The nuclear receptor steroidogenic factor 1 is essential for the formation of the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus

1995 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 478-486 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. Ikeda
Endocrinology ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 143 (2) ◽  
pp. 607-614 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregor Majdic ◽  
Morag Young ◽  
Elise Gomez-Sanchez ◽  
Paul Anderson ◽  
Lidia S. Szczepaniak ◽  
...  

Abstract Knockout (KO) mice lacking steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1) exhibit a phenotype that includes adrenal and gonadal agenesis, impaired gonadotropin expression, and abnormalities of the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus (VMH). Studies in rodents with lesions of the ventromedial hypothalamus have implicated the VMH in body weight regulation, suggesting that SF-1 KO mice may provide a genetic model of obesity. To prevent death, SF-1 KO mice were rescued with corticosteroid injections, followed by syngeneic adrenal transplants from wild-type (WT) littermates. Corticosterone and ACTH levels in WT and SF-1 KO mice were indistinguishable, documenting restoration of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal function. Although weights at earlier ages did not differ significantly from WT littermates, SF-1 KO mice were significantly heavier by 8 wk of age and eventually weighed almost twice as much as WT controls. Obesity in SF-1 KO mice predominantly resulted from decreased activity rather than increased food intake. Leptin was increased markedly, insulin was modestly elevated, and glucose was indistinguishable from WT mice. Although sex steroids in rodents affect weight, ovariectomy did not abolish the weight difference between WT and SF-1 KO mice. These SF-1 KO mice are a genetic model of late-onset obesity that may help elucidate the role of the VMH in weight regulation.


2008 ◽  
Vol 22 (8) ◽  
pp. 1950-1961 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ki Woo Kim ◽  
Young-Hwan Jo ◽  
Liping Zhao ◽  
Nancy R. Stallings ◽  
Streamson C. Chua ◽  
...  

Abstract The nuclear receptor steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1) plays essential roles in the development and function of the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus (VMH). Considerable evidence links the VMH and SF-1 with the regulation of energy homeostasis. Here, we demonstrate that SF-1 colocalizes in VMH neurons with the cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1R) and that a specific CB1R agonist modulates electrical activity of SF-1 neurons in hypothalamic slice preparations. We further show that SF-1 directly regulates CB1R gene expression via a SF-1-responsive element at −101 in its 5′-flanking region. Finally, we show that knockout mice with selective inactivation of SF-1 in the brain have decreased expression of CB1R in the region of the VMH and exhibit a blunted response to systemically administered CB1R agonists. These studies suggest that SF-1 directly regulates the expression of CB1R, which has been implicated in the regulation of energy homeostasis and anxiety-like behavior.


1996 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 139-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Wong ◽  
M S Ramayya ◽  
G P Chrousos ◽  
P H Driggers ◽  
K L Parker

ABSTRACT The orphan nuclear receptor steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1) plays key roles in endocrine development and function. Initially identified as a positive regulator of the cytochrome P450 steroid hydroxylases, analyses of knockout mice deficient in SF-1 revealed that SF-1 is essential for adrenal and gonadal development, pituitary gonadotropin expression and formation of the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus. Although more limited in scope, analyses of SF-1 in humans similarly have suggested that SF-1 is important for differentiated function in adrenocortical and gonadotrope adenomas. In the hope of extending our understanding of SF-1 function by identifying possible roles of SF-1 in clinical endocrine disorders, we isolated the FTZ-F1 gene encoding human SF-1 and mapped it to chromosome 9q33. In this report, we characterize the sequence and structural organization of the human cDNA and gene encoding SF-1, providing new insights into comparative aspects of SF-1 structure that will facilitate efforts to study the role of this transcription factor in human endocrine disorders.


Endocrinology ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 149 (5) ◽  
pp. 2138-2148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan C. Bingham ◽  
Kimberly K. Anderson ◽  
Anne L. Reuter ◽  
Nancy R. Stallings ◽  
Keith L. Parker

Leptin, an adipocyte-derived hormone, has emerged as a critical regulator of energy homeostasis. The leptin receptor (Lepr) is expressed in discrete regions of the brain; among the sites of highest expression are several mediobasal hypothalamic nuclei known to play a role in energy homeostasis, including the arcuate nucleus, the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus (VMH), and the dorsomedial hypothalamic nucleus. Although most studies have focused on leptin’s actions in the arcuate nucleus, the role of Lepr in these other sites has received less attention. To explore the role of leptin signaling in the VMH, we used bacterial artificial chromosome transgenesis to target Cre recombinase to VMH neurons expressing steroidogenic factor 1, thereby inactivating a conditional Lepr allele specifically in steroidogenic factor 1 neurons of the VMH. These knockout (KO) mice, designated Lepr KOVMH, exhibited obesity, particularly when challenged with a high-fat diet. On a low-fat diet, Lepr KOVMH mice exhibited significantly increased adipose mass even when their weights were comparable to wild-type littermates. Furthermore, these mice exhibited a metabolic syndrome including hepatic steatosis, dyslipidemia, and hyperleptinemia. Lepr KOVMH mice were hyperinsulinemic from the age of weaning and eventually developed overt glucose intolerance. These data define nonredundant roles of the Lepr in VMH neurons in energy homeostasis and provide a model system for studying other actions of leptin in the VMH.


Endocrinology ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 152 (5) ◽  
pp. 2100-2112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erling A. Hoivik ◽  
Trine E. Bjanesoy ◽  
Oliver Mai ◽  
Shiki Okamoto ◽  
Yasuhiko Minokoshi ◽  
...  

The nuclear receptor steroidogenic factor 1/adrenal 4 binding protein (SF-1/Ad4BP) is an essential regulator of endocrine development and function, and the expression of the corresponding gene (sf-1/ad4bp) is precisely regulated in a time- and tissue-dependent manner. We previously demonstrated that the basal promoter of sf-1/ad4bp is controlled by DNA methylation and that its methylation status reflects the expression pattern of SF-1/Ad4BP. Recently, three intronic enhancers were identified in the sf-1/ad4bp gene that target SF-1/Ad4BP expression to the fetal adrenal (FAdE; fetal adrenal-specific enhancer), to pituitary gonadotropes (PGE; pituitary gonadotrope-specific enhancer), and to the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus (VMHE; ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus-specific enhancer). Here, we demonstrate that the activity of these enhancers is correlated with their DNA methylation status. We show that they are hypomethylated in tissues where they are active and generally hypermethylated in tissues where they are not active. Furthermore, we demonstrate in transient transfection experiments that forced DNA methylation represses reporter gene activity driven by these enhancers. These data directly demonstrate a functional significance for the enhancers' methylation status. Intriguingly, further analyses of the basal promoter in gonadotropes revealed that it is methylated in these cells, in contrast to other SF-1/Ad4BP-expressing tissues. Consistent with this, sf-1/ad4bp is transcribed from an alternative promoter in gonadotropes. Taken together, our experiments show that the tissue-specific expression of SF-1/Ad4BP is epigenetically regulated and identify tissue-specific differentially methylated regions within the sf-1/ad4bp locus that are essential for its transcriptional control.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 759
Author(s):  
Karen P. Briski ◽  
Mostafa M. H. Ibrahim ◽  
A. S. M. Hasan Mahmood ◽  
Ayed A. Alshamrani

The catecholamine norepinephrine (NE) links hindbrain metabolic-sensory neurons with key glucostatic control structures in the brain, including the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus (VMN). In the brain, the glycogen reserve is maintained within the astrocyte cell compartment as an alternative energy source to blood-derived glucose. VMN astrocytes are direct targets for metabolic stimulus-driven noradrenergic signaling due to their adrenergic receptor expression (AR). The current review discusses recent affirmative evidence that neuro-metabolic stability in the VMN may be shaped by NE influence on astrocyte glycogen metabolism and glycogen-derived substrate fuel supply. Noradrenergic modulation of estrogen receptor (ER) control of VMN glycogen phosphorylase (GP) isoform expression supports the interaction of catecholamine and estradiol signals in shaping the physiological stimulus-specific control of astrocyte glycogen mobilization. Sex-dimorphic NE control of glycogen synthase and GP brain versus muscle type proteins may be due, in part, to the dissimilar noradrenergic governance of astrocyte AR and ER variant profiles in males versus females. Forthcoming advances in the understanding of the molecular mechanistic framework for catecholamine stimulus integration with other regulatory inputs to VMN astrocytes will undoubtedly reveal useful new molecular targets in each sex for glycogen mediated defense of neuronal metabolic equilibrium during neuro-glucopenia.


2021 ◽  
Vol 113 ◽  
pp. 101919
Author(s):  
Dolores Adriana Bravo Durán ◽  
Selina Jocelyn Barreda Guzmán ◽  
Angélica Trujillo Hernández ◽  
Adriana Berenice Silva Gómez

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