TY - JOUR
T1 - The control of lipid metabolism by mRNA splicing in Drosophila
AU - Gingras, Robert M.
AU - Warren, Michelle E.
AU - Nagengast, Alexis A.
AU - Diangelo, Justin R.
N1 - Funding Information:
We would like to thank the Bloomington Stock Center and the Vienna Drosophila RNAi Center for stocks used in this study. RMG was supported in part by a Professors grant to R. Losick from the HHMI and this work was supported by NSF grant 074578 to A.A.N.
PY - 2014/1/10
Y1 - 2014/1/10
N2 - The storage of lipids is an evolutionarily conserved process that is important for the survival of organisms during shifts in nutrient availability. Triglycerides are stored in lipid droplets, but the mechanisms of how lipids are stored in these structures are poorly understood. Previous in vitro RNAi screens have implicated several components of the spliceosome in controlling lipid droplet formation and storage, but the in vivo relevance of these phenotypes is unclear. In this study, we identify specific members of the splicing machinery that are necessary for normal triglyceride storage in the Drosophila fat body. Decreasing the expression of the splicing factors U1-70K, U2AF38, U2AF50 in the fat body resulted in decreased triglyceride levels. Interestingly, while decreasing the SR protein 9G8 in the larval fat body yielded a similar triglyceride phenotype, its knockdown in the adult fat body resulted in a substantial increase in lipid stores. This increase in fat storage is due in part to altered splicing of the gene for the β-oxidation enzyme CPT1, producing an isoform with less enzymatic activity. Together, these data indicate a role for mRNA splicing in regulating lipid storage in Drosophila and provide a link between the regulation of gene expression and lipid homeostasis.
AB - The storage of lipids is an evolutionarily conserved process that is important for the survival of organisms during shifts in nutrient availability. Triglycerides are stored in lipid droplets, but the mechanisms of how lipids are stored in these structures are poorly understood. Previous in vitro RNAi screens have implicated several components of the spliceosome in controlling lipid droplet formation and storage, but the in vivo relevance of these phenotypes is unclear. In this study, we identify specific members of the splicing machinery that are necessary for normal triglyceride storage in the Drosophila fat body. Decreasing the expression of the splicing factors U1-70K, U2AF38, U2AF50 in the fat body resulted in decreased triglyceride levels. Interestingly, while decreasing the SR protein 9G8 in the larval fat body yielded a similar triglyceride phenotype, its knockdown in the adult fat body resulted in a substantial increase in lipid stores. This increase in fat storage is due in part to altered splicing of the gene for the β-oxidation enzyme CPT1, producing an isoform with less enzymatic activity. Together, these data indicate a role for mRNA splicing in regulating lipid storage in Drosophila and provide a link between the regulation of gene expression and lipid homeostasis.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.bbrc.2013.12.027
DO - 10.1016/j.bbrc.2013.12.027
M3 - Article
C2 - 24333419
AN - SCOPUS:84892439962
SN - 0006-291X
VL - 443
SP - 672
EP - 676
JO - Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
JF - Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
IS - 2
ER -