Gα₁₂ ablation exacerbates liver steatosis and obesity by suppressing USP22/SIRT1-regulated mitochondrial respiration

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Abstract

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) arises from mitochondrial dysfunction under sustained imbalance between energy intake and expenditure, but the underlying mechanisms controlling mitochondrial respiration have not been entirely understood. Heterotrimeric G proteins converge signals from activated GPCRs, and modulate cell signaling pathways to maintain metabolic homeostasis. Here, we investigated the regulatory role of Gα12 on hepatic lipid metabolism and whole-body energy expenditure in mice. Fasting increased Gα12 level in mouse liver. Gα12 ablation markedly augmented fasting-induced hepatic fat accumulation. cDNA microarray analysis from Gna12 KO liver revealed that Gα12 signaling pathway regulated sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) and PPARα responsible for mitochondrial respiration. Defective induction of SIRT1 upon fasting was observed in the liver of Gna12 KO mice, which was reversed by lentivirus-mediated Gα12 overexpression in hepatocytes. Mechanistically, Gα12 stabilized SIRT1 protein through transcriptional induction of USP22 via HIF-1α increase. Gα12 levels were markedly diminished in liver biopsies from NAFLD patients. Consistently, Gna12 KO mice fed high-fat diet displayed greater susceptibility to diet-induced liver steatosis and obesity due to decrease in energy expenditure. Our results demonstrate that Gα12 regulates SIRT1-dependent mitochondrial respiration through HIF-1α-dependent USP22 induction, identifying Gα12 as an upstream molecule that contributes to the regulation of mitochondrial energy expenditure.

Authors

Tae Hyun Kim, Yoon Mee Yang, Chang Yeob Han, Ja Hyun Koo, Hyunhee Oh, Su Sung Kim, Byoung Hoon You, Young Hee Choi, Tae-Sik Park, Chang Ho Lee, Hitoshi Kurose, Mazen Noureddin, Ekihiro Seki, Yu-Jui Yvonne Wan, Cheol Soo Choi, Sang Geon Kim