivity in order to maintain an optimal cluster size in both normal and T2D islets. High or low blood glucose levels are detrimental to human health. The hormone-secreting cells primarily responsible for maintaining glucose at physiologically appropriate levels are embedded in small clusters within the pancreas, the so-called islets of Langerhans. These islets have an irregular arrangement of cells, β cells that secrete insulin, α cells that secrete glucagon, and other cells with less well-understood functions. While the arrangement of β cells is irregular, these cells need to be touching for the islet to respond to glucose with insulin secretion. We first use a mathematical formalism called graph theory to show that cell arrangements in islets from diabetic and control donors are significantly different. The question we then address is: Is there some set of moves of islet cells that will preserve the observed arrangement? The aim is to gain insight into the biological processes by which islets are formed and maintained. We find moves on β-cell graphs that leave the same significant aspects of cell arrangements unchanged. These moves turn out to be severely restricted, and suggest that β cells may prefer to move from larger clusters but can move to a cluster of any size, possibly to maximize their exposure to blood vessels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deborah A. Striegel
- Laboratory of Biological Modeling, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Manami Hara
- Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Vipul Periwal
- Laboratory of Biological Modeling, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Lebreton F, Pirog A, Belouah I, Bosco D, Berney T, Meda P, Bornat Y, Catargi B, Renaud S, Raoux M, Lang J. Slow potentials encode intercellular coupling and insulin demand in pancreatic beta cells. Diabetologia 2015; 58:1291-9. [PMID: 25788295 DOI: 10.1007/s00125-015-3558-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2014] [Accepted: 02/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
AIMS/HYPOTHESIS Ion fluxes constitute a major integrative signal in beta cells that leads to insulin secretion and regulation of gene expression. Understanding these electrical signals is important for deciphering the endogenous algorithms used by islets to attain homeostasis and for the design of new sensors for monitoring beta cell function. METHODS Mouse and human islets were cultured on multielectrode arrays (MEAs) for 3-13 days. Extracellular electrical activities received on each electrode were continuously amplified and recorded for offline characterisation. RESULTS Differential band-pass filtering of MEA recordings of mouse islets showed two extracellular voltage waveforms: action potentials (lasting 40-60 ms) and very robust slow potentials (SPs, lasting 800-1,500 ms), the latter of which have not been described previously. The frequency of SPs directly correlated with glucose concentration, peaked at 10 mmol/l glucose and was further augmented by picomolar concentrations of glucagon-like peptide-1. SPs required the closure of ATP-dependent potassium channels as they were induced by glucose or glibenclamide but were not elicited by KCl-induced depolarisation. Pharmacological tools and the use of beta cell specific knockout mice showed that SPs reflected cell coupling via connexin 36. Moreover, increasing and decreasing glucose ramps showed hysteresis with reduced glucose sensitivity during the decreasing phase. SPs were also observed in human islets and could be continuously recorded over 24 h. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION This novel electrical signature reflects the syncytial function of the islets and is specific to beta cells. Moreover, the observed hysteresis provides evidence for an endogenous algorithm naturally present in islets to protect against hypoglycaemia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fanny Lebreton
- CNRS UMR 5248, Chimie et Biologie des Membranes et Nano-objets, Université de Bordeaux, Batiment B14, Allée Geoffroy St Hilaire, CS90063, 33615, Pessac, France
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43
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Rutter GA, Hodson DJ. Beta cell connectivity in pancreatic islets: a type 2 diabetes target? Cell Mol Life Sci 2015; 72:453-467. [PMID: 25323131 PMCID: PMC11113448 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-014-1755-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2014] [Revised: 09/30/2014] [Accepted: 10/01/2014] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Beta cell connectivity describes the phenomenon whereby the islet context improves insulin secretion by providing a three-dimensional platform for intercellular signaling processes. Thus, the precise flow of information through homotypically interconnected beta cells leads to the large-scale organization of hormone release activities, influencing cell responses to glucose and other secretagogues. Although a phenomenon whose importance has arguably been underappreciated in islet biology until recently, a growing number of studies suggest that such cell-cell communication is a fundamental property of this micro-organ. Hence, connectivity may plausibly be targeted by both environmental and genetic factors in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) to perturb normal beta cell function and insulin release. Here, we review the mechanisms that contribute to beta cell connectivity, discuss how these may fail during T2DM, and examine approaches to restore insulin secretion by boosting cell communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guy A Rutter
- Section of Cell Biology, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, Imperial Centre for Translational and Experimental Medicine, Hammersmith Hospital, Du Cane Road, London, W12 0NN, UK.
| | - David J Hodson
- Section of Cell Biology, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, Imperial Centre for Translational and Experimental Medicine, Hammersmith Hospital, Du Cane Road, London, W12 0NN, UK
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44
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d Oliveira RB, Carvalho CPDF, Polo CC, Dorighello GDG, Boschero AC, d Oliveira HCF, Collares-Buzato CB. Impaired compensatory beta-cell function and growth in response to high-fat diet in LDL receptor knockout mice. Int J Exp Pathol 2014; 95:296-308. [PMID: 24853046 PMCID: PMC4170972 DOI: 10.1111/iep.12084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2013] [Accepted: 04/06/2014] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
In this study, we investigated the effect of low density lipoprotein receptor (LDLr) deficiency on gap junctional connexin 36 (Cx36) islet content and on the functional and growth response of pancreatic beta-cells in C57BL/6 mice fed a high-fat (HF) diet. After 60 days on regular or HF diet, the metabolic state and morphometric islet parameters of wild-type (WT) and LDLr-/- mice were assessed. HF diet-fed WT animals became obese and hypercholesterolaemic as well as hyperglycaemic, hyperinsulinaemic, glucose intolerant and insulin resistant, characterizing them as prediabetic. Also they showed a significant decrease in beta-cell secretory response to glucose. Overall, LDLr-/- mice displayed greater susceptibility to HF diet as judged by their marked cholesterolaemia, intolerance to glucose and pronounced decrease in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. HF diet induced similarly in WT and LDLr-/- mice, a significant decrease in Cx36 beta-cell content as revealed by immunoblotting. Prediabetic WT mice displayed marked increase in beta-cell mass mainly due to beta-cell hypertrophy/replication. Nevertheless, HF diet-fed LDLr-/- mice showed no significant changes in beta-cell mass, but lower islet-duct association (neogenesis) and higher beta-cell apoptosis index were seen as compared to controls. The higher metabolic susceptibility to HF diet of LDLr-/- mice may be explained by a deficiency in insulin secretory response to glucose associated with lack of compensatory beta-cell expansion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ricardo B d Oliveira
- Department of Histology and Embryology, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, SP, Brazil
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45
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Pizarro-Delgado J, Fasciani I, Temperan A, Romero M, González-Nieto D, Alonso-Magdalena P, Nualart-Marti A, Estil'les E, Paul DL, Martín-del-Río R, Montanya E, Solsona C, Nadal A, Barrio LC, Tamarit-Rodríguez J. Inhibition of connexin 36 hemichannels by glucose contributes to the stimulation of insulin secretion. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2014; 306:E1354-66. [PMID: 24735890 DOI: 10.1152/ajpendo.00358.2013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The existence of functional connexin36 (Cx36) hemichannels in β-cells was investigated in pancreatic islets of rat and wild-type (Cx36(+/+)), monoallelic (Cx36(+/-)), and biallelic (Cx36(-/-)) knockout mice. Hemichannel opening by KCl depolarization was studied by measuring ATP release and changes of intracellular ATP (ADP). Cx36(+/+) islets lost ATP after depolarization with 70 mM KCl at 5 mM glucose; ATP loss was prevented by 8 and 20 mM glucose or 50 μM mefloquine (connexin inhibitor). ATP content was higher in Cx36(-/-) than Cx36(+/+) islets and was not decreased by KCl depolarization; Cx36(+/-) islets showed values between that of control and homozygous islets. Five minimolar extracellular ATP increased ATP content and ATP/ADP ratio and induced a biphasic insulin secretion in depolarized Cx36(+/+) and Cx36(+/-) but not Cx36(-/-) islets. Cx36 hemichannels expressed in oocytes opened upon depolarization of membrane potential, and their activation was inhibited by mefloquine and glucose (IC₅₀ ∼8 mM). It is postulated that glucose-induced inhibition of Cx36 hemichannels in islet β-cells might avoid depolarization-induced ATP loss, allowing an optimum increase of the ATP/ADP ratio by sugar metabolism and a biphasic stimulation of insulin secretion. Gradual suppression of glucose-induced insulin release in Cx36(+/-) and Cx36(-/-) islets confirms that Cx36 gap junction channels are necessary for a full secretory stimulation and might account for the glucose intolerance observed in mice with defective Cx36 expression. Mefloquine targeting of Cx36 on both gap junctions and hemichannels also suppresses glucose-stimulated secretion. By contrast, glucose stimulation of insulin secretion requires Cx36 hemichannels' closure but keeping gap junction channels opened.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ilaria Fasciani
- Research Department, "Ramón y Cajal" Hospital-IRYCIS, Madrid, Spain
| | - Ana Temperan
- Research Department, "Ramón y Cajal" Hospital-IRYCIS, Madrid, Spain
| | - María Romero
- Research Department, "Ramón y Cajal" Hospital-IRYCIS, Madrid, Spain
| | | | - Paloma Alonso-Magdalena
- Institute of Bioengineering and CIBER de Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabólicas Asociadas (CIBERDEM), Miguel Hernández University, Elche, Spain
| | - Anna Nualart-Marti
- Department of Pathology and Experimental Therapeutics, Faculty of Medicine - Campus Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, Hospitalet del Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; IDIBELL, Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica de Bellvitge, Hospitalet del Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Elisabet Estil'les
- CIBERDEM, Barcelona, Spain; Department of Clinical Sciences, University of Barcelona, Feixa Llarga s/n, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; and
| | - David L Paul
- Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | | | - Eduard Montanya
- CIBERDEM, Barcelona, Spain; Department of Clinical Sciences, University of Barcelona, Feixa Llarga s/n, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; and Endocrine Unit, Hospital Universitari Bellvitge-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Carles Solsona
- Department of Pathology and Experimental Therapeutics, Faculty of Medicine - Campus Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, Hospitalet del Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; IDIBELL, Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica de Bellvitge, Hospitalet del Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Angel Nadal
- Institute of Bioengineering and CIBER de Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabólicas Asociadas (CIBERDEM), Miguel Hernández University, Elche, Spain
| | | | - J Tamarit-Rodríguez
- Biochemistry Department, Medical School, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain;
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Farnsworth NL, Benninger RKP. New insights into the role of connexins in pancreatic islet function and diabetes. FEBS Lett 2014; 588:1278-87. [PMID: 24583073 DOI: 10.1016/j.febslet.2014.02.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2013] [Revised: 02/13/2014] [Accepted: 02/19/2014] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Multi-cellular systems require complex signaling mechanisms for proper tissue function, to mediate signaling between cells in close proximity and at distances. This holds true for the islets of Langerhans, which are multicellular micro-organs located in the pancreas responsible for glycemic control, through secretion of insulin and other hormones. Coupling of electrical and metabolic signaling between islet β-cells is required for proper insulin secretion and effective glycemic control. β-cell specific coupling is established through gap junctions composed of connexin36, which results in coordinated insulin release across the islet. Islet connexins have been implicated in both Type-1 and Type-2 diabetes; however a clear link remains to be determined. The goal of this review is to discuss recent discoveries regarding the role of connexins in regulating insulin secretion, the regulation of connexins within the islet, and recent studies which support a role for connexins in diabetes. Further studies which investigate the regulation of connexins in the islet and their role in diabetes may lead to novel diabetes therapies which regulate islet function and β-cell survival through modulation of gap junction coupling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikki L Farnsworth
- Barbara Davis center for childhood diabetes, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, United States
| | - Richard K P Benninger
- Barbara Davis center for childhood diabetes, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, United States; Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, United States.
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47
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Short KW, Head WS, Piston DW. Connexin 36 mediates blood cell flow in mouse pancreatic islets. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2014; 306:E324-31. [PMID: 24326425 PMCID: PMC3920012 DOI: 10.1152/ajpendo.00523.2013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2013] [Accepted: 12/06/2013] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
The insulin-secreting β-cells are contained within islets of Langerhans, which are highly vascularized. Blood cell flow rates through islets are glucose-dependent, even though there are no changes in blood cell flow within in the surrounding exocrine pancreas. This suggests a specific mechanism of glucose-regulated blood flow in the islet. Pancreatic islets respond to elevated glucose with synchronous pulses of electrical activity and insulin secretion across all β-cells in the islet. Connexin 36 (Cx36) gap junctions between islet β-cells mediate this synchronization, which is lost in Cx36 knockout mice (Cx36(-/-)). This leads to glucose intolerance in these mice, despite normal plasma insulin levels and insulin sensitivity. Thus, we sought to investigate whether the glucose-dependent changes in intraislet blood cell flow are also dependent on coordinated pulsatile electrical activity. We visualized and quantified blood cell flow using high-speed in vivo fluorescence imaging of labeled red blood cells and plasma. With the use of a live animal glucose clamp, blood cell flow was measured during either hypoglycemia (∼50 mg/dl) or hyperglycemia (∼300 mg/dl). In contrast to the large glucose-dependent islet blood velocity changes observed in wild-type mice, only minimal differences are observed in both Cx36(+/-) and Cx36(-/-) mice. This observation supports a novel model where intraislet blood cell flow is regulated by the coordinated electrical activity in the islet β-cells. Because Cx36 expression and function is reduced in type 2 diabetes, the resulting defect in intraislet blood cell flow regulation may also play a significant role in diabetic pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kurt W Short
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
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48
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Stamper IJ, Jackson E, Wang X. Phase transitions in pancreatic islet cellular networks and implications for type-1 diabetes. PHYSICAL REVIEW. E, STATISTICAL, NONLINEAR, AND SOFT MATTER PHYSICS 2014; 89:012719. [PMID: 24580269 PMCID: PMC4172977 DOI: 10.1103/physreve.89.012719] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2013] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
In many aspects the onset of a chronic disease resembles a phase transition in a complex dynamic system: Quantitative changes accumulate largely unnoticed until a critical threshold is reached, which causes abrupt qualitative changes of the system. In this study we examine a special case, the onset of type-1 diabetes (T1D), a disease that results from loss of the insulin-producing pancreatic islet β cells. Within each islet, the β cells are electrically coupled to each other via gap-junctional channels. This intercellular coupling enables the β cells to synchronize their insulin release, thereby generating the multiscale temporal rhythms in blood insulin that are critical to maintaining blood glucose homeostasis. Using percolation theory we show how normal islet function is intrinsically linked to network connectivity. In particular, the critical amount of β-cell death at which the islet cellular network loses site percolation is consistent with laboratory and clinical observations of the threshold loss of β cells that causes islet functional failure. In addition, numerical simulations confirm that the islet cellular network needs to be percolated for β cells to synchronize. Furthermore, the interplay between site percolation and bond strength predicts the existence of a transient phase of islet functional recovery after onset of T1D and introduction of treatment, potentially explaining the honeymoon phenomenon. Based on these results, we hypothesize that the onset of T1D may be the result of a phase transition of the islet β-cell network.
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Affiliation(s)
- I. J. Stamper
- Department of Physics, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA
- The Comprehensive Diabetes Center, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA
| | - Elais Jackson
- Department of Computer and Information Sciences, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA
| | - Xujing Wang
- Department of Physics, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA
- The Comprehensive Diabetes Center, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA
- Systems Biology Center, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
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Nielsen MS, Axelsen LN, Sorgen PL, Verma V, Delmar M, Holstein-Rathlou NH. Gap junctions. Compr Physiol 2013; 2:1981-2035. [PMID: 23723031 DOI: 10.1002/cphy.c110051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 298] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Gap junctions are essential to the function of multicellular animals, which require a high degree of coordination between cells. In vertebrates, gap junctions comprise connexins and currently 21 connexins are known in humans. The functions of gap junctions are highly diverse and include exchange of metabolites and electrical signals between cells, as well as functions, which are apparently unrelated to intercellular communication. Given the diversity of gap junction physiology, regulation of gap junction activity is complex. The structure of the various connexins is known to some extent; and structural rearrangements and intramolecular interactions are important for regulation of channel function. Intercellular coupling is further regulated by the number and activity of channels present in gap junctional plaques. The number of connexins in cell-cell channels is regulated by controlling transcription, translation, trafficking, and degradation; and all of these processes are under strict control. Once in the membrane, channel activity is determined by the conductive properties of the connexin involved, which can be regulated by voltage and chemical gating, as well as a large number of posttranslational modifications. The aim of the present article is to review our current knowledge on the structure, regulation, function, and pharmacology of gap junctions. This will be supported by examples of how different connexins and their regulation act in concert to achieve appropriate physiological control, and how disturbances of connexin function can lead to disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morten Schak Nielsen
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and The Danish National Research Foundation Centre for Cardiac Arrhythmia, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
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The relationship between membrane potential and calcium dynamics in glucose-stimulated beta cell syncytium in acute mouse pancreas tissue slices. PLoS One 2013; 8:e82374. [PMID: 24324777 PMCID: PMC3855743 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0082374] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2013] [Accepted: 10/24/2013] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Oscillatory electrical activity is regarded as a hallmark of the pancreatic beta cell glucose-dependent excitability pattern. Electrophysiologically recorded membrane potential oscillations in beta cells are associated with in-phase oscillatory cytosolic calcium activity ([Ca2+]i) measured with fluorescent probes. Recent high spatial and temporal resolution confocal imaging revealed that glucose stimulation of beta cells in intact islets within acute tissue slices produces a [Ca2+]i change with initial transient phase followed by a plateau phase with highly synchronized [Ca2+]i oscillations. Here, we aimed to correlate the plateau [Ca2+]i oscillations with the oscillations of membrane potential using patch-clamp and for the first time high resolution voltage-sensitive dye based confocal imaging. Our results demonstrated that the glucose-evoked membrane potential oscillations spread over the islet in a wave-like manner, their durations and wave velocities being comparable to the ones for [Ca2+]i oscillations and waves. High temporal resolution simultaneous records of membrane potential and [Ca2+]i confirmed tight but nevertheless limited coupling of the two processes, with membrane depolarization preceding the [Ca2+]i increase. The potassium channel blocker tetraethylammonium increased the velocity at which oscillations advanced over the islet by several-fold while, at the same time, emphasized differences in kinetics of the membrane potential and the [Ca2+]i. The combination of both imaging techniques provides a powerful tool that will help us attain deeper knowledge of the beta cell network.
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