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Blockage of progesterone receptor effectively protects pancreatic islet beta cell viability

Rong Zhou1, Xingang Yao, Xing Xu

  • 1School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China.

Steroids
|July 6, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Progesterone receptor (PR) activation worsens inflammation-induced pancreatic cell injury, but the antagonist SC51089 protects these cells. This finding offers potential for new anti-diabetic therapies targeting PR signaling.

Area of Science:

  • Endocrinology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cell Biology

Background:

  • The progesterone receptor (PR) is implicated in diabetes, but its role in pancreatic islet beta cell survival is unclear.
  • Understanding PR's mechanism in beta cells is crucial for developing diabetes treatments.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of PR in pro-inflammatory cytokine (PIC)-induced pancreatic islet beta cell injury.
  • To evaluate the protective effects of the PR antagonist SC51089 on beta cells.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized Min6 pancreatic beta cell line.
  • Employed siRNA interference for PR knockdown.
  • Administered PR agonist progesterone (P4) and antagonist SC51089.
  • Performed immunoblotting to assess protein phosphorylation (p-Erk, p-AKT) and expression (p53, TRAF2).

Main Results:

  • PR activation exacerbated PIC-induced beta cell injury.
  • PR blockage with siRNA or SC51089 protected cells from apoptosis.
  • SC51089 reversed P4 or PR-B overexpression-induced changes in Erk, AKT, p53, and TRAF2 signaling.
  • SC51089's protective effect was mediated by the AKT signaling pathway.

Conclusions:

  • PR plays a significant role in regulating pancreatic islet beta cell survival.
  • The PR antagonist SC51089 demonstrates potential therapeutic value in protecting beta cells from inflammatory damage.
  • SC51089 may represent a novel non-steroid therapeutic agent for anti-diabetic research.
Keywords:
9-cis retinoic acidAKTARCortDHTDMEMDMSODexDiabetesERαErkEstEstroneFBSGRGWGW501516IFNγIL-1βLXRαMAPKMRMifNRP4PICPPARδ/γPRPR elementsPR knockoutPR-KOPREPancreatic islet beta cellsPro-inflammatory cytokinesProgesterone receptorRARXRαRosiSC51089TNFαTOTO901317TRAF2androgen receptorcorticosteronedexamethasonedihydro-testosteronedimethyl sulfoxidedulbecco’s modified eagle’s mediumestrogen receptor αextracellular-signal-regulated kinase 1/2fetal bovine serumglucocorticoid receptorinterferon-γinterleukin-1βliver X receptorαmifepristonemineralocorticoid receptormitogen-activated protein kinasesnuclear receptorp53peroxisome proliferator-activated receptorδ/γpro-inflammatory cytokinesprogesteroneprogesterone receptorprotein 53protein kinase Bretinoid X receptor αrosiglitazonetumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 2tumor necrosis factor α

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