Cholesterol oxides inhibit cholesterol esterification by lecithin: cholesterol acyl transferase / Óxidos de colesterol por inibir a esterificação do colesterol lecitina: colesterol acil transferase

Cholesterol oxides are atherogenic and can affect the activity of diverse important enzymes for the lipidic metabolism. The effect of 7β-hydroxycholesterol, 7-ketocholesterol, 25-hydroxycholesterol, cholestan-3β,5α,6β-triol,5,6β-epoxycholesterol, 5,6α-epoxycholesterol and 7α-hydroxycholesterol on esterification of cholesterol by lecithin:cholesterol acyl transferase (LCAT, EC 2.3.1.43) and the transfer of esters of cholesterol oxides from high density lipoprotein (HDL) to low density lipoproteins (LDL) and very low density lipoproteins (VLDL) by cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) was investigated. HDL enriched with increasing concentrations of cholesterol oxides was incubated with fresh plasma as source of LCAT. Cholesterol and cholesterol oxides esterification was followed by measuring the consumption of respective free sterol and oxysterols. Measurements of cholesterol and cholesterol oxides were done by gas-chromatography. 14C-cholesterol oxides were incorporated into HDL2 and HDL3 subfractions and then incubated with fresh plasma containing LCAT and CETP. The transfer of cholesterol oxide esters was followed by measuring the 14C-cholesterol oxide-derived esters transferred to LDL and VLDL. All the cholesterol oxides studied were esterified by LCAT after incorporation into HDL particles, competing with cholesterol by LCAT. Cholesterol esterification by LCAT was inversely related to the cholesterol oxide concentration. The esterification of 14C-cholesterol oxides was higher in HDL3 and the transfer of the derived esters was greater from HDL2 to LDL and VLDL. The results suggest that cholesterol esterification by LCAT is inhibited in cholesterol oxide-enriched HDL particles. Moreover, the cholesterol oxides-derived esters are efficiently transferred to LDL and VLDL. Therefore, we suggest that cholesterol oxides may exert part of their atherogenic effect by inhibiting cholesterol esterification...

Os óxidos de colesterol são aterogênicos e podem afetar a atividade de diversas enzimas importantes para o metabolismo lipídico. Este estudo investigou o efeito dos óxidos 7β-hidroxicolesterol, 7-cetocolesterol, 25-hidroxicolesterol, colestan-3β,5α,6β-triol, 5,6β-epoxicolesterol, 5,6α-epoxicolesterol e 7α-hidroxicolesterol na esterificação do colesterol por ação da lecitina colesterol aciltransferase (LCAT, EC 2.3.1.43) e a posterior transferência dos óxidos esterificados da lipoproteína de alta densidade (HDL) para as lipoproteínas de baixa densidade (LDL) e muito baixa densidade (VLDL) mediada pela proteína de transporte de éster de colesterol (CETP). Para atingir os objetivos, HDL enriquecida com concentrações crescentes de óxidos de colesterol foi incubada com plasma fresco pobre em lipoproteínas, como fonte de LCAT; posteriormente a esterificação do colesterol e dos óxidos de colesterol foi medida pelo consumo do colesterol livre e dos óxidos livres presentes na HDL. As determinações de colesterol e dos óxidos de colesterol foram realizadas por cromatografia gasosa. 14C-óxidos de colesterol foram incorporados nas subfrações HDL2 e HDL3 e posteriormente incubados com plasma fresco, contendo LCAT e CETP. A transferência dos ésteres de óxidos de colesterol foi medida e quantificada pela presença desses ésteres na LDL e VLDL. Todos os óxidos de colesterol estudados foram esterificados pela LCAT após incorporação nas partículas de HDL e competiram com a esterificação do colesterol nativo. A esterificação do colesterol pela LCAT foi inversamente relacionada à concentração de óxidos de colesterol. A esterificação dos óxidos de colesterol foi maior na HDL3 e a transferência desses ésteres foi maior a partir da HDL2 para a LDL e VLDL. Estes resultados indicam que a esterificação do colesterol pela LCAT é inibida nas partículas de HDL enriquecidas com óxidos de colesterol e que os ésteres de óxidos de colesterol...

Expression and physiological relevance of Agrobacterium tumefaciens phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis genes.

Phosphatidylcholine (PC), or lecithin, is the major phospholipid in eukaryotic membranes, whereas only 10% of all bacteria are predicted to synthesize PC. In Rhizobiaceae, including the phytopathogenic bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens, PC is essential for the establishment of a successful host-microbe interaction. A. tumefaciens produces PC via two alternative pathways, the methylation pathway and the Pcs pathway. The responsible genes, pmtA (coding for a phospholipid N-methyltransferase) and pcs (coding for a PC synthase), are located on the circular chromosome of A. tumefaciens C58. Recombinant expression of pmtA and pcs in Escherichia coli revealed that the individual proteins carry out the annotated enzyme functions. Both genes and a putative ABC transporter operon downstream of PC are constitutively expressed in A. tumefaciens. The amount of PC in A. tumefaciens membranes reaches around 23% of total membrane lipids. We show that PC is distributed in both the inner and outer membranes. Loss of PC results in reduced motility and increased biofilm formation, two processes known to be involved in virulence. Our work documents the critical importance of membrane lipid homeostasis for diverse cellular processes in A. tumefaciens.

Interleukin-4 induces lipogenesis in porcine endothelial cells, which in turn is critical for induction of protection against complement-mediated injury.

Interleukin (IL)-4 has been shown to induce protection in porcine vascular endothelial cells (ECs) from killing by human complement. This protection is dependent on the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. In this study, we investigated mechanisms downstream of Akt and found that activation of the lipid biosynthesis pathway is required for protection from complement in ECs treated with IL-4. Cells incubated with IL-4 for 48 hours contained increased fatty acids and phospholipids but cholesterol was not increased when compared with medium-treated controls. The transcription factor SREBP-1, which regulates fatty acid synthesis, was found to be activated in extracts of ECs incubated with IL-4 for 6 hours. Finally, induction of protection from complement killing with IL-4 was fully prevented by the presence of the SREBP inhibitor 25-OH cholesterol. This study showed that IL-4 induces lipid biosynthesis in porcine ECs through activation of SREBP-1 and that the activation of this pathway is critical for IL-4 to induce protection of porcine ECs from killing by human complement. Further study of these mechanisms may provide new strategies for the prevention of complement-mediated vascular injury as it occurs in xenograft rejection.

Long chain acyl-CoA synthetase 3-mediated phosphatidylcholine synthesis is required for assembly of very low density lipoproteins in human hepatoma Huh7 cells.

Hepatocytes play a crucial role in regulating lipid metabolism by exporting cholesterol and triglyceride into plasma through secretion of very low density lipoproteins (VLDL). VLDL production is also required for release of hepatitis C virus (HCV) from infected hepatocytes. Here, we show that long chain acyl-CoA synthetase 3 (ACSL3) plays a crucial role in secretion of VLDL and HCV from hepatocytes. In cultured human hepatoma Huh7 cells, ACSL3 is specifically required for incorporation of fatty acids into phosphatidylcholine. In cells receiving small interfering RNA targeting ACSL3, secretion of apolipoprotein B, the major protein component of VLDL, was inhibited and the lipoprotein was rapidly degraded. This inhibition in secretion was completely eliminated when these cells were treated with phosphatidylcholine. Treatment of cells with small interfering RNA targeting ACSL3 also inhibited secretion of HCV from Huh7-derived cells. These results identify ACSL3 as a new enzymatic target to limit VLDL secretion and HCV infection.