Regulatory role for phosphatidylcholine transfer protein/StarD2 in the metabolic response to peroxisome proliferator activated receptor alpha (PPARalpha)

Biochim Biophys Acta. 2010 Apr;1801(4):496-502. doi: 10.1016/j.bbalip.2009.12.013. Epub 2010 Jan 4.

Abstract

Phosphatidylcholine transfer protein (PC-TP, a.k.a. StarD2) is abundantly expressed in liver and is regulated by PPARalpha. When fed the synthetic PPARalpha ligand fenofibrate, Pctp(-/-) mice exhibited altered lipid and glucose metabolism. Microarray profiling of livers from fenofibrate fed wild type and Pctp(-/-) mice revealed differential expression of a broad array of metabolic genes, as well as their regulatory transcription factors. PC-TP expression in cell culture controlled the activities of both PPARalpha and HNF4alpha, suggesting that the mechanism by which it modulates hepatic metabolism is at least in part via activation of transcription factors that govern nutrient homeostasis.

Keywords: START domain; fibrate drug; gene transcription; glucose; lipid; microarray.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Fenofibrate / pharmacology
  • Gene Expression Profiling
  • Gene Expression Regulation
  • Glucose Tolerance Test
  • Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 4 / physiology
  • Insulin / metabolism
  • Liver / drug effects*
  • Liver / metabolism
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice, Knockout
  • Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis
  • PPAR alpha / pharmacology*
  • Phospholipid Transfer Proteins / physiology*

Substances

  • Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 4
  • Hnf4a protein, mouse
  • Insulin
  • PPAR alpha
  • Phospholipid Transfer Proteins
  • Fenofibrate