Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, Dong-A University, Busan, Republic of Korea.
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ajou University Graduate School of Medicine, Suwon, Republic of Korea.
Endocrinology. 2019 Apr 1;160(4):729-743. doi: 10.1210/en.2019-00029.
The initial steps of steroidogenesis occur in the mitochondria. Dynamic changes in the mitochondria are associated with their fission and fusion. Therefore, understanding the cellular and molecular relationships between steroidogenesis and mitochondrial dynamics is important. The hypothesis of the current study is that mitochondrial fission and fusion are closely associated with steroid hormone synthesis in testicular Leydig cells. Steroid hormone production, induced by dibutyryl cAMP (dbcAMP) in Leydig cells, was accompanied by increased mitochondrial mass. Mitochondrial elongation increased during the dbcAMP-induced steroid production, whereas mitochondrial fragmentation was reduced. Among the mitochondrial-shaping proteins, the level of dynamin-associated protein 1 (Drp1) was altered in response to dbcAMP stimulation. The increase in Drp1 Ser 637 phosphorylation correlated with steroid hormone production in the MA-10 Leydig cells as well as in the primary adult rat Leydig cells. Drp1 was differentially expressed in the Leydig cells during testicular development. Finally, gonadotropin administration altered the status of Drp1 phosphorylation in the Leydig cells of immature rat testes. Overall, mitochondrial dynamics is directly linked to steroidogenesis, and Drp1 plays an important regulatory role during steroidogenesis. This study shows that Drp1 level is regulated by cAMP and that its phosphorylation via protein kinase A (PKA) activation plays a decisive role in mitochondrial shaping by offering an optimal environment for steroid hormone biosynthesis in Leydig cells. Therefore, it is suggested that PKA-mediated Drp1 Ser 637 phosphorylation is indispensable for steroidogenesis in the Leydig cells, and this phosphorylation results in mitochondrial elongation via the relative attenuation of mitochondrial fission during steroidogenesis.
类固醇生成的初始步骤发生在线粒体中。线粒体的动态变化与它们的裂变和融合有关。因此,了解类固醇生成和线粒体动力学之间的细胞和分子关系非常重要。本研究的假设是,线粒体的裂变和融合与睾丸间质细胞中类固醇激素的合成密切相关。dbcAMP(二丁酰环腺苷酸)诱导的间质细胞类固醇激素产生伴随着线粒体质量的增加。dbcAMP 诱导的类固醇生成过程中线粒体伸长增加,而线粒体碎片化减少。在调节线粒体形态的蛋白质中,动力相关蛋白 1(Drp1)的水平在 dbcAMP 刺激下发生变化。Drp1 Ser 637 磷酸化的增加与 MA-10 间质细胞以及原代成年大鼠间质细胞中的类固醇激素产生相关。Drp1 在睾丸发育过程中的间质细胞中表达不同。最后,促性腺激素给药改变了未成熟大鼠睾丸间质细胞中 Drp1 磷酸化的状态。总之,线粒体动力学与类固醇生成直接相关,Drp1 在类固醇生成过程中发挥重要的调节作用。本研究表明,cAMP 调节 Drp1 水平,其通过蛋白激酶 A(PKA)激活的磷酸化在提供有利于类固醇激素生物合成的最佳环境方面对线粒体形态发挥重要的调节作用。因此,建议 PKA 介导的 Drp1 Ser 637 磷酸化对于间质细胞中的类固醇生成是必不可少的,并且这种磷酸化通过相对减弱类固醇生成过程中线粒体的分裂来导致线粒体伸长。