C/EBPß in bone marrow is essential for diet induced inflammation, cholesterol balance, and atherosclerosis.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Atherosclerosis is both a chronic inflammatory disease and a lipid metabolism disorder. C/EBPß is well documented for its role in the development of hematopoietic cells and integration of lipid metabolism. However, C/EBPß's role in atherosclerotic progression has not been examined. We assessed the impact of hematopoietic CEBPß deletion in ApoE(-/-) mice on hyperlipidemia, inflammatory responses and lesion formation in the aorta. METHODS AND RESULTS: ApoE(-/-) mice were reconstituted with bone marrow cells derived from either WT or C/EBPß(-/-) mice and placed on low fat or high fat/high cholesterol diet for 11 weeks. Hematopoietic C/EBPß deletion in ApoE(-/-) mice reduced blood and hepatic lipids and gene expression of hepatic stearoyl CoA desaturase 1 and fatty acid synthase while expression of ATP binding cassette transporter G1, cholesterol 7-alpha-hydroxylase, and liver X receptor alpha genes were significantly increased. ApoE(-/-) mice reconstituted with C/EBPß(-/-) bone marrow cells also significantly reduced blood cytokine levels and reduced lesion area in aortic sinuses compared with ApoE(-/-) mice reconstituted with WT bone marrow cells. Silencing of C/EBPß in RAW264.7 macrophage cells prevented oxLDL-mediated foam cell formation and inflammatory cytokine secretion in conditioned medium. CONCLUSION: C/EBPß in hematopoietic cells is crucial to regulate diet-induced inflammation, hyperlipidemia and atherosclerosis development.

Developmental changes in synaptic distribution in arcuate nucleus neurons.

Neurons coexpressing neuropeptide Y, agouti-related peptide, and GABA (NAG) play an important role in ingestive behavior and are located in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus. NAG neurons receive both GABAergic and glutamatergic synaptic inputs, however, the developmental time course of synaptic input organization of NAG neurons in mice is unknown. In this study, we show that these neurons have low numbers of GABAergic synapses and that GABA is inhibitory to NAG neurons during early postnatal period. In contrast, glutamatergic inputs onto NAG neurons are relatively abundant by P13 and are comparatively similar to the levels observed in the adult. As mice reach adulthood (9-10 weeks), GABAergic tone onto NAG neurons increases. At this age, NAG neurons received similar numbers of inhibitory and EPSCs. To further differentiate age-associated changes in synaptic distribution, 17- to 18-week-old lean and diet-induced obesity (DIO) mice were studied. Surprisingly, NAG neurons from lean adult mice exhibit a reduction in the GABAergic synapses compared with younger adults. Conversely, DIO mice display reductions in the number of GABAergic and glutamatergic inputs onto NAG neurons. Based on these experiments, we propose that synaptic distribution in NAG neurons is continuously restructuring throughout development to accommodate the animals' energy requirements.

Early life exposure to maternal insulin resistance has persistent effects on hepatic NAFLD in juvenile nonhuman primates.

The origins of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) may lie in early intrauterine exposures. Here we examined the maternal response to chronic maternal high-fat (HF) diet and the impact of postweaning healthy diet on mechanisms for NAFLD development in juvenile nonhuman primate (NHP) offspring at 1 year of age. Pregnant females on HF diet were segregated as insulin resistant (IR; HF+IR) or insulin sensitive (IS; HF+IS) compared with control (CON)-fed mothers. HF+IR mothers have increased body mass, higher triglycerides, and increased placental cytokines. At weaning, offspring were placed on a CON or HF diet. Only offspring from HF+IR mothers had increased liver triglycerides and upregulated pathways for hepatic de novo lipid synthesis and inflammation that was irreversible upon switching to a healthy diet. These juvenile livers also showed a combination of classical and alternatively activated hepatic macrophages and natural killer T cells, in the absence of obesity or insulin resistance. Our findings suggest that maternal insulin resistance, including elevated triglycerides, insulin, and weight gain, initiates dysregulation of the juvenile hepatic immune system and development of de novo lipogenic pathways that persist in vitro and may be an irreversible "first hit" in the pathogenesis of NAFLD in NHP.

CCAAT/enhancer binding protein ß deletion increases mitochondrial function and protects mice from LXR-induced hepatic steatosis.

Drugs designed specifically to activate liver X receptors (LXRs) have beneficial effects on lowering cholesterol metabolism and inflammation but unfortunately lead to severe hepatic steatosis. The transcription factor CCAAT/enhancer binding protein beta (C/EBPß) is an important regulator of liver gene expression but little is known about its involvement in LXR-based steatosis and cholesterol metabolism. The present study investigated the role of C/EBPß expression in LXR agonist (T0901317)-mediated alteration of hepatic triglyceride (TG) and lipogenesis in mice. C/EBPß deletion in mice prevented LXR agonist-mediated induction of lipogenic gene expression in liver in conjunction with significant reduction of liver TG accumulation. Surprisingly, C/EBPß(-/-) mice showed a major increase in liver mitochondrial electron chain function compared to WT mice. Furthermore, LXR activation in C/EBPß(-/-) mice increased the expression of liver ATP-binding cassette transporter ABCG1, a gene implicated in cholesterol efflux and reducing blood levels of total and LDL-cholesterol. Together, these findings establish a central role for C/EBPß in the LXR-mediated steatosis and mitochondrial function, without impairing the influence of LXR activation on lowering LDL and increasing HDL-cholesterol. Inactivation of C/EBPß might therefore be an important therapeutic strategy to prevent LXR activation-mediated adverse effects on liver TG metabolism without disrupting its beneficial effects on cholesterol metabolism.

CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein ß (C/EBPß) expression regulates dietary-induced inflammation in macrophages and adipose tissue in mice.

Strong evidence exists for a link between chronic low level inflammation and dietary-induced insulin resistance; however, little is known about the transcriptional networks involved. Here we show that high fat diet (HFD) or saturated fatty acid exposure directly activates CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein ß (C/EBPß) protein expression in liver, adipocytes, and macrophages. Global C/EBPß deletion prevented HFD-induced inflammation and surprisingly increased mitochondrial gene expression in white adipose tissue along with brown adipose tissue markers PRDM16, CIDEa, and UCP1, consistent with a resistance to HFD-induced obesity. In isolated peritoneal macrophages from C/EBPß(-/-) mice, the anti-inflammatory gene LXRα and its targets SCD1 and DGAT2 were strikingly up-regulated along with IL-10, while NLRP3, a gene important for activating the inflammasome, was suppressed in response to palmitate. Using RAW 264.7 macrophage cells or 3T3-L1 adipocytes, C/EBPß knockdown prevented palmitate-induced inflammation and p65-NFκB DNA binding activity, while C/EBPß overexpression induced NFκB binding, JNK activation, and pro-inflammatory cytokine gene expression directly. Finally, chimeric bone marrow mice transplanted with bone marrow lacking C/EBPß(-/-) demonstrated reduced systemic and adipose tissue inflammatory markers, macrophage content, and maintained insulin sensitivity on HFD. Taken together, these results demonstrate that HFD or palmitate exposure triggers C/EBPß expression that controls expression of distinct aspects of alternative macrophage activation. Reducing C/EBPß in macrophages confers protection from HFD-induced systemic inflammation and insulin resistance, suggesting it may be an attractive therapeutic target for ameliorating obesity-induced inflammatory responses.