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David Carling

Publications and source records attributed to David Carling.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2026

PGC1α expression using targeted redox-responsive nanogels protects against prostate cancer in vivo.

Prostate cancer is among the most frequently diagnosed cancers in men in the UK and US. Increasing evidence implicates metabolic dysregulation as a critical driver of disease progression. Central to this process is peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1-alpha (PGC1α) that promotes oxidative metabolism and mitochondrial biogenesis while inhibiting metastatic programs. This work investigated the therapeutic potential of PGC1α overexpression via mRNA delivery. Here, we report a prostate-specific, targeted disulphide-crosslinked nanogel system for intracellular delivery of mRNA encoding the N-terminal isoform of PGC1α (NT-PGC1α). Functionalization of the NGs with a peptide targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) enabled selective delivery of NT-PGC1α mRNA in PCa cells and 3D spheroid models. We confirmed sustained PGC1α expression, and increased mitochondrial protein content, indicative of enhanced mitochondrial biogenesis. These nanogels, which were prepared in situ using a nanopolymerization technique, exhibited high mRNA loading capacity, low cytotoxicity, and redox-responsive cargo release, enabling controlled cytosolic delivery following intracellular glutathione-mediated degradation. In vivo, systemic administration of the PSMA-targeted NT-PGC1α mRNA-loaded nanogels resulted in tumor-preferential accumulation and significant suppression of xenograft growth (by 73.4% relative to untreated control), with minimal systemic toxicity. This study presents the first example of a prostate-targeted, disulfide-crosslinked nanogel system for mRNA-mediated metabolic reprogramming in prostate cancer, and highlights its promise as a platform for future RNA-based targeted and precision stimuli-responsive cancer therapies.

Male↗
PubMed2006

LKB1: a sweet side to Peutz-Jeghers syndrome?

The recent discovery that the tumour suppressor LKB1 is an upstream kinase in the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) cascade provided a molecular link between energy metabolism and cancer. A recent study by Shaw and colleagues elucidated the role of LKB1 in type 2 diabetes. Deletion of the gene encoding LKB1 in the liver leads to marked hyperglycaemia as a consequence of increased gluconeogenic gene expression and hepatic glucose output. Importantly, the absence of LKB1 in the liver abolishes the effect of lowering glucose level caused by metformin, a drug that is widely used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. These findings should help solve the mystery surrounding the function of metformin, which has lasted for >30 years.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinase Kinases↗
PubMed2005

Insulin antagonizes ischemia-induced Thr172 phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase alpha-subunits in heart via hierarchical phosphorylation of Ser485/491.

Previous studies showed that insulin antagonizes AMP-activated protein kinase activation by ischemia and that protein kinase B might be implicated. Here we investigated whether the direct phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase by protein kinase B might participate in this effect. Protein kinase B phosphorylated recombinant bacterially expressed AMP-activated protein kinase heterotrimers at Ser(485) of the alpha1-subunits. In perfused rat hearts, phosphorylation of the alpha1/alpha2 AMP-activated protein kinase subunits on Ser(485)/Ser(491) was increased by insulin and insulin pretreatment decreased the phosphorylation of the alpha-subunits at Thr(172) in a subsequent ischemic episode. It is proposed that the effect of insulin to antagonize AMP-activated protein kinase activation involves a hierarchical mechanism whereby Ser(485)/Ser(491) phosphorylation by protein kinase B reduces subsequent phosphorylation of Thr(172) by LKB1 and the resulting activation of AMP-activated protein kinase.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinase Kinases↗
PubMed2005

Characterization of the role of gamma2 R531G mutation in AMP-activated protein kinase in cardiac hypertrophy and Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is the downstream component of a protein kinase cascade that plays a key role in the regulation of energy metabolism. In humans, mutations in the gamma2-subunit of AMPK cause cardiac hypertrophy associated with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, characterized by ventricular preexcitation. The effect of these mutations on AMPK activity and in development of the disease is enigmatic. Here we report that transgenic mice with cardiac-specific expression of gamma2 harboring a mutation of arginine residue 531 to glycine (RG-TG) develop a striking cardiac phenotype by 4 wk of age, including hypertrophy, impaired contractile function, electrical conduction abnormalities, and marked glycogen accumulation. At this stage, AMPK activity isolated from hearts of RG-TG mice was almost completely abolished but could be restored after phosphorylation by an upstream AMPK kinase. At 1 wk of age, there was no detectable evidence of a cardiac phenotype, and AMPK activity in RG-TG hearts was similar to that in nontransgenic, control mice. We propose that mutations in gamma2 lead to suppression of total cardiac AMPK activity secondary to increased glycogen accumulation. The subsequent decrease in AMPK activity provides a mechanism that may explain the development of cardiac hypertrophy in this model.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2005

Exercise in rats does not alter hypothalamic AMP-activated protein kinase activity.

Recent studies have demonstrated that AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) in the hypothalamus is involved in the regulation of food intake. Because exercise is known to influence appetite and cause substrate depletion, it may also influence AMPK in the hypothalamus. Male rats that either rested or ran for 30 or 60 min on a treadmill (22 m/min, 10% slope) were sacrificed immediately after exercise or after 60 min recovery either in the fasted state or after oral gavage with glucose (3g/kg body weight). Exercise decreased muscle and liver glycogen substantially. Hypothalamic total or alpha2-associated AMPK activity and phosphorylation state of the AMPK substrate acetyl-CoA carboxylase were not changed significantly immediately following treadmill running or during fed or fasted recovery. Plasma ghrelin increased (P<0.05) by 40% during exercise whereas the concentration of PYY was unchanged. In recovery, glucose feeding increased plasma glucose and insulin concentrations whereas ghrelin and PYY decreased to (ghrelin) or below (PPY) resting levels. It is concluded that 1h of strenuous exercise in rats does not elicit significant changes in hypothalamic AMPK activity despite an increase in plasma ghrelin. Thus, changes in energy metabolism during or after exercise are likely not coordinated by changes in hypothalamic AMPK activity.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2005

AMP-activated protein kinase: balancing the scales.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is the central component of a protein kinase cascade that plays a key role in the regulation of energy control. AMPK is activated in response to an increase in the ratio of AMP:ATP within the cell. Activation requires phosphorylation of threonine 172 within the catalytic subunit of AMPK by an upstream kinase. The identity of the upstream kinase in the cascade remained frustratingly elusive for many years, but was recently identified as LKB1, a kinase that is inactivated in a rare hereditary form of cancer called Peutz-Jeghers syndrome. Once activated, AMPK initiates a series of responses that are aimed at restoring the energy balance within the cell. ATP-consuming, anabolic pathways, such as fatty acid synthesis and protein synthesis are switched-off, whereas ATP-generating, catabolic pathways, such as fatty acid oxidation and glycolysis, are switched-on. More recent studies have indicated, that AMPK plays an important role in the regulation of whole body energy metabolism. The adipocyte-derived hormones, leptin and adiponectin, activate AMPK in peripheral tissues, including skeletal muscle and liver, increasing energy expenditure. In the hypothalamus, AMPK is inhibited by leptin and insulin, hormones which suppress feeding, whilst ghrelin, a hormone that increases food intake, activates AMPK. Furthermore, direct pharmacological activation of AMPK in the hypothalamus by 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribose increases food intake in rats, demonstrating that AMPK plays a direct role in the regulation of feeding. Taken together these findings indicate that AMPK has a pivotal role in regulating pathways that control both energy expenditure and energy intake.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2005

AMP-activated protein kinase: ancient energy gauge provides clues to modern understanding of metabolism.

The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is an evolutionarily conserved sensor of cellular energy status, and recent data demonstrate that it also plays a critical role in systemic energy balance. AMPK integrates nutritional and hormonal signals in peripheral tissues and the hypothalamus. It mediates effects of adipokines (leptin, adiponectin, and possibly resistin) in regulating food intake, body weight, and glucose and lipid homeostasis. AMPK is regulated by upstream kinases of which the tumor suppressor, LKB1, is the first to be identified. Complex signaling networks suggest that AMPK may prevent insulin resistance, in part by inhibiting pathways that antagonize insulin signaling. Through signaling, metabolic, and gene expression effects, AMPK enhances insulin sensitivity and fosters a metabolic milieu that may reduce the risk for obesity and type 2 diabetes.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2005

Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase-beta acts upstream of AMP-activated protein kinase in mammalian cells.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is the downstream component of a kinase cascade that plays a pivotal role in energy homeostasis. Activation of AMPK requires phosphorylation of threonine 172 (T172) within the T loop region of the catalytic alpha subunit. Recently, LKB1 was shown to activate AMPK. Here we show that AMPK is also activated by Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase (CaMKK). Overexpression of CaMKKbeta in mammalian cells increases AMPK activity, whereas pharmacological inhibition of CaMKK, or downregulation of CaMKKbeta using RNA interference, almost completely abolishes AMPK activation. CaMKKbeta isolated from rat brain or expressed in E. coli phosphorylates and activates AMPK in vitro. In yeast, CaMKKbeta expression rescues a mutant strain lacking the three kinases upstream of Snf1, the yeast homolog of AMPK. These results demonstrate that AMPK is regulated by at least two upstream kinases and suggest that AMPK may play a role in Ca(2+)-mediated signal transduction pathways.

3T3 Cells↗
PubMed2004

Transgenic mouse model of ventricular preexcitation and atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia induced by an AMP-activated protein kinase loss-of-function mutation responsible for Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.

BACKGROUND: We identified a gene (PRKAG2) that encodes the gamma-2 regulatory subunit of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) with a mutation (Arg302Gln) responsible for familial Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome. The human phenotype consists of ventricular preexcitation, conduction abnormalities, and cardiac hypertrophy. METHODS AND RESULTS: To elucidate the molecular basis for the phenotype, transgenic mice were generated by cardiac-restricted expression of the wild-type (TG(WT)) and mutant(TG(R302Q)) PRKAG2 gene with the cardiac-specific promoter alpha-myosin heavy chain. ECG recordings and intracardiac electrophysiology studies demonstrated the TG(R302Q) mice to have ventricular preexcitation (PR interval 10+/-2 versus 33+/-5 ms in TG(WT), P<0.05) and a prolonged QRS (20+/-5 versus 10+/-1 ms in TG(WT), P<0.05). A distinct AV accessory pathway was confirmed by electrical and pharmacological stimulation and substantiated by induction of orthodromic AV reentrant tachycardia. Enzymatic activity of AMPK in the mutant heart was significantly reduced (0.009+/-0.003 versus 0.025+/-0.001 nmol x min(-1) x g(-1) in nontransgenic mice), presumably owing to the mutation disrupting the AMP binding site. Excessive cardiac glycogen was observed. Hypertrophy was confirmed by increases in heart weight (296 versus 140 mg in TG(WT)) and ventricular wall thickness. CONCLUSIONS: We have developed a genetic animal model of WPW that expresses a mutation responsible for a familial form of WPW syndrome with a phenotype identical to that of the human, including induction of supraventricular arrhythmia. The defect is due to loss of function of AMPK. Elucidation of the molecular basis should provide insight into development of the cardiac conduction system and accessory pathways.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2004

AMPK.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Adenosine Monophosphate↗
PubMed2004

Thr2446 is a novel mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) phosphorylation site regulated by nutrient status.

The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a key regulator of protein translation. Signaling via mTOR is increased by growth factors but decreased during nutrient deprivation. Previous studies have identified Ser2448 as a nutrient-regulated phosphorylation site located in the mTOR catalytic domain, insulin stimulates Ser2448 phosphorylation via protein kinase B (PKB), while Ser2448 phosphorylation is attenuated with amino acid starvation. Here we have identified Thr2446 as a novel nutrient-regulated phosphorylation site on mTOR. Thr2446 becomes phosphorylated when CHO-IR cells are nutrient-deprived, but phosphorylation is reduced by insulin stimulation. Nutrient deprivation activates AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). To test whether this could be involved in regulating phoshorylation of mTOR, we treated cultured murine myotubes with 5'-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleoside (AICAR) or dinitrophenol (DNP). Both treatments activated AMPK and also caused a concomitant increase in phosphorylation of Thr2446 and a parallel decrease in insulin's ability to phosphorylate p70 S6 kinase. In vitro kinase assays using peptides based on the sequence in amino acids 2440-2551 of mTOR found that PKB and AMPK are capable of phosphorylating sites in this region. However, phosphorylation by PKB is restricted when Thr2446 is mutated to an acidic residue mimicking phosphorylation. Conversely, AMP-kinase-induced phosphorylation is reduced when Ser2448 is phosphorylated. These data suggest differential phosphorylation Thr2446 and Ser2448 could act as a switch mechanism to integrate signals from nutrient status and growth factors to control the regulation of protein translation.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2004

AMP-activated protein kinase plays a role in the control of food intake.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is the downstream component of a protein kinase cascade that acts as an intracellular energy sensor maintaining the energy balance within the cell. The finding that leptin and adiponectin activate AMPK to alter metabolic pathways in muscle and liver provides direct evidence for this role in peripheral tissues. The hypothalamus is a key regulator of food intake and energy balance, coordinating body adiposity and nutritional state in response to peripheral hormones, such as leptin, peptide YY-(3-36), and ghrelin. To date the hormonal regulation of AMPK in the hypothalamus, or its potential role in the control of food intake, have not been reported. Here we demonstrate that counter-regulatory hormones involved in appetite control regulate AMPK activity and that pharmacological activation of AMPK in the hypothalamus increases food intake. In vivo administration of leptin, which leads to a reduction in food intake, decreases hypothalamic AMPK activity. By contrast, injection of ghrelin in vivo, which increases food intake, stimulates AMPK activity in the hypothalamus. Consistent with the effect of ghrelin, injection of 5-amino-4-imidazole carboxamide riboside, a pharmacological activator of AMPK, into either the third cerebral ventricle or directly into the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus significantly increased food intake. These results suggest that AMPK is regulated in the hypothalamus by hormones which regulate food intake. Furthermore, direct pharmacological activation of AMPK in the hypothalamus is sufficient to increase food intake. These findings demonstrate that AMPK plays a role in the regulation of feeding and identify AMPK as a novel target for anti-obesity drugs.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2004

Neuregulin signaling on glucose transport in muscle cells.

Neuregulin-1, a growth factor that potentiates myogenesis induces glucose transport through translocation of glucose transporters, in an additive manner to insulin, in muscle cells. In this study, we examined the signaling pathway required for a recombinant active neuregulin-1 isoform (rhHeregulin-beta(1), 177-244, HRG) to stimulate glucose uptake in L6E9 myotubes. The stimulatory effect of HRG required binding to ErbB3 in L6E9 myotubes. PI3K activity is required for HRG action in both muscle cells and tissue. In L6E9 myotubes, HRG stimulated PKBalpha, PKBgamma, and PKCzeta activities. TPCK, an inhibitor of PDK1, abolished both HRG- and insulin-induced glucose transport. To assess whether PKB was necessary for the effects of HRG on glucose uptake, cells were infected with adenoviruses encoding dominant negative mutants of PKBalpha. Dominant negative PKB reduced PKB activity and insulin-stimulated glucose transport but not HRG-induced glucose transport. In contrast, transduction of L6E9 myotubes with adenoviruses encoding a dominant negative kinase-inactive PKCzeta abolished both HRG- and insulin-stimulated glucose uptake. In soleus muscle, HRG induced PKCzeta, but not PKB phosphorylation. HRG also stimulated the activity of p70S6K, p38MAPK, and p42/p44MAPK and inhibition of p42/p44MAPK partially repressed HRG action on glucose uptake. HRG did not affect AMPKalpha(1) or AMPKalpha(2) activities. In all, HRG stimulated glucose transport in muscle cells by activation of a pathway that requires PI3K, PDK1, and PKCzeta, but not PKB, and that shows cross-talk with the MAPK pathway. The PI3K, PDK1, and PKCzeta pathway can be considered as an alternative mechanism, independent of insulin, to induce glucose uptake.

3-Phosphoinositide-Dependent Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2004

The AMP-activated protein kinase cascade--a unifying system for energy control.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is the downstream component of a protein kinase cascade that acts as an intracellular energy sensor maintaining the energy balance within the cell. This pivotal role of AMPK places it in an ideal position for regulating whole-body energy metabolism, and AMPK might play a part in protecting the body from metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and obesity. Mutations in AMPK cause cardiac hypertrophy and arrhythmia. Recent findings have identified LKB1--a protein kinase that is mutated in a hereditary form of cancer--as a candidate for the upstream kinase in the AMPK cascade. AMPK could provide a link in human diseases of which the underlying cause is due to defects in energy metabolism.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2004

Covalent activation of heart AMP-activated protein kinase in response to physiological concentrations of long-chain fatty acids.

Rat hearts were perfused for 1 h with 5 mm glucose with or without palmitate or oleate at concentrations characteristic of the fasting state. The inclusion of fatty acids resulted in increased activities of the alpha-1 or the alpha-2 isoforms of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), increased phosphorylation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase and a decrease in the tissue content of malonyl-CoA. Activation of AMPK was not accompanied by any changes in the tissue contents of ATP, ADP, AMP, phosphocreatine or creatine. Palmitate increased phosphorylation of Thr172 within AMPK alpha-subunits and the activation by palmitate of both AMPK isoforms was abolished by protein phosphatase 2C leading to the conclusion that exposure to fatty acid caused activation of an AMPK kinase or inhibition of an AMPK phosphatase. In vivo, 24 h of starvation also increased heart AMPK activity and Thr172 phosphorylation of AMPK alpha-subunits. Perfusion with insulin decreased both alpha-1 and alpha-2 AMPK activities and increased malonyl-CoA content. Palmitate prevented both of these effects. Perfusion with epinephrine decreased malonyl-CoA content without an effect on AMPK activity but prevented the activation of AMPK by palmitate. The concept is discussed that activation of AMPK by an unknown fatty acid-driven signalling process provides a mechanism for a 'feed-forward' activation of fatty acid oxidation.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2003

LKB1 is the upstream kinase in the AMP-activated protein kinase cascade.

Inactivating mutations in the protein kinase LKB1 lead to a dominantly inherited cancer in humans termed Peutz-Jeghers syndrome. The role of LKB1 is unclear, and only one target for LKB1 has been identified in vivo [3]. AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is the downstream component of a protein kinase cascade that plays a pivotal role in energy homeostasis. AMPK may have a role in protecting the body from metabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiac hypertrophy. We previously reported the identification of three protein kinases (Elm1, Pak1, and Tos3 [9]) that lie upstream of Snf1, the yeast homologue of AMPK. LKB1 shares sequence similarity with Elm1, Pak1, and Tos3, and we demonstrated that LKB1 phosphorylates AMPK on the activation loop threonine (Thr172) within the catalytic subunit and activates AMPK in vitro [9]. Here, we have investigated whether LKB1 corresponds to the major AMPKK activity present in cell extracts. AMPKK purified from rat liver corresponds to LKB1, and blocking LKB1 activity in cells abolishes AMPK activation in response to different stimuli. These results identify a link between two protein kinases, previously thought to lie in unrelated, distinct pathways, that are associated with human diseases.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases↗
PubMed2003

Activation of yeast Snf1 and mammalian AMP-activated protein kinase by upstream kinases.

The Snf1/AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) family plays fundamental roles in cellular responses to metabolic stress in eukaryotes. In humans, AMPK regulates lipid and glucose metabolism and has been implicated in such metabolic disorders as diabetes and obesity and in cardiac abnormalities. Snf1 and AMPK are the downstream components of kinase cascades, but the upstream kinase(s) have remained elusive. We have here identified three yeast kinases, Pak1p, Tos3p, and Elm1p, that activate Snf1 kinase in vivo. Triple deletion of the cognate genes causes a Snf- mutant phenotype and abolishes Snf1 catalytic activity. All three kinases phosphorylate recombinant Snf1p on the activation-loop threonine. Moreover, Tos3p phosphorylates mammalian AMPK on the equivalent residue and activates the enzyme, suggesting functional conservation of the upstream kinases between yeast and mammals. We further show that the closely related mammalian LKB1 kinase, which is associated with Peutz-Jeghers cancer-susceptibility syndrome, phosphorylates and activates AMPK in vitro. Thus, the identification of the yeast upstream kinases should facilitate identification of the corresponding, physiologically important mammalian upstream kinases.

AMP-Activated Protein Kinase Kinases↗