Transient high glucose causes persistent epigenetic changes and altered gene expression during subsequent normoglycemia

Assam El-Osta, Daniella Brasacchio, Dachun Yao, Alessandro Pocai, Peter L. Jones, Robert G. Roeder, Mark E. Cooper, Michael Brownlee

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

846 Scopus citations

Abstract

The current goal of diabetes therapy is to reduce time-averaged mean levels of glycemia, measured as HbA1c, to prevent diabetic complications. However, HbA1c only explains <25% of the variation in risk of developing complications. Because HbA1c does not correlate with glycemic variability when adjusted for mean blood glucose, we hypothesized that transient spikes of hyperglycemia may be an HbA1c-independent risk factor for diabetic complications. We show that transient hyperglycemia induces long-lasting activating epigenetic changes in the promoter of the nuclear factor κ B (NF-κB) subunit p65 in aortic endothelial cells both in vitro and in nondiabetic mice, which cause increased p65 gene expression. Both the epigenetic changes and the gene expression changes persist for at least 6 d of subsequent normal glycemia, as do NF-κB-induced increases in monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 expression. Hyperglycemia-induced epigenetic changes and increased p65 expression are prevented by reducing mitochondrial superoxide production or superoxide-induced α-oxoaldehydes. These results highlight the dramatic and long-lasting effects that short-term hyperglycemic spikes can have on vascular cells and suggest that transient spikes of hyperglycemia may be an HbA1c-independent risk factor for diabetic complications.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2409-2417
Number of pages9
JournalJournal of Experimental Medicine
Volume205
Issue number10
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 29 2008

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Immunology and Allergy
  • Immunology

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