RESUMEN
Cholestasis is associated with accumulation of bile acids and lipids, and liver injury. The constitutive androstane receptor (CAR) and pregnane X receptor (PXR) are xenobiotic nuclear receptors that coordinate protective hepatic responses to potentially toxic stimuli, including bile acids. We investigated the role of these receptors in the regulation of bile acid and lipid metabolism in a bile duct ligation (BDL) model of cholestasis applied to receptor knockout mice. Hepatic damage from bile acid accumulation was increased in both CAR knockout (CARKO) and PXR knockout mice, but bile acid concentrations were lower in CARKO mice. High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol was elevated in CARKO mice, and serum total cholesterol increased less in CARKO or PXR knockout mice than WT mice after BDL. Gene expression analysis of the BDL knockout animals demonstrated that, in response to cholestasis, PXR and CAR both repressed and induced the specific hepatic membrane transporters Oatp-c (organic anion transporting polypeptide C) and Oatp2 (Na+-dependent organic anion transporter 2), respectively. Induction of the xenobiotic transporter multidrug resistance protein 1 in cholestasis was independent of either PXR or CAR, in contrast to the known pattern of induction of multidrug resistance protein 1 by xenobiotics. These results demonstrate that CAR and PXR influence cholesterol metabolism and bile acid synthesis, as well as multiple detoxification pathways, and suggest their potential role as therapeutic targets for the treatment of cholestasis and lipid disorders.
Asunto(s)
Colestasis/metabolismo , Receptores Citoplasmáticos y Nucleares/metabolismo , Receptores de Esteroides/metabolismo , Factores de Transcripción/metabolismo , Miembro 1 de la Subfamilia B de Casetes de Unión a ATP/genética , Miembro 1 de la Subfamilia B de Casetes de Unión a ATP/metabolismo , Animales , Ácidos y Sales Biliares/metabolismo , Conductos Biliares/cirugía , Colestasis/patología , Colesterol/metabolismo , Receptor de Androstano Constitutivo , Perfilación de la Expresión Génica , Regulación de la Expresión Génica , Humanos , Metabolismo de los Lípidos , Hígado/citología , Hígado/metabolismo , Hígado/patología , Transportador 1 de Anión Orgánico Específico del Hígado/genética , Transportador 1 de Anión Orgánico Específico del Hígado/metabolismo , Masculino , Ratones , Ratones Endogámicos , Ratones Noqueados , Proteínas de Transporte de Catión Orgánico/genética , Proteínas de Transporte de Catión Orgánico/metabolismo , Receptor X de Pregnano , Receptores Citoplasmáticos y Nucleares/genética , Receptores de Esteroides/genética , Factores de Transcripción/genéticaRESUMEN
The farnesoid X receptor (FXR) functions as a bile acid (BA) sensor coordinating cholesterol metabolism, lipid homeostasis, and absorption of dietary fats and vitamins. However, BAs are poor reagents for characterizing FXR functions due to multiple receptor independent properties. Accordingly, using combinatorial chemistry we evolved a small molecule agonist termed fexaramine with 100-fold increased affinity relative to natural compounds. Gene-profiling experiments conducted in hepatocytes with FXR-specific fexaramine versus the primary BA chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA) produced remarkably distinct genomic targets. Highly diffracting cocrystals (1.78 A) of fexaramine bound to the ligand binding domain of FXR revealed the agonist sequestered in a 726 A(3) hydrophobic cavity and suggest a mechanistic basis for the initial step in the BA signaling pathway. The discovery of fexaramine will allow us to unravel the FXR genetic network from the BA network and selectively manipulate components of the cholesterol pathway that may be useful in treating cholesterol-related human diseases.