L’enzyme méthionine synthase (MTR) catalyse la reméthylation de l’homocystéine en méthionine, le précurseur du donneur universel de groupe méthyle S-Adenosylmethionine (SAM), impliqué dans des mécanismes de régulations épigénétiques. Des polymorphismes de MTR sont associés à des défauts métaboliques et des défauts de développement embryonnaire. Afin d’étudier les conséquences d’une déficience en MTR, nous avons généré des modèles murins d’invalidation conditionnelle du gène MTR de manière constitutive ou inductible dans le foie et dans le cerveau. L’invalidation constitutive ou inductible ciblée dans le foie pendant l’embryogenèse n’est pas viable, suggérant un rôle limitant de la méthionine synthase sur le développement précoce et l’organogenèse en lien probable avec les conséquences sur la prolifération cellulaire. Dans les périodes post-natales, nous avons utilisé le modèle inductible complété par une hépatectomie pour étudier les altérations de la régénération hépatique liée aux effets sur le stress cellulaire ainsi que l’expression et l’activation des cyclines. Le KO dans le cerveau induit principalement une perte des fonctions de mémorisation de l’apprentissage hippocampo-dépendant. Au total, nos résultats illustrent les effets différents de l’invalidation de MTR en fonction de l’organe considéré. Le foie est un organe très plastique avec une capacité de régénération très importante. Les effets sur les étapes de l’organogénèse et sur l’inhibition de la régénération confirment l’hypothèse du rôle majeur et limitant de la méthionine synthase dans la régulation du cycle cellulaire. Le modèle d’invalidation au niveau du cerveau confirme le rôle très important de la voie de reméthylation de l’homocystéine catalysée par la méthionine synthase, rôle qui a déjà été illustré par d’autres travaux sur les rats carencés en donneur de méthyle et sur la souris transgénique KO cd320 / The enzyme methionine synthase (MTR) catalyzes the remethylation of homocysteine to methionine, the precursor of the methyl donor S-universal Adenosylmethionine (SAM), involved in epigenetic regulation mechanisms. We generated mouse models with conditional invalidation of the mtr gene in a constitutive or inducible manner to delete the gene expression specifically in the liver and brain. Constitutive invalidation during embryonic life is not sustainable when targeted to the liver, suggesting a limiting role of methionine synthase in early organogenesis and probably on cell proliferation. We performed hepatectomy to study regeneration-related effects on the cellular stress and found dramatic effects on cell proliferation through altered expression and activation of cyclins. The constitutive model in brain highlighted the behavioral anomalies related to a loss of learning and memory. This suggested major effects in the hippocampus. Overall, our findings highlighted the specific effects of the invalidation of methionine synthase in both organs. The liver is a plastic member with a very high regenerative capacity. The effects on organogenesis and inhibition of regeneration confirm the hypothesis for a major role of methionine synthase in cell cycle regulation. The invalidation model in the brain confirms the important role of the remethylation pathway catalysed by methionine synthase, a role which has been shown by other studies in rats deprived in methyl donors and in cd320 KO transgenic mice

Deux phénomènes liés au TFIIH ont été étudiés : l'influence des mutations spécifiques dans la sous-unité XPD de TFIIH sur la réponse transcriptionnelle de certains gènes après l'irradiation UV, et l'interaction entre le TFIIH et la transcription des gènes de classe III. Une analyse détaillée de la dynamique du transcriptome a été effectuée pour la réponse des cellules humaines mutantes XP-D/CS à l'UV. Il a été démontré que la dysrégulation sélective observée de l’expression des gènes était liée à l'incapacité pour la ré-initiation transcriptionnelle et à l'hétérochromatinisation suivante, où l'histonedésacétylase SIRT1 a été identifiée comme le principal facteur. Son inhibition a permis de recouvrer l'expression normale d'un nombre substantiel des gènes affectés. Une étude de la participation pangénomique du coeur de TFIIH dans latranscription a découvert son association avec les gènes actifs de classe III. Cette association a été démontrée être indépendante de Pol II. Le coeur de TFIIH a été montré participer directement à la transcription effectuée in vitro par Pol III. / In this work, two TFIIH-related phenomena were investigated : the influence of specific mutations in TFIIH XPD subunits on the transcriptional response of different genes on UV irradiation and the interaction between TFIIH and transcription of class III genes. For the first time the detailed investigation of transcriptome dynamics was carried out for the response of XP-D/CS mutant human cells to UV-irradiation. The transcription regulation nature of the observed selective gene expression dysregulation was clearly observed. Its relation to failure of transcription re-initiation and consequentheterochromatisation was demonstrated. SIRT1 histone deacetylase was identified as the main driver of the repressive chromatin establishment on the certain genes upon UV. Inhibition of SIRT1 was found to recover normal expression of substantial number of affected genes. SIRT1 mediated mechanism was shown to be XP-D/CS specific. A potential link between this longevity related protein and progeria features of XP-D/CS mutants was hypothesised. Genome-wide study of the involvement of the core TFIIH in transcription revealed its association with active class III genes, not described previously. This association was demonstrated to be Pol II-independent. The core TFIIH was shown to be directly involved in Pol III mediated transcription in vitro.

La caractérisation des mécanismes moléculaires exacts de la signalisation de l'insuline est très importante pour comprendre, traiter et prévenir le diabète de type 2. Le deacetylase SIRT1 est une protéine récemment découverte qui est impliquée dans la régulation métabolique, comme dans la sécrétion de l'insuline et l'homéostasie glucidique. Un des activateurs de SIRT1, le resvératrol, a des effets bénéfiques sur la santé, dont une amélioration de la sensibilité à l'insuline et une durée de vie prolongée. Cependant, l'interaction exacte entre la signalisation de l'insuline, SIRT1 et le resvératrol n'est pas connue. Par conséquent j'ai étudié au cours de ma thèse l'impact du resvératrol et de SIRT1 sur la voie de signalisation de l'insuline, principalement dans des cellules musculaires mais aussi in vivo dans le modèle expérimentale du nématode C.elegans. J'ai pu montrer que le resvératrol est un inhibiteur class IA-spécifique de la PI3K. Le resveratrol inhibe aussi l'installation d'une insulino-résistance, peut-être par l'inhibition des protéines kinases comme JNK, diminuant ainsi la phosphorylation en sérine des IRS. Nous montrons aussi que SIRT1 intensifie la signalisation de l'insuline, probablement par l'interaction avec le complexe IRS-PI3K. L'interaction de SIR-2.1, l'homologue de SIRT1, avec la PI3K joue aussi un rôle important dans la régulation de la durée de vie de C.elegans / Characterisation of the exact molecular mechanisms of insulin signalling is of great importance in understanding, treating and preventing type 2 diabetes. The recently discovered deacetylase SIRT1 is implicated in several metabolic regulation mechanisms, including insulin secretion and glucose homeostasis. The SIRT1 activator resveratrol also has beneficial metabolic effects, including improved insulin sensitivity and prolonged lifespan. However, the exact interplay of insulin signalling, SIRT1 and resveratrol is not known. I have therefore studied the impact of resveratrol and SIRT1 on the insulin signalling pathway, mainly in muscle cells, but also in the living model C.elegans. This work has allowed me to show that resveratrol is an isoform-specific PI3K inhibitor. Resveratrol also inhibited instalment of insulin resistance, possible through inhibition of kinases like JNK thereby reducing the IRS serine phosphorylation. We also showed that SIRT1 potentiates insulin signalling, probably through interaction with IRS-PI3K. The interaction with SIR-2.1, the SIRT1 homolog, is important also in PI3K-mediated lifespan regulation in C.elegans

L'acétylation des protéines constitue l’une des plus importantes modifications post-traductionnelles (PTMs). Elle intervient dans de multiples processus bologiques et physiopathologiques tels que, l’activité transcriptionnelle, l'apoptose, la régulation des voies métaboliques, les cancers, les maladies inflammatoires et cardiovasculaires. Face à l’importance de l’acétylation des protéines, il apparaît donc indispensable de bien comprendre les mécanismes qui y sont associés, et donc, de pouvoir identifier et quantifier les protéines acétylées à partir du protéome complet d’échantillons complexes tels que des extraits cellulaires ou tissulaires. La spectrométrie de masse est une technique de choix pour de telles études, car elle permet d’identifier les protéines et les sites d’acétylation, mais aussi de les quantifier en l’associant à des techniques de quantification (label free, SILAC, iTRAQ/TMT, AQUA). Malheureusement, ces méthodes ne ciblent pas particulièrement les acétylations et requièrent l’utilisation de techniques d’enrichissement ou de fractionnement qui ne sont dédiées qu’à certains types d’acetylation : les N-ter et K-acetylation. Aucun enrichissement n’est disponible pour les O- acétylations et ces méthodes d’enrichissement ne sont pas toujours compatibles avec les techniques de quantification citées ci-dessus. Pour améliorer la détection et la quantification des acétylations, nous proposons la méthode RAQIAT (Relatif Absolute Quantification Isobaric Affinity Tag) qui se résume en trois grandes étapes: i) Le blocage des fonctions amines libres à l'aide de la di-méthylation réductrice, ceci empêchera ces dernières de réagir avec le réactif RAQIAT, ii) La désacétylation des lysines acétylées pour permettre une quantification sélective des acétylations, iii) Le marquage des amines primaires précédemment désacétylées dans l’étape 2 par le réactif RAQIAT pour permettre leurs identifications et quantifications. Ce manuscrit a porté en partie sur les deux premières étapes de la méthode RAQIAT.Dans la première étape, les échantillons de protéines de levure ont été digérés puis di-méthylés et fractionnés par OFFGEL en 24 fractions. Ensuite, chacune de ces 24 fractions OFFGEL a été soumise à un fractionnement nano-RPLC et analysée par MALDI TOF/TOF (4800 MALDI-TOF/TOF, Sciex). En parallèle, la même expérience a été réalisée, cette fois-ci sans di-méthylation. L'analyse des données a été réalisée en utilisant le logiciel Mascot comme moteur de recherche.L’efficacité de la réaction de di-méthylation démontrée, nous avons montré que sans réaliser la di-méthylation réductrice 164 sites acétylés ont pu été identifiés alors que 385 sites acétylés distincts ont été identifiés avec la di-méthylation réductrice. De plus, l'amélioration de la détection de l'acétylation en utilisant la méthode de di-méthylation a été observée pour chacune des différents types acétylations: N-ter, K- et O-acétylation.Dans la deuxième étape, nous avons présenté des résultats préliminaires de déacétylation par la sirtuine 1 en présence du peptide de la p53 (Ac-Arg-His-Lys-Lys-(Ac)-AMC) connu comme étant un substrat de cette enzyme. Nous avons observé la formation d’un peptide non acétylé, suggérant une déacétylation de ce peptide acétylé de p53. Cependant, la formation de cet ion étant très faible et l’ion acétylé étant fortement préservé, nous en avons conclu que l’efficacité de la déacétylation du peptide de p53 n’était pas suffisante pour l’intégrer à la méthode RAQIAT. / Protein acetylation is one of the most widespread post-translational modifications which is involved in many cellular physiologies and pathologies such as cancers. Regarding the important biological effect of protein acetylation and a non-negligible number of proteins bearing this PTM, several methods emerged last decade to investigate such PTM. But the detection of acetylations and their quantification are still limited and enrichment method allowing a better detection of acetylation target mostly one kind of acetylation (K-acetylation). To improve the detection of the three kind of acetylation (N-ter, K, and O-) and their quantification, we propose the RAQIAT method (Relative Absolute Quantification Isobaric Affinity Tag), based on protein digestion followed by 3 steps : i) a protection of free primary amines at N-ter, lysine (i.e. primary amine not bearing PTM) based on a reductive di-methylation strategy ii) a deacetylation of acetylated residues to obtain free primary amine corresponding to peptides previously acetylated iii) a RAQIAT labeling on the free primary amine obtained in the previous step to allow the enrichment of peptides previously acetylated and their quantifications. Herein, we present the investigation of the two first steps of RAQIAT method.In the first step, we evidenced that the reductive di-methylation strategy improved the detection of the three kind of acetylation: N-ter, K- and O- acetylations. Yeast protein samples were digested with trypsin prior di-methylation of resulting peptide mixture. Then, di-methylated peptide mixtures were fractionated by OFFGEL and reverse phase liquid chromatography followed by MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometry analysis. Data analysis was performed by using Mascot as search engines.Our results showed that OFFGEL fractionation is a useful step to increase detection of acetylations. Moreover, we showed that our di-methylation treatment improved significantly detection of acetylation. Indeed, after di-methylation treatment, 385 unique acetylated sites were identified while 164 unique acetylated peptides were detected without di-methylation treatment. The improvement of acetylation detection using our di-methylation strategy is observed for each of acetylations: N-ter, K- and O-acetylations. Thus, this new proteomic method is promising to enhance N-ter, K- and O-acetylation detection.In the second step, we presented preliminary results of deacetylation by sirtuin 1 in the presence of p53 peptide (Ac-Arg-His-Lys-Lys- (Ac) –AMC. However, the low deacetylation efficiency of the p53 peptide observed, conclude that is not suitable to applicate into RAQIAT Method

The aim of this thesis is to understand RNA-RNA interactions steering cellular functions, as in the case of this thesis the structure of mRNA(Sirt1) in complex with microRNA-34a (miR-34a). MiR-34a regulates the cancer protein p53 via Sirt1 modulation. This work will be the basis for future drug design and the understanding of misguided regulation in cancer. The miR-34a binds to the mRNA(Sirt1) 3’ untranslated region (3’-UTR) and will either inhibit the translation of the protein Sirtuin 1 by capturing its mRNA or by degrading it. p53, a key activator of miR-34a, prevents cancer development by inducing programmed cell death (apoptosis) on cells with DNA damage. In contrast, the protein Sirtuin 1 (Sirt1) has been shown to help cells with DNA damage to survive by down regulating the activity of protein p53 and will therefore increase the risk of cancer development. Studying the interaction between the mRNA(Sirt1) and miR-34a can present valuable information on the structure of the complex as well as the mode miR-34a uses to inhibit translation of mRNA(Sirt1) leading to down regulation of protein Sirtuin 1 and therefore prevent cancer development. For the elucidation of this question different biochemical and biophysical methods were applied, such as in vitro transcription, gel electrophoresis, RNA purification with gel, crush & soak and Cicular Dichroism (CD) melting studies. For this thesis work, the target sequence in mRNA(Sirt1) was optimized and purified so melting studies could be carried out. For future structural characterization using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) studies with the miR-34a also produced in the lab. The mRNA(Sirt1) target sequence was produced and purified with the final yield of 0.02%. The results show that the sequence is highly ATP dependent and suggest the ratio between the nucleotides ATP/CTP to be 1:2. Low yield of purified mRNA(Sirt1) was received and still contained some impurities, which imply that another method than crush & soak should be used when purifying. The results, indicate that High-Preformance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) might be a better solution for the pufication process. The melting profiles done on mRNA(Sirt1) show that the secondary structures decrease with an increase in temperature. Accroding to the results, the mRNA(Sirt1) sequence is folded in room temperature, though not very stable. The wavelength which provided the best resolution was at 268 nm and the melting point of mRNA(Sirt1) was determined to 44 °C. This thesis also contains an educational part, where an educational material was provided and testing was conducted for the subject Chemistry 2 for students age 18 and the material was evaluated with qualitative methods together with pedagogical methods. The study showed that the student can develope the different abilities stated in the curriculum with the material created. The results also showed that the students preferably choose cultural arguments when dicussing socio scientific question, rather than economical, democratic or utility arguments. / Syftet med studien är att förstå RNA-RNAinteraktioner som styr cellulära funktioner, i detta fall mRNA(Sirt1) i komplex med microRNA-34a (miR-34a). MiR-34a reglerar cancerproteinet p53 via modulation av Sirt1. Detta arbete kommer lägga grund för framtida läkemedelsdesign vid reglering av cancer. MiR-34a binder till den 3’ otranslerade regionen i mRNA(Sirt1) och hämmar antingen translationen av protein Sirtuin 1 (Sirt1) genom att fånga dess mRNA eller genom att försämra det. p53 förhindrar utvecklingen av cancer genom att framkalla programmerad cell död (apoptosis) av celler med skadat DNA. Det har visats att proteinet Sirtuin 1 hjälper celler med skadat DNA att överleva, genom att sänka aktiviteten av p53. På så vis ökar risken för utveckling av cancer. Genom att studera interaktionen mellan mRNA(Sirt1) och miR-34a kan värdefull information kring komplexets struktur fås. Samt hur miR-34a hämmar translationen av mRNA(Sirt1), vilket leder till minskad aktivitet av protein Sirt1. För att klarlägga denna fråga har olika biokemiska och biofysiska metoder använts, såsom in vitro transkription, gelelektrofores, RNA rening med gel och Circular Dichroism (CD). För detta arbete har målsekvensen i mRNA(Sirt1) optimerats och renats så CD smältstudier med kunde genomföras. Resultatet visar att mRNA(Sirt1) sekvensen renats med ett utbyte på 0.02 %. Sekvensen är beroende av ATP och förhållandet mellan ATP/CTP nukleotider bör vara 1:2. Resutatet visar på ett lågt utbyte som visar på att High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) kan vara en bättre metod än Crush & soak för reningen av mRNA(Sirt1). Ur de smältprofiler som gjorts visade det sig att de sekundära strukturerna av mRNA(Sirt1) minskade med ökande temperatur. I enlighet med resultaten visar det att mRNA(Sirt1) är veckat i rumstemperatur men är inte stabil. Den bästa upplösningen erhölls vid 268 nm och mRNA(Sirt1) har en smältpunkt runt 44 °C. Detta arbete innehåller även ett utbildningskapitel, där ett utbildningsmaterial har skapats och testats på 18-åriga kemi 2 studenter i åldern 18 år. Materialet har utvärderats med hjälp av kvalitativa metoder tillsammans med pedagogiska metoder. Studien visade att de flesta förmågorna för kemi 2 kan utvecklas med hjälp av denna typ samhällsfrågor i det naturvetenskapliga klassrummet (SNI-fall) förutom förmågan att planera och genomföra experiment. Det argument som eleverna helst väljer att använda då de diskuterar det skapade SNI-fallet är Kulturargument och det minst använda är Demikratiargument.

Yes / The NAD(+)-dependent deacetylase SIRT1 is involved in diverse cellular processes, and has also been linked with multiple disease states. Among these, SIRT1 expression negatively correlates with cancer survival in both laboratory and clinical studies. Active regulator of SIRT1 (AROS) was the first reported post-transcriptional regulator of SIRT1 activity, enhancing SIRT1-mediated deacetylation and downregulation of the SIRT1 target p53. However, little is known regarding the role of AROS in regulation of SIRT1 during disease. Here, we report the cellular and molecular effects of RNAi-mediated AROS suppression, comparing this with the role of SIRT1 in a panel of human cell lines of both cancerous and non-cancerous origins. Unexpectedly, AROS is found to vary in its modulation of p53 acetylation according to cell context. AROS suppresses p53 acetylation only following the application of cell damaging stress, whereas SIRT1 suppresses p53 under all conditions analysed. This supplements the original characterization of AROS but indicates that SIRT1 activity can persist following suppression of AROS. We also demonstrate that knockdown of AROS induces apoptosis in three cancer cell lines, independent of p53 activation. Importantly, AROS is not required for the viability of three non-cancer cell lines indicating a putative role for AROS in specifically promoting cancer cell survival.

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is an x-linked neuromuscular disease that is caused by an absence of dystrophin protein, rendering skeletal muscle more susceptible to contraction-induced damage. One therapeutic strategy focuses on increasing the expression of endogenous utrophin A, a dystrophin homologue. Interestingly, slow muscle is more resistant to the dystrophic pathology and has increased utrophin A expression (Webster 1998; Gramolini 2001b). These observations led researchers to explore the therapeutic potential of stimulating the slow, oxidative myogenic program (SOMP) in the mdx context. Beneficial adaptations were seen with pharmacological activation of PPARδ and AMPK. We treated mdx mice with resveratrol (~100mg/kg/day), a putative SIRT1 activator, for 6-7 weeks and evaluated the activity of phenotypic modifiers that are known to influence the SOMP. SIRT1 activity and protein levels increased significantly, as well as downstream PGC-1α activity. There was evidence of a fibre type conversion as the treated mice had a higher proportion of the slow myosin heavy chain isoforms in both the EDL and Soleus skeletal muscles. Utrophin A protein levels showed modest, but consistent increases with resveratrol treatment. Finally, histological analysis revealed improvements in central nucleation and fibre size variability. These findings were promising, but raised the question of whether modifying the treatment regimen may result in greater therapeutic benefits. Surprisingly, we discovered that an elevated dose of 500mg/kg/day was ineffective in its promotion of the SOMP. SIRT1 was not activated and there was no change in utrophin A levels with resveratrol treatment. Taken together, this study demonstrates that resveratrol has the ability to promote the SOMP through SIRT1 and PGC-1α activation. It also highlights the importance of selecting an appropriate dose of resveratrol to maximize its effectiveness.

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is an x-linked neuromuscular disease that is caused by an absence of dystrophin protein, rendering skeletal muscle more susceptible to contraction-induced damage. One therapeutic strategy focuses on increasing the expression of endogenous utrophin A, a dystrophin homologue. Interestingly, slow muscle is more resistant to the dystrophic pathology and has increased utrophin A expression (Webster 1998; Gramolini 2001b). These observations led researchers to explore the therapeutic potential of stimulating the slow, oxidative myogenic program (SOMP) in the mdx context. Beneficial adaptations were seen with pharmacological activation of PPARδ and AMPK. We treated mdx mice with resveratrol (~100mg/kg/day), a putative SIRT1 activator, for 6-7 weeks and evaluated the activity of phenotypic modifiers that are known to influence the SOMP. SIRT1 activity and protein levels increased significantly, as well as downstream PGC-1α activity. There was evidence of a fibre type conversion as the treated mice had a higher proportion of the slow myosin heavy chain isoforms in both the EDL and Soleus skeletal muscles. Utrophin A protein levels showed modest, but consistent increases with resveratrol treatment. Finally, histological analysis revealed improvements in central nucleation and fibre size variability. These findings were promising, but raised the question of whether modifying the treatment regimen may result in greater therapeutic benefits. Surprisingly, we discovered that an elevated dose of 500mg/kg/day was ineffective in its promotion of the SOMP. SIRT1 was not activated and there was no change in utrophin A levels with resveratrol treatment. Taken together, this study demonstrates that resveratrol has the ability to promote the SOMP through SIRT1 and PGC-1α activation. It also highlights the importance of selecting an appropriate dose of resveratrol to maximize its effectiveness.

Strategies aimed at expanding functional beta cell mass remain a prime goal of diabetes research. Both the insulin signaling pathway, as well as the G1/S transition of the cell cycle are critically important for the maintenance of beta cell mass. We previously demonstrated in a mouse model of diabetes, insulin receptor substrate 2 (Irs2) deficient mice, that beta cell failure was attributed to reduced islet expression of Cyclin D2, and that overexpressing Cyclin D2 rescued proliferation in Irs2 deficient beta cells in vitro. Since Cyclin D2 partners with CDK4 to drive cell cycle progression, we hypothesized that an activated form of CDK4, Cdk4-R24C (resistant to inhibition by the INK4A cell cycle inhibitor p16), would rescue the in vivo proliferation defect in Irs2 deficient mice. Interestingly, Irs2 knockout mice with the active Cdk4 R24C allele, displayed rescued blood glucose, and normalized glucose tolerance, without affecting peripheral insulin resistance. I found that both and beta cell mass and proliferation were rescued in vivo, contributing to the rescue of glucose tolerance. Interestingly, the dedifferentiated phenotype of Irs2 knockout islets (ALDH1A3+ cells, nuclear FOXO1 and suppressed PDX1) was completely restored with the active Cdk4 allele, suggesting that CDK4 may play a role in promoting beta cell differentiation. Utilizing various in vitro models where FOXO1 represses Pdx1, overexpression of CDK4/CyclinD2 was consistently able to rescue the FOXO1-mediated repression of Pdx1, without significant impacts on FOXO1 subcellular localization. These results suggested that FOXO1 regulation in the beta cell is more complex than previously described, and also suggested that CDK4/Cyclin D2 may be instead modulating the acetylation status of FOXO1, impacting its transcriptional activity. To this end, inhibiting histone acetylate transferases (HATs) partially rescued FOXO1-mediated Pdx1 suppression, while inhibiting histone deacetylase enzymes (HDACs) showed the reverse effect of trending towards blocking the Cyclin D2/CDK4-mediated rescue of Pdx1. Finally, I found that CDK4/Cyclin D2 increases phosphorylation of sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), an HDAC that modulates the acetylation status, and transcriptional activity of FOXO1, and that CDK4/Cyclin D2 promotes FOXO1 degradation. In sum, we conclude that activated CDK4 rescues beta cell failure due to IRS2 deficiency through multiple mechanisms related to not only cell cycle regulation but also to beta cell differentiation status, primarily through modulation of FOXO1 transcriptional activity.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / SIRT1 (Sirtuin 1) is a founding member of a family of seven proteins and histone deacetylases. It is involved in cellular resistance to stress, metabolism, differentiation, aging, and tumor suppression. SIRT1-/- mice demonstrate embryonic and postnatal development defects. We examined hematopoietic and endothelial cell differentiation of SIRT1-/- mouse embryonic stem (mES) cells in vitro, and hematopoietic progenitors in SIRT1+/+, SIRT1+/-, and SIRT1-/- mice. SIRT1-/- ES cells exhibited markedly delayed/immature formation of blast colony-forming cells (BL-CFCs). When individual blast colonies were analyzed for hematopoietic and endothelial potential, replated SIRT1-/- BL-CFC possessed limited hematopoietic potential, whereas endothelial potential was essentially unaltered. The ability of SIRT1-/- ES cells to form primitive erythroid progenitors was not only delayed but greatly decreased. Moreover, after differentiation of SIRT1-/- mES cells, there were also significant decreases in granulocyte-macrophage (CFU-GM) and multipotential (CFU-GEMM) progenitor cells. Differentiation delay/defects were associated with delayed capacity to switch off Oct4, Nanog and Fgf5, decreased β-H1 globin, β-major globin, and Scl gene expression and reduced activation of the Erk1/2 pathway upon SIRT1-/- ES cell commitment. Reintroduction of WT SIRT1 into SIRT1-/- cells partially rescued the primitive erythroid progenitor formation of SIRT1-/- cells and the expression of hemoglobin genes, Hbb-bh1 and Hbb-b1, suggesting that the defect of hematopoietic commitment is due to deletion of SIRT1, and not to genetic drifting of SIRT1-/- cells. To confirm the requirement for SIRT1 for normal development of hematopoietic progenitor cells, we assessed embryonic and adult hematopoiesis in SIRT1+/+, SIRT1+/- and SIRT1-/- mice. Yolk sacs from SIRT1 mutant embryos generated fewer primitive erythroid precursors compared to wild-type (WT) and heterozygous mice. Moreover, knockout of SIRT1 decreased primary bone marrow hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) in 5 week and 12 month old mice, which was especially notable at lower (5%) O2 tension. In addition these progenitors survived less well in vitro under conditions of delayed growth factor addition. Taken together, these results demonstrate that SIRT1 plays a role in ES cell hematopoietic differentiation and mouse hematopoiesis.