Suppression of the nuclear factor Eny2 increases insulin secretion in poorly functioning INS-1E insulinoma cells

Eny2, the mammalian ortholog of yeast Sus1 and drosophila E(y)2, is a nuclear factor that participates in several steps of gene transcription and in mRNA export. We had previously found that Eny2 expression changes in mouse pancreatic islets during the metabolic adaptation to pregnancy. We therefore hypothesized that the protein contributes to the regulation of islet endocrine cell function and tested this hypothesis in rat INS-1E insulinoma cells. Overexpression of Eny2 had no effect but siRNA-mediated knockdown of Eny2 resulted in markedly increased glucose and exendin-4-induced insulin secretion from otherwise poorly glucose-responsive INS-1E cells. Insulin content, cellular viability, and the expression levels of several key components of glucose sensing remained unchanged; however glucose-dependent cellular metabolism was higher after Eny2 knockdown. Suppression of Eny2 enhanced the intracellular incretin signal downstream of cAMP. The use of specific cAMP analogues and pathway inhibitors primarily implicated the PKA and to a lesser extent the EPAC pathway. In summary, we identified a potential link between the nuclear protein Eny2 and insulin secretion. Suppression of Eny2 resulted in increased glucose and incretin-induced insulin release from a poorly glucose-responsive INS-1E subline. Whether these findings extend to other experimental conditions or to in vivo physiology needs to be determined in further studies.