https://www.hal.inserm.fr/inserm-00549873/document

Etiological heterogeneity in autism spectrum disorders: More than 100 genetic and genomic disorders and still counting

Long-chain fatty acids and lipids serve a wide variety of functions in mammalian homeostasis, particularly in the formation and dynamic properties of biological membranes and as fuels for energy production in tissues such as heart and skeletal muscle. On the other hand, long-chain fatty acid metabolites may exert toxic effects on cellular functions and cause cell injury. Therefore, fatty acid uptake into the cell and intracellular handling need to be carefully controlled. In the last few years, our knowledge of the regulation of cellular fatty acid uptake has dramatically increased. Notably, fatty acid uptake was found to occur by a mechanism that resembles that of cellular glucose uptake. Thus, following an acute stimulus, particularly insulin or muscle contraction, specific fatty acid transporters translocate from intracellular stores to the plasma membrane to facilitate fatty acid uptake, just as these same stimuli recruit glucose transporters to increase glucose uptake. This regulatory mechanism is important to clear lipids from the circulation postprandially and to rapidly facilitate substrate provision when the metabolic demands of heart and muscle are increased by contractile activity. Studies in both humans and animal models have implicated fatty acid transporters in the pathogenesis of diseases such as the progression of obesity to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. As a result, membrane fatty acid transporters are now being regarded as a promising therapeutic target to redirect lipid fluxes in the body in an organ-specific fashion.

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Membrane Fatty Acid Transporters as Regulators of Lipid Metabolism: Implications for Metabolic Disease

Genetic factors have an important role in the aetiology of mental retardation. However, their contribution is often underestimated because in developed countries, severely affected patients are mainly sporadic cases and familial cases are rare. X-chromosomal mental retardation is the exception to this rule, and this is one of the reasons why research into the genetic and molecular causes of mental retardation has focused almost entirely on the X-chromosome. Here, we review the remarkable recent progress in this field, its promise for understanding neural function, learning and memory, and the implications of this research for health care.

X-linked mental retardation

Evidence is emerging that systemic metabolic disturbances contribute to cardiac myocyte dysfunction and clinically apparent heart failure, independent of associated coronary artery disease. To test the hypothesis that perturbation of lipid homeostasis in cardiomyocytes contributes to cardiac dysfunction, we engineered transgenic mice with cardiac-specific overexpression of fatty acid transport protein 1 (FATP1) using the alpha-myosin heavy chain gene promoter. Two independent transgenic lines demonstrate 4-fold increased myocardial free fatty acid (FFA) uptake that is consistent with the known function of FATP1. Increased FFA uptake in this model likely contributes to early cardiomyocyte FFA accumulation (2-fold increased) and subsequent increased cardiac FFA metabolism (2-fold). By 3 months of age, transgenic mice have echocardiographic evidence of impaired left ventricular filling and biatrial enlargement, but preserved systolic function. Doppler tissue imaging and hemodynamic studies confirm that these mice have predominantly diastolic dysfunction. Furthermore, ambulatory ECG monitoring reveals prolonged QT(c) intervals, reflecting reductions in the densities of repolarizing, voltage-gated K+ currents in ventricular myocytes. Our results show that in the absence of systemic metabolic disturbances, such as diabetes or hyperlipidemia, perturbation of cardiomyocyte lipid homeostasis leads to cardiac dysfunction with pathophysiological findings similar to those in diabetic cardiomyopathy. Moreover, the MHC-FATP model supports a role for FATPs in FFA import into the heart in vivo.

Transgenic Expression of Fatty Acid Transport Protein 1 in the Heart Causes Lipotoxic Cardiomyopathy

Acyl-CoA synthetase enzymes are essential for de novo lipid synthesis, fatty acid catabolism, and remodeling of membranes. Activation of fatty acids requires a two-step reaction catalyzed by these enzymes. In the first step, an acyl-AMP intermediate is formed from ATP. AMP is then exchanged with CoA to produce the activated acyl-CoA. The release of AMP in this reaction defines the superfamily of AMP-forming enzymes. The length of the carbon chain of the fatty acid species defines the substrate specificity for the different acyl-CoA synthetases (ACS). On this basis, five sub-families of ACS have been characterized. The purpose of this review is to report on the large family of mammalian long-chain acyl-CoA synthetases (ACSL), which activate fatty acids with chain lengths of 12 to 20 carbon atoms. Five genes and several isoforms generated by alternative splicing have been identified and limited information is available on their localization. The structure of these membrane proteins has not been solved for the mammalian ACSLs but homology to a bacterial form, whose structure has been determined, points at specific structural features that are important for these enzymes across species. The bacterial form acts as a dimer and has a conserved short motif, called the fatty acid Gate domain, that seems to determine substrate specificity. We will discuss the characterization and identification of the different spliced isoforms, draw attention to the inconsistencies and errors in their annotations, and their cellular localizations. These membrane proteins act on membrane-bound substrates probably as homo- and as heterodimer complexes but have often been expressed as single recombinant isoforms, apparently purified as monomers and tested in Triton X-100 micelles. We will argue that such studies have failed to provide an accurate assessment of the activity and of the distinct function of these enzymes in mammalian cells.

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Mammalian long-chain acyl-CoA synthetases.

X-linked mental retardation (XLMR) is an inherited condition that causes failure to develop cognitive abilities, owing to mutations in a gene on the X chromosome. The latest XLMR update lists up to 136 conditions leading to 'syndromic', or 'specific', mental retardation (MRXS) and 66 entries leading to 'nonspecific' mental retardation (MRX). For 9 of the 66 MRX entries, the causative gene has been identified. Our recent discovery of the contiguous gene deletion syndrome ATS-MR (previously known as Alport syndrome, mental retardation, midface hypoplasia, elliptocytosis, OMIM #300194), characterized by Alport syndrome (ATS) and mental retardation (MR), indicated Xq22.3 as a region containing one mental retardation gene. Comparing the extent of deletion between individuals with ATS-MR and individuals with ATS alone allowed us to define a critical region for mental retardation of approximately 380 kb, containing four genes. Here we report the identification of two point mutations, one missense and one splice-site change, in the gene FACL4 in two families with nonspecific mental retardation. Analysis of enzymatic activity in lymphoblastoid cell lines from affected individuals of both families revealed low levels compared with normal cells, indicating that both mutations are null mutations. All carrier females with either point mutations or genomic deletions in FACL4 showed a completely skewed X-inactivation, suggesting that the gene influences survival advantage. FACL4 is the first gene shown to be involved in nonspecific mental retardation and fatty-acid metabolism.

Sarah E. Lewis

Papers

FACL4, encoding fatty acid-CoA ligase 4, is mutated in nonspecific X-linked mental retardation

Membrane Topology of the Murine Fatty Acid Transport Protein 1

Oligomerization of the Murine Fatty Acid Transport Protein 1