Abstract
The Indy (I’m Not Dead Yet) gene encodes the fly homolog of the mammalian SLC13A5 citrate transporter. Reduced expression of the Indy gene in flies and worms extends their longevity. INDY is expressed in the plasma membrane of metabolically active tissues. Decreased expression of Indy in worms, flies, mice, and rats alters metabolism in a manner similar to calorie restriction. Reducing INDY activity prevents weight gain in flies, worms, and mice, and counteracts the negative effects of age or a high fat diet on metabolism and insulin sensitivity. The metabolic effects of reducing INDY activity are the result of reduced cytoplasmic citrate. Citrate is a key metabolite and has a central role in energy status of the cell by effecting lipid and carbohydrate metabolism and energy production. Thereby newly described drugs that reduce INDY transporting activity increase insulin sensitivity and reduce hepatic lipid levels via its effect on hepatic citrate uptake. A recent report presented the first direct link between increased hepatic levels of human INDY, insulin resistance, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in obese humans. Similarly increased hepatic mIndy levels were observed in non-human primates fed on a high fat diet for 2 years. This effect is mediated via the stimulatory effect of the interleukin-6/Stat3 pathway on mINDY hepatic expression. These findings make INDY a potential and very promising target for the treatment of metabolic disorders in humans.
INDY Reduction Affects Metabolism, Health, and Longevity
The Indy (I’m Not Dead Yet) gene encodes the fly homolog of the mammalian SLC13A5 transporter of the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle intermediates (; , ). INDY is a member of the SLC13 protein family of Na+-coupled di- and tri-carboxylate/sulfate transporters in prokaryotes and eukaryotes (). In flies, INDY mediates a cation independent and electroneutral high affinity bidirectional transport of the TCA intermediate across the plasma membrane (, ). Fly INDY has the highest substrate affinity for transporting citrate and lower affinities to other Krebs cycle intermediates such as succinate, malate, and fumarate (, ). INDY homologs in bacteria and mammals have the highest affinity for transporting citrate, and lower for other Krebs cycle intermediates but this transport is Na-dependent. The Na-citrate stoichiometry is 1:1 in bacteria and 4:1 for mINDY (,; ; ).
Although all mammalian INDY transporters are Na+-dependent, the human mINDY is a high-capacity and low affinity transporter, while the rodent mINDY are low-capacity and high affinity transporters (; ).
Reduced expression of the Indy gene in flies and worms extends longevity in all but one study (; , ; ; ; ; ; ). INDY is expressed on the plasma membrane of metabolically active tissues. In flies INDY is predominantly expressed in the midgut, fat body, and oenocytes (fly liver) (; ). In humans, Indy mRNA is mainly expressed in the liver, less in the brain and testis, while small levels of Indy mRNA expression were found in the kidneys, thymus, ovaries, adipose tissue, stomach, and colon (; ). Decreased expression of Indy in worms, flies, mice, and rats alters metabolism in a manner similar to calorie restriction (CR; ; ; ; ; ; ; ). This is supported by similar phenotypes found in CR wild type flies and in Indy flies that were kept on a high calorie diet. These Indy flies have lower lipid levels, increased mitochondrial biogenesis, increased spontaneous physical activity and a reduction in components of the insulin-signaling pathway activity (Figure 1; ; ; ). Indy flies are protected from weight gain when aged on a high calorie diet (). Under standard condition, heterozygous Indy flies do not experience any negative effects on health and have the same negative geotaxis, metabolic rate and maximal flight velocity (). Furthermore, Indy heterozygous flies laid more eggs during their life compared to controls (). However, under CR condition, Indy heterozygous flies have reduced fecundity due to lower energy resource caused by the effect of reduced Indy on metabolism (). Consistently, CR does not further extend longevity of long-lived Indy heterozygous flies and shortens longevity of Indy homozygous flies ().
FIGURE 1
Preservation of intestinal stem cell (ISC) homeostasis has a key role in maintaining normal midgut function and contributes to extended health and longevity in flies (). Changes in mitochondrial biogenesis found in the midgut of Indy flies, combined with increased antioxidant activity and reduced production of reactive oxygen species preserve ISC homeostasis and intestinal integrity in Indy flies. These changes maintain midgut function and mediate extended health and longevity of Indy flies ().
Reduced activity of the Indy homologs in other organisms is associated with similar metabolic effects that mimic CR. siRNA mediated knockdown of Indy/CeNac2, the worm Indy homolog, results in worms that are smaller, have reduced lipid levels, and have extended longevity (; ). mIndy-/- knockout mice are protected from the negative effects of aging or a high-fat diet on metabolism, which include hepatic fat accumulation, obesity, and insulin insensitivity (). These mice have increased energy expenditure, reduced hepatic lipogenesis, increased mitochondrial biogenesis, and enhanced hepatic fatty acid (FA) oxidation (). Increased liver accumulation of diacylglycerols (DAG) and ceramides have been linked to insulin resistance and development of type 2-diabetes (T2D) (). mIndy-/- mice have reduced DAG levels, which most likely contributes to their protection against insulin resistance. Whole-genome microarray studies comparing mIndy-/- and mIndy-/+ revealed that transcriptional changes found in the liver of mIndy-/- mice are 80% identical to changes found in the liver of CR mice (). All of these findings confer that INDY reduction creates a state similar to CR.
The metabolic effects of reduced INDY activity are a result of decreased cytoplasmic citrate levels. Citrate is converted to oxaloacetate and acetyl-CoA by ATP-citrate lyase. Acetyl-CoA is precursor for biosynthesis of triglycerides, FAs, low-density lipoproteins, and cholesterol. Citrate inhibits catabolism of glucose by inhibiting phosphofructokinase through allosteric modulation. Citrate also activates acetyl-CoA carboxylase, thereby affecting de novo lipogenesis. Thus, cytoplasmic citrate levels affect lipids and glucose metabolism, as well as energy production in mitochondria. Reduced Indy levels are associated with reduced ATP levels in mIndy-/- mice and in worms in which INDY levels are reduced by siIndy (; ). The low ATP/ADP ratio activates AMPK, an energy sensor in the cells, which increases mitochondrial biogenesis by activating mitochondrial transcriptional co-activator peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1-alpha (PGC-1α) (; ; ; ; ). AMPK also increases insulin sensitivity, contributing to the beneficial effects of Indy reduction on glucose metabolism. When cytoplasmic citrate levels are high, FA β-oxidation is down regulated, while FA synthesis is upregulated. The opposite is found in mIndy-/- mice, in which low cytoplasmic citrate levels result in reduced FA synthesis, while FA β-oxidation and insulin sensitivity is increased ().
Regulation of mIndy Transcription
The levels of fly INDY are affected by age and by caloric content of the food. Aging flies on a standard diet, young flies on a high calories diet, or young flies treated with paraquat (creating oxidative stress), have increased Indy mRNA and protein levels in the midgut (). In contrast, flies aged on a CR diet have Indy mRNA reduced to 50% of the levels found in controls (; ). Recent work showed that mIndy levels in primary rat hepatocytes are regulated by glucagon released during early starvation (). Glucagon binds to the CREB (cAMP-dependent and cAMP-responsive element protein)-dependent binding site in the promoter region of mIndy and transiently increases mIndy expression (Figure 2) (). In vivo studies shown increased hepatic mIndy levels in high-fat-diet-streptozotocin diabetic rats, in which CREB is constitutively active.
FIGURE 2
Additional findings link increased INDY to lipid metabolism. SLC13A5 has been identified as a novel transcriptional target of the pregnane X receptor (PXR) (
Energy-rich diet and benzo[a]pyrene activate aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). AhR heterodimerization to AhR nuclear translocator (ARNT) allows its translocation to nucleus and activation of mIndy transcription via binding to potential binding site in the mIndy promoter. AhR putative binding site has been identified in the promoter region of both rat and human mIndy (
Patients undergoing Li+ treatment have dyslipidemia and gain body weight. The stimulatory effects of Li+ on the transporting activity of mINDY have been described, suggesting possible clinically relevant connection between increased INDY activity and obesity in humans (
Increased INDY Levels are Linked to Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Humans
Two recent reports linked increased mIndy levels to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in an experimental mice model of NAFLD and human patients with NAFLD (
The first direct link between increased hepatic mIndy levels and lipid steatosis in human NAFLD patients was reported by
mIndy is a Potential Therapeutic Target for Treating Hepatic Steatosis and Insulin Resistance
Considering the beneficial effects of the reduced transporting activity of INDY on metabolism and health, we and others have suggested mIndy (SLC13A5) as a target for the treatment of metabolic disorders (Figure 1;
Mutations in mIndy (SLC13A5) Lead to Autosomal-Recessive Epileptic Encephalopathy with Neonatal Seizures
Mutations in human mIndy cause autosomal-recessive epileptic encephalopathy with seizures during the first days of life and lead to developmental delays (
Summary and Concluding Thoughts
Reduction of Indy gene activity in flies and worms extends their health and longevity (
By contrast, high levels of INDY are associated with negative effects on metabolism and health, while mIndy gene mutations cause autosomal-recessive epileptic encephalopathy in newborns as well as developmental delays (
Statements
Author contributions
The author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and approved it for publication.
Funding
. This work was supported by grant from the National Institute on Health RO1AG 023088 to BR. BR is a recipient of a Glenn Award for Research in Biological Mechanisms of Aging.
Acknowledgments
I thank Suzanne Kowalski, Robert Pijewski, and Stewart Frankel for critical reading of the manuscript.
Conflict of interest
The author declares that she is a co-owner of the INDY US Patent (#7,118,873).
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Summary
Keywords
mIndy, SLC13A5, aging, metabolism, longevity gene, calorie restriction, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
Citation
Rogina B (2017) INDY—A New Link to Metabolic Regulation in Animals and Humans. Front. Genet. 8:66. doi: 10.3389/fgene.2017.00066
Received
25 March 2017
Accepted
09 May 2017
Published
24 May 2017
Volume
8 - 2017
Edited by
Elena G. Pasyukova, Institute of Molecular Genetics of Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia
Reviewed by
Svetlana Radyuk, Southern Methodist University, United States; Adam Salmon, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, United States
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© 2017 Rogina.
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*Correspondence: Blanka Rogina, rogina@uchc.edu
This article was submitted to Genetics of Aging, a section of the journal Frontiers in Genetics
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