Effect of insulin levels on the phosphorylation of specific amino acid residues in IRS-1: implications for burn-induced insulin resistance

The E3 ligase TRAF4 promotes IGF signaling by mediating atypical ubiquitination of IRS-1

Insulin-like growth factor (IGF) is a potent mitogen that activates the IGF receptor (IGFR)/insulin receptor substrate (IRS) axis, thus stimulating growth in normal cells and uncontrolled cell proliferation in cancer. Posttranslational modifications of IRS such as ubiquitination tightly control IGF signaling, and we previously identified IRS-1 as a potential substrate for the E3 ubiquitin ligase TRAF4 using an unbiased screen. Here we provide evidence that TRAF4-mediated ubiquitination of IRS-1 is physiologically relevant and crucial for IGF signal transduction. Through site-directed mutagenesis we found that TRAF4 promotes an atypical K29-linked ubiquitination at the C-terminal end of IRS-1. Its depletion abolishes AKT and ERK phosphorylation downstream of IGF-1 and inhibits breast cancer cell proliferation. Overexpression of TRAF4 enhances IGF1-induced IGFR-IRS-1 interaction, IRS-1 tyrosine phosphorylation, and downstream effector protein activation, whereas mutation of IRS-1 ubiquitination sites completely abolishes these effects. Altogether, our studies demonstrate that nonproteolytic ubiquitination of IRS-1 is a key step in conveying IGF-1 stimulation from IGFR to IRS-1.

Laser induced injury caused hyperglycemia-like effect in Drosophila larva: a possible insect model for posttraumatic diabetes

Diabetic patients need particular care in case of infection, digestive disorder or external injury, because external stress often exasperates the glucose metabolism, which is known as “sick day management”. In addition, severe trauma can be a cause of hyperglycemia with insulin resistance. In spite of critical component of the treatment, the precise mechanisms of how trauma develops posttraumatic diabetes remain unknown. Here, we ablated body wall muscles in Drosophila larvae by laser beam and found that the level of trehalose, the principal sugar circulating in the hemolymph or in the tissues of most insects, was increased. The model may provide a helpful tool to understand the relationship between trauma and sugar metabolism.

Burn injury-induced IRS-1 degradation in mouse skeletal muscle

Insulin resistance is a major effect of burn injury and insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) plays an important role in signal transduction. Here, we explored the integrity of IRS-1 in muscle after burn injury. A murine model of severe burn injury was used to explore IRS-1 integrity/degradation in muscle and to map Ser/Thr phosphorylations which represent the trigger sites for degradation. The findings are: three C-terminal IRS-1 cleavage fragments were confirmed with tandem mass spectrometry; MWs 95, 44 and 42 kD. In sham burn animals the level of intact IRS-1 was 51.9 ng/g, whereas, total IRS-1 which includes degradation fragments and post-translationally modified protein was 196.7 ng/g. After burn, intact and total IRS-1 were reduced to 47.8 (92.1 % sham, p<0.05) and 86.9 ng/g (44.2 % sham, p<0.005). In contrast, ubiquitinated IRS-1 increased from 24.5 to 28.4 ng/g (15.9% increment, p< 0.05) in the burned mice. In cytosol, membrane and nuclear fractions, total IRS-1 was reduced by 89.8% (p<0.005), 25.8% (p<0.05) and 87.3% (p<0.005). To further evaluate the IRS-1 degradation pathway, SOCS-3 mRNA levels after burn injury were found to be increased by 35% (p<0.05), 110% (p<0.05) and 140% (p<0.005). However, phosphorylation of Ser473 and Thr308 of Akt1 were reduced to 26.2% (p<0.05) and 49.8% (p<0.005). We conclude: burn injury is associated with IRS-1 degradation via SOCS-3 and ubiquitin-mediated pathways and reduced subcellular levels of IRS-1, serve as molecular basis for burn injury induced alteration in insulin function.

Regulation of insulin sensitivity by serine/threonine phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate proteins IRS1 and IRS2

The insulin receptor substrate proteins IRS1 and IRS2 are key targets of the insulin receptor tyrosine kinase and are required for hormonal control of metabolism. Tissues from insulin-resistant and diabetic humans exhibit defects in IRS-dependent signalling, implicating their dysregulation in the initiation and progression of metabolic disease. However, IRS1 and IRS2 are regulated through a complex mechanism involving phosphorylation of >50 serine/threonine residues (S/T) within their long, unstructured tail regions. In cultured cells, insulin-stimulated kinases (including atypical PKC, AKT, SIK2, mTOR, S6K1, ERK1/2 and ROCK1) mediate feedback (autologous) S/T phosphorylation of IRS, with both positive and negative effects on insulin sensitivity. Additionally, insulin-independent (heterologous) kinases can phosphorylate IRS1/2 under basal conditions (AMPK, GSK3) or in response to sympathetic activation and lipid/inflammatory mediators, which are present at elevated levels in metabolic disease (GRK2, novel and conventional PKCs, JNK, IKKβ, mPLK). An emerging view is that the positive/negative regulation of IRS by autologous pathways is subverted/co-opted in disease by increased basal and other temporally inappropriate S/T phosphorylation. Compensatory hyperinsulinaemia may contribute strongly to this dysregulation. Here, we examine the links between altered patterns of IRS S/T phosphorylation and the emergence of insulin resistance and diabetes.