title: Tissue-specific role of glycogen synthase kinase 3beta in glucose homeostasis and insulin action.
abstract: Dysregulation of the protein kinase glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK-3) has been implicated in the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus. GSK-3 protein expression and kinase activity are elevated in diabetes, while selective GSK-3 inhibitors have shown promise as modulators of glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity. There are two GSK-3 isoforms in mammals, GSK-3alpha and GSK-3beta. Mice engineered to lack GSK-3beta die in late embryogenesis from liver apoptosis, whereas mice engineered to lack GSK-3alpha are viable and exhibit improved insulin sensitivity and hepatic glucose homeostasis. To assess the potential role of GSK-3beta in insulin function, a conditional gene-targeting approach whereby mice in which expression of GSK-3beta was specifically ablated within insulin-sensitive tissues were generated was undertaken. Liver-specific GSK-3beta knockout mice are viable and glucose and insulin tolerant and display "normal" metabolic characteristics and insulin signaling. Mice lacking expression of GSK-3beta in skeletal muscle are also viable but, in contrast to the liver-deleted animals, display improved glucose tolerance that is coupled with enhanced insulin-stimulated glycogen synthase regulation and glycogen deposition. These data indicate that there are not only distinct roles for GSK-3alpha and GSK-3beta within the adult but also tissue-specific phenotypes associated with each of these isoforms.
authors.affiliation: Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Satish
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Patel
authors.forename: Bradley W
authors.initials: BW
authors.lastname: Doble
authors.forename: Katrina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: MacAulay
authors.forename: Elaine M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Sinclair
authors.forename: Daniel J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Drucker
authors.forename: James R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Woodgett
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D000818:Animals; D001692:Biological Transport / Q000187:drug effects; D002460:Cell Line; D017353:Gene Deletion; D018390:Gene Targeting; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D006003:Glycogen / Q000378:metabolism; D038362:Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 / Q000378:metabolism*; D000071679:Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 beta; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000187:drug effects*; D007328:Insulin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology; D009928:Organ Specificity / Q000187:drug effects; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D007328:Insulin; D006003:Glycogen; D000071679:Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 beta; C000605507:Gsk3b protein, mouse; D038362:Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3; D005947:Glucose