Journal
CELL DEATH AND DIFFERENTIATION
Volume 21, Issue 8, Pages 1303-1312Publisher
NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP
DOI: 10.1038/cdd.2014.49
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Funding
- NIH [R01 DK081450-03, T32 07150-37, 5R01DK057543, 1I01BX001390, CA93798, CA167708, DK081461]
- VCU Molecular Biology Core Facility
- NIH-NCI Cancer Center Support Grant [P30 CA016059]
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Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis is characterized by hepatic steatosis, elevated levels of circulating free fatty acids (FFA) and hepatocyte lipoapoptosis. This lipoapoptosis requires increased JNK phosphorylation and activation of the pro-apoptotic BH3-only proteins Bim and PUMA. Kelch-like ECH-associated protein (Keap)-1 is a BTB/Kelch protein that can regulate the expression of Bcl-2 protein and control apoptotic cell death. Yet, the role of Keap1 in hepatocyte lipotoxicity is unclear. Here we demonstrate that Keap1 protein was rapidly degraded in hepatocytes, through autophagy in a p62-dependent manner, in response to the toxic saturated FFA palmitate, but not following incubation with the non-toxic FFA oleic acid. Stable knockdown of Keap1 expression, using shRNA technology, in hepatocarcinoma cell lines induced spontaneous cell toxicity that was associated with JNK1-dependent upregulation of Bim and PUMA protein levels. Also, Keap1 knockdown further sensitized hepatocytes to lipoapoptosis by palmitate. Likewise, primary hepatocytes isolated from liver-specific Keap1(-/-) mice displayed higher Bim and PUMA protein levels and demonstrated increased sensitivity to palmitate-induced apoptosis than wild-type mouse hepatocytes. Finally, stable knockdown of Bim or PUMA expression prevented cell toxicity induced by loss of Keap1. These results implicate p62-dependent autophagic degradation of Keap1 by palmitate as a mechanism contributing to hepatocyte lipoapoptosis.
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