OBJECTIVE: Exendin-4 (Ex-4) is an anti-diabetic drug that is a potent agonist of the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor. It has already been approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus, but its underlying mechanisms of action are not fully understood. Calcium/calmodulin-dependent serine protein kinase (CASK), which plays a vital role in the transport and release of neurotransmitters in neurons, is expressed in pancreatic islet cells and β-cells. This study aimed to investigate whether CASK is involved in the insulin secretagogue action induced by Ex-4 in INS-1 cells. MATERIAL/ METHODS: A glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) assay was performed with or without siRNA treatment against CASK. The expression level and location of CASK were evaluated by real-time PCR, western blotting and immunofluorescence. With the use of a protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor or an exchange protein directly activated by cAMP-2 (Epac2) agonist, immunoblotting was performed to establish the signaling pathway through which Ex-4 alters CASK expression. RESULTS: Knock-down of CASK significantly attenuated the Ex-4-enhanced insulin release, and we showed that Ex-4 could increase transcription of CASK mRNA and expression of CASK protein but did not change the cellular location of CASK. A PKA inhibitor reduced the ability of Ex-4 to stimulate CASK expression, but an Epac2 agonist had no effect suggesting that regulation was mediated by the cAMP/PKA pathway. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that the stimulation of β-cell insulin secretion by Ex-4 is mediated, at least in part, by CASK via a novel signaling mechanism.
OBJECTIVE: Exendin-4 (Ex-4) is an anti-diabetic drug that is a potent agonist of the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor. It has already been approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus, but its underlying mechanisms of action are not fully understood. Calcium/calmodulin-dependent serine protein kinase (CASK), which plays a vital role in the transport and release of neurotransmitters in neurons, is expressed in pancreatic islet cells and β-cells. This study aimed to investigate whether CASK is involved in the insulin secretagogue action induced by Ex-4 in INS-1 cells. MATERIAL/ METHODS: A glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) assay was performed with or without siRNA treatment against CASK. The expression level and location of CASK were evaluated by real-time PCR, western blotting and immunofluorescence. With the use of a protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor or an exchange protein directly activated by cAMP-2 (Epac2) agonist, immunoblotting was performed to establish the signaling pathway through which Ex-4 alters CASK expression. RESULTS: Knock-down of CASK significantly attenuated the Ex-4-enhanced insulin release, and we showed that Ex-4 could increase transcription of CASK mRNA and expression of CASK protein but did not change the cellular location of CASK. A PKA inhibitor reduced the ability of Ex-4 to stimulate CASK expression, but an Epac2 agonist had no effect suggesting that regulation was mediated by the cAMP/PKA pathway. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that the stimulation of β-cell insulin secretion by Ex-4 is mediated, at least in part, by CASK via a novel signaling mechanism.
Authors: Lars S Maier; Stefan Wagner; Julian Mustroph; Can M Sag; Felix Bähr; Anna-Lena Schmidtmann; Shamindra N Gupta; Alexander Dietz; M M Towhidul Islam; Charlotte Lücht; Bo Eric Beuthner; Steffen Pabel; Maria J Baier; Ali El-Armouche; Samuel Sossalla; Mark E Anderson; Julia Möllmann; Michael Lehrke; Nikolaus Marx; Peter J Mohler; Donald M Bers; Bernhard Unsöld; Tao He; Matthias Dewenter; Johannes Backs Journal: Circ Res Date: 2021-02-17 Impact factor: 17.367