Mof plays distinct roles in hepatic lipid metabolism under healthy or non-alcoholic fatty liver conditions

Xinghong Guo; Kai Liang; Longqing Xia; Xu Zhang; Jinbo Liu; Chuan Wang; Jinquan Li; Xiangzhi Li; Xinguo Hou; Li Chen

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2023.108446

Mof plays distinct roles in hepatic lipid metabolism under healthy or non-alcoholic fatty liver conditions

iScience. 2023 Nov 14;26(12):108446. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.108446. eCollection 2023 Dec 15.

Authors

Xinghong Guo^{1

2

3

4}, Kai Liang^{1

2

3

4}, Longqing Xia¹, Xu Zhang⁵, Jinbo Liu^{1

2

3

4}, Chuan Wang^{1

2

3

4}, Jinquan Li^{1

2

3

4}, Xiangzhi Li⁵, Xinguo Hou^{1

2

3

4}, Li Chen^{1

2

3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Endocrinology, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.
² Institute of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases of Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.
³ Key Laboratory of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Shandong Province Medicine & Health, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.
⁴ Jinan Clinical Research Center for Endocrine and Metabolic Disease, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.
⁵ Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Cells and Developmental Biology, Life Science School of Shandong University, Qingdao, Shandong 266237, China.

Abstract

The disturbance of hepatic lipid metabolism has a strong association with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and diabetes. Mof, an acetyltransferase involved in obesity and carbon metabolism, has not been thoroughly examined in its connection to hepatic metabolism. We aimed to explore the impact of Mof on hepatic lipid metabolism. The alteration of Mof expression was found in both obese mice and NAFLD human liver. The genes regulated by Mof were closely associated with lipid metabolism. In normal mice or hepatic cells, the down-regulation or inhibition of Mof resulted in increased lipid accumulation due to decreased PPARα expression. Conversely, in diet-induced obesity (DIO) mice or hepatic cells treated with palmitic acid, the inhibition of Mof led to improved lipid metabolism, attributed to the reduction in p-mTOR/mTOR levels. In summary, Mof exhibited distinct roles in lipid metabolism under different conditions. The inhibition of Mof may hold potential as a therapeutic target for hepatic lipid metabolism disturbances.

Keywords: Cell biology; Molecular biology; Physiology.