title: Regulation of Akt signaling by O-GlcNAc in euglycemia.
abstract: The hexosamine biosynthesis pathway (HBP) regulates the posttranslational modification of nuclear and cytoplasmic protein by O-linked N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc). Numerous studies have demonstrated that, in hyperglycemic conditions, excessive glucose flux through this pathway contributes to the development of insulin resistance. The role of the HBP in euglycemia, however, remains largely unknown. Here we investigated the effect of O-GlcNAc on hepatic Akt signaling at physiological concentrations of glucose. In HepG2 cells cultured in 5 mM glucose, removal of O-GlcNAc by adenoviral-mediated overexpression of O-GlcNAcase increased Akt activity and phosphorylation. We also observed that Akt was recognized by succinylated wheat germ agglutinin (sWGA), which specifically binds O-GlcNAc. Overexpression of O-GlcNAcase in HepG2 cells reduced the levels of Akt in sWGA precipitates. The increased Akt activity was accompanied by increased phosphorylation of Akt substrates and reduced mRNA for glucose-6-phosphatase and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK). The increased Akt activity was not a result of activation of its upstream activator phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase). Further demonstrating Akt regulation by O-GlcNAc, we found that overexpression of O-GlcNAcase in the livers of euglycemic mice also significantly increased Akt activity, resulting in increased phosphorylation of downstream targets and decreased mRNA for glucose-6-phosphatase. Together, these data suggest that O-GlcNAc regulates Akt signaling in hepatic models under euglycemic conditions.
authors: Division of Endocrinology, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, Utah 84132, USA.
authors: Yudi A
authors: YA
authors: Soesanto
authors: Bai
authors: B
authors: Luo
authors: Deborah
authors: D
authors: Jones
authors: Rodrick
authors: R
authors: Taylor
authors: J Scott
authors: JS
authors: Gabrielsen
authors: Glendon
authors: G
authors: Parker
authors: Donald A
authors: DA
authors: McClain
mesh_terms: D000256:Adenoviridae / Q000235:genetics; D000818:Animals; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000502:physiology*; D002460:Cell Line; D005822:Genetic Vectors / Q000502:physiology; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D017351:N-Acetylglucosaminyltransferases / Q000502:physiology*; D051058:Oncogene Protein v-akt / Q000502:physiology*; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*; D014909:Wheat Germ Agglutinins
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D014909:Wheat Germ Agglutinins; D017351:N-Acetylglucosaminyltransferases; C063057:UDP-N-acetylglucosamine-peptide beta-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; D051058:Oncogene Protein v-akt