Abstract
Despite the identification of many susceptibility genes our knowledge of the underlying mechanisms responsible for complex disease remains limited. Here, we identified a type 2 diabetes disease module in endosomes, and validate it for functional relevance on selected nodes. Using hepatic Golgi/endosomes fractions, we established a proteome of insulin receptor-containing endosomes that allowed the study of physical protein interaction networks on a type 2 diabetes background. The resulting collated network is formed by 313 nodes and 1147 edges with a topology organized around a few major hubs with Cdk2 displaying the highest collective influence. Overall, 88% of the nodes are associated with the type 2 diabetes genetic risk, including 101 new candidates. The Type 2 diabetes module is enriched with cytoskeleton and luminal acidification –dependent processes that are shared with secretion-related mechanisms. We identified new signaling pathways driven by Cdk2 and PTPLAD1 whose expression regulate the association of the insulin receptor with TUBA, TUBB, the actin component ACTB and the endosomal sorting markers Rab5c and Rab11a. Therefore, the interactome of internalized insulin receptors reveals the presence of a type 2 diabetes disease module enriched in new layers of feedback loops required for insulin signaling, clearance and islet biology.
Author Summary According to the local hypothesis each complex disease can be linked to a well-defined network called the disease module. A disease module can be defined by the topological properties of protein interaction networks. Given the complexity of the whole interaction map the existence of such disease modules remains largely to be tested. Here, we found a type 2 diabetes disease module in insulin receptor-containing endosomes. The disease module contains new pathways that are associated with both insulin signaling, clearance and secretion. Its co-functionality with islets biology may provide a mechanistic rationale for the exploration of personalized medicine and elaborate new drugs.
Acknowledgements
The research program in the R. Faure laboratory was funded by the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC: 155751) and the Fondation du CHU de Québec. M. B-D acknowledges funding from the Fondation du CHU de Québec and the CRCHUQ. S.E. holds a FRQS junior investigator salary award.