Diacylglycerol kinase δ phosphorylates phosphatidylcholine-specific phospholipase C-dependent, palmitic acid-containing diacylglycerol species in response to high glucose levels.

Decreased expression of diacylglycerol (DG) kinase (DGK) δ in skeletal muscles is closely related to the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. To identify DG species that are phosphorylated by DGKδ in response to high glucose stimulation, we investigated high glucose-dependent changes in phosphatidic acid (PA) molecular species in mouse C2C12 myoblasts using a newly established liquid chromatography/MS method. We found that the suppression of DGKδ2 expression by DGKδ-specific siRNAs significantly inhibited glucose-dependent increases in 30:0-, 32:0-, and 34:0-PA and moderately attenuated 30:1-, 32:1-, and 34:1-PA. Moreover, overexpression of DGKδ2 also enhanced the production of these PA species. MS/MS analysis revealed that these PA species commonly contain palmitic acid (16:0). D609, an inhibitor of phosphatidylcholine-specific phospholipase C (PC-PLC), significantly inhibited the glucose-stimulated production of the palmitic acid-containing PA species. Moreover, PC-PLC was co-immunoprecipitated with DGKδ2. These results strongly suggest that DGKδ preferably metabolizes palmitic acid-containing DG species supplied from the PC-PLC pathway, but not arachidonic acid (20:4)-containing DG species derived from the phosphatidylinositol turnover, in response to high glucose levels.