Inducible deletion of skeletal muscle AMPKα 1 reveals that AMPK is required for nucleotide balance but dispensable for muscle glucose uptake and fat oxidation during exercise

International audienceObjective: Current evidence for AMPK-mediated regulation of skeletal muscle metabolism during exercise is mainly based on transgenic mouse models with chronic (lifelong) disruption of AMPK function. Findings based on such models are potentially biased by secondary effects related to chronic lack of AMPK function. In an attempt to study the direct effect(s) of AMPK on muscle metabolism during exercise, we generated a new mouse model with inducible muscle-specific deletion of AMPKα catalytic subunits in adult mice.Methods: Tamoxifen-inducible and muscle-specific AMPKα1/α2 double KO mice (AMPKα imdKO) were generated using the Cre/loxP system with the Cre driven by the human skeletal muscle actin (HSA) promotor.Results: During treadmill running at the same relative exercise intensity, AMPKα imdKO mice showed greater depletion of muscle ATP, which was associated with accumulation of the deamination product IMP. Muscle-specific deletion of AMPKα in adult mice promptly reduced maximal running speed, muscle glycogen content and was associated with reduced expression of UGP2, a key component of the glycogen synthesis pathway. Muscle mitochondrial respiration, whole body substrate utilization as well as muscle glucose uptake and fatty acid (FA) oxidation during muscle contractile activity remained unaffected by muscle-specific deletion AMPKα subunits in adult mice.Conclusions: Inducible deletion of AMPKα subunits in adult mice reveals that AMPK is required for maintaining muscle ATP levels and nucleotide balance during exercise, but is dispensable for regulating muscle glucose uptake, FA oxidation and substrate utilization during exercise

Illumination of the endogenous insulin-regulated TBC1D4 interactome in human skeletal muscle

Insulin-stimulated muscle glucose uptake is a key process in glycemic control. This process depends on the redistribution of glucose transporters to the surface membrane, a process that involves regulatory proteins such as TBC1D1 and TBC1D4. Accordingly, a TBC1D4 loss-of-function mutation in human skeletal muscle is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, and observations from carriers of a TBC1D1 variant associate this protein to a severe obesity phenotype. Here, we identified interactors of the endogenous TBC1D4 protein in human skeletal muscle by an unbiased proteomics approach. We detected 76 proteins as candidate TBC1D4 interactors. The binding of 12 of these interactors was regulated by insulin, including proteins known to be involved in glucose metabolism (e.g., 14-3-3 proteins and α-actinin-4 [ACTN4]). TBC1D1 also coprecipitated with TBC1D4 and vice versa in both human and mouse skeletal muscle. This interaction was not regulated by insulin or exercise in young, healthy, lean individuals. Similarly, the exercise- and insulin-regulated phosphorylation of the TBC1D1-TBC1D4 complex was intact. In contrast, we observed an altered interaction as well as compromised insulin-stimulated phosphoregulation of the TBC1D1-TBC1D4 complex in muscle of obese individuals with type 2 diabetes. Altogether, we provide a repository of TBC1D4 interactors in human and mouse skeletal muscle that serve as potential regulators of TBC1D4 function and, thus, insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in human skeletal muscle

High-intensity interval training remodels the proteome and acetylome of human skeletal muscle

Exercise is an effective strategy in the prevention and treatment of metabolic diseases. Alterations in the skeletal muscle proteome, including post-translational modifications, regulate its metabolic adaptations to exercise. Here, we examined the effect of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on the proteome and acetylome of human skeletal muscle, revealing the response of 3168 proteins and 1263 lysine acetyl-sites on 464 acetylated proteins. We identified global protein adaptations to exercise training involved in metabolism, excitation-contraction coupling, and myofibrillar calcium sensitivity. Furthermore, HIIT increased the acetylation of mitochondrial proteins, particularly those of complex V. We also highlight the regulation of exercise-responsive histone acetyl-sites. These data demonstrate the plasticity of the skeletal muscle proteome and acetylome, providing insight into the regulation of contractile, metabolic and transcriptional processes within skeletal muscle. Herein, we provide a substantial hypothesis-generating resource to stimulate further mechanistic research investigating how exercise improves metabolic health