Travel grant Japan JDS EFSD from 01/2018 to 04/2018

Dr Allan Langlois, project manager at CeeD, had the opportunity to be welcomed at Tohoku University in Japan by Pr Makoto Kanzaki, who developed impressive technic based on single molecule imaging with Quantum dot fluorescent nanocrystals. This method is able to dissect intracellular vehicle trafficking processes into discrete and experimental traceable steps.

Obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) are characterized by an overlapping phenotype of insulin resistance with a relative deficiency in insulin secretion underlying hyperglycemia in T2D. Our research team have hypothesized that a conversation between skeletal muscles of different insulin sensitivity and β-cells exists. Our results further suggest that the nature of communication between skeletal muscles and β-cells is dependent upon fiber composition as well as insulin sensitivity. We have identified by Six-plex TMT labeling that several proteins are regulated in human islets exposed to T2D skeletal muscle cells condition medium (T2D CM). MP001 protein was found to be increased in human islets cells exposed to T2D CM. Interestingly, the regulation of MP001 expression and phosphorylation as well as its function in β-cells is unknown. MP001 is localized to the plasma membrane and is an actin filament crosslinking protein. MP001 phosphorylation inhibits its association with actin and with the plasma membrane, leading to its presence in the cytoplasm. Our preliminary data showed an impact of MP001 in insulin secretion either in rat or Human β-cells. Nevertheless, the precise underlying mechanisms needed to be explored in control and diabetic conditions. Thus, the main goal of this collaborative project with Pr Makoto Kanzaki was to provide further insight into MP001 impact on insulin granule trafficking and its interaction with actin in human islets single cells from control and T2D donors.

By obtaining the “Travel grant from JDS EFSD”, Dr Allan LANGLOIS came to Kanzaki’s laboratory to explore in details actin dynamic and insulin granule trafficking in single cells exposed to different conditions (control versus siMP001) using single molecule imaging with Quantum dot fluorescent nanocrystals.