NRF3 upregulates gene expression in SREBP2-dependent mevalonate pathway with cholesterol uptake and lipogenesis inhibition

Tsuyoshi Waku; Toru Hagiwara; Natsuko Tamura; Yuri Atsumi; Yasuomi Urano; Mikiko Suzuki; Takuya Iwami; Katsuya Sato; Masayuki Yamamoto; Noriko Noguchi; Akira Kobayashi

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2021.103180

NRF3 upregulates gene expression in SREBP2-dependent mevalonate pathway with cholesterol uptake and lipogenesis inhibition

iScience. 2021 Sep 28;24(10):103180. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.103180. eCollection 2021 Oct 22.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Laboratory for Genetic Code, Department of Medical Life Systems, Faculty of Life and Medical Sciences, Doshisha University, 1-3 Miyakodani, Tatara, Kyotanabe, Kyoto 610-0394, Japan.
² Laboratory for Genetic Code, Graduate School of Life and Medical Sciences, Doshisha University, Kyotanabe, Kyoto 610-0394, Japan.
³ Systems Life Sciences Laboratory, Department of Medical Life Systems, Faculty of Life and Medical Sciences, Doshisha University, 1-3 Miyakodani, Tatara, Kyotanabe, Kyoto 610-0394, Japan.
⁴ Center for Radioisotope Sciences, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-cho, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8575 Japan.
⁵ Department of Medical Biochemistry, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-cho, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8575 Japan.

Abstract

Lipids, such as cholesterol and fatty acids, influence cell signaling, energy storage, and membrane formation. Cholesterol is biosynthesized through the mevalonate pathway, and aberrant metabolism causes metabolic diseases. The genetic association of a transcription factor NRF3 with obesity has been suggested, although the molecular mechanisms remain unknown. Here, we show that NRF3 upregulates gene expression in SREBP2-dependent mevalonate pathway. We further reveal that NRF3 overexpression not only reduces lanosterol, a cholesterol precursor, but also induces the expression of the GGPS1 gene encoding an enzyme in the production of GGPP from farnesyl pyrophosphate (FPP), a lanosterol precursor. NRF3 overexpression also enhances cholesterol uptake through RAB5-mediated macropinocytosis process, a bulk and fluid-phase endocytosis pathway. Moreover, we find that GGPP treatment abolishes NRF3 knockdown-mediated increase of neutral lipids. These results reveal the potential roles of NRF3 in the SREBP2-dependent mevalonate pathway for cholesterol uptake through macropinocytosis induction and for lipogenesis inhibition through GGPP production.

Keywords: Biochemistry; Biological sciences; Molecular biology.