Synopsis The Slc30a8 gene encodes the islet-specific zinc transporter ZnT-8, which provides zinc for insulin-hexamer formation. Polymorphic variants in amino acid 325 of human ZnT-8 are associated with altered susceptibility to type 2 diabetes and ZnT-8 autoantibody epitope specificity changes in type 1 diabetes. To assess the physiological importance of ZnT-8, mice carrying a Slc30a8 exon 3 deletion were analyzed histologically and phenotyped for energy metabolism and pancreatic hormone secretion. No gross anatomical or behavioral changes or differences in body weight were observed between wild type and ZnT-8 −/− mice and ZnT-8 −/− mouse islets were indistinguishable from wild type in terms of their numbers, size and cellular composition. However, total zinc content was markedly reduced in ZnT-8 −/− mouse islets, as evaluated both by Timm’s histochemical staining of pancreatic sections and direct measurements in isolated islets. Blood glucose levels were unchanged in 16 week old, 6 hr fasted animals of either gender, however, plasma insulin concentrations were reduced in both female (~31%) and male (~47%) ZnT-8 −/− mice. Intraperitoneal glucose tolerance tests demonstrated no impairment in glucose clearance in male ZnT-8 −/− mice but glucose-stimulated insulin secretion from isolated islets was reduced ~33% relative to wild type littermates. In summary, Slc30a8 gene deletion is accompanied by a modest impairment in insulin secretion without major alterations in glucose metabolism.

More than one-half of the ~50 human chemokines have been associated with or implicated in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes, yet their actual expression patterns in the islet environment of type 1 diabetic patients remain, at present, poorly defined. Here, we have integrated a human islet culture system, murine models of virus-induced and spontaneous type 1 diabetes, and the histopathological examination of pancreata from diabetic organ donors with the goal of providing a foundation for the informed selection of potential therapeutic targets within the chemokine/receptor family. Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand (CCL) 5 (CCL5), CCL8, CCL22, chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand (CXCL) 9 (CXCL9), CXCL10, and chemokine (C-X3-C motif) ligand (CX3CL) 1 (CX3CL1) were the major chemokines transcribed (in an inducible nitric oxide synthase–dependent but not nuclear factor-κB–dependent fashion) and translated by human islet cells in response to in vitro inflammatory stimuli. CXCL10 was identified as the dominant chemokine expressed in vivo in the islet environment of prediabetic animals and type 1 diabetic patients, whereas CCL5, CCL8, CXCL9, and CX3CL1 proteins were present at lower levels in the islets of both species. Of importance, additional expression of the same chemokines in human acinar tissues emphasizes an underappreciated involvement of the exocrine pancreas in the natural course of type 1 diabetes that will require consideration for additional type 1 diabetes pathogenesis and immune intervention studies.

ObjectiveThe SLC30A8 gene encodes the islet-specific transporter ZnT-8, which is hypothesized to provide zinc for insulin-crystal formation. A polymorphic variant in SLC30A8 is associated with altered susceptibility to type 2 diabetes. Several groups have examined the effect of global Slc30a8 gene deletion but the results have been highly variable, perhaps due to the mixed 129SvEv/C57BL/6J genetic background of the mice studied. We therefore sought to remove the conflicting effect of 129SvEv-specific modifier genes.MethodsThe impact of Slc30a8 deletion was examined in the context of the pure C57BL/6J genetic background.ResultsMale C57BL/6J Slc30a8 knockout (KO) mice had normal fasting insulin levels and no change in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) from isolated islets in marked contrast to the ∼50% and ∼35% decrease, respectively, in both parameters observed in male mixed genetic background Slc30a8 KO mice. This observation suggests that 129SvEv-specific modifier genes modulate the impact of Slc30a8 deletion. In contrast, female C57BL/6J Slc30a8 KO mice had reduced (∼20%) fasting insulin levels, though this was not associated with a change in fasting blood glucose (FBG), or GSIS from isolated islets. This observation indicates that gender also modulates the impact of Slc30a8 deletion, though the physiological explanation as to why impaired insulin secretion is not accompanied by elevated FBG is unclear. Neither male nor female C57BL/6J Slc30a8 KO mice showed impaired glucose tolerance.ConclusionsOur data suggest that, despite a marked reduction in islet zinc content, the absence of ZnT-8 does not have a substantial impact on mouse physiology.

Synopsis The SLC30A8 gene encodes the zinc transporter ZnT-8, which provides zinc for insulin-hexamer formation. Genome-wide association studies have shown that a polymorphic variant in SLC30A8 is associated with altered susceptibility to type 2 diabetes and we recently reported that glucose-stimulated insulin secretion is decreased in islets isolated from Slc30a8 knockout mice. The present study examines the molecular basis for the islet-specific expression of Slc30a8. VISTA analyses identified two conserved regions in Slc30a8 introns 2 and 3, designated enhancers A and B, respectively. Transfection experiments demonstrated that enhancer B confers elevated fusion gene expression in both βTC-3 cells and αTC-6 cells. In contrast, enhancer A confers elevated fusion gene expression selectively in βTC-3 and not αTC-6 cells. These data suggest that enhancer A is an islet beta cell-specific enhancer and that the mechanisms controlling Slc30a8 expression in alpha and beta cells are overlapping but distinct. Gel retardation and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays revealed that the islet-enriched transcription factor Pdx-1 binds enhancer A in vitro and in situ, respectively. Mutation of two Pdx-1 binding sites in enhancer A markedly reduces fusion gene expression suggesting that this factor contributes to Slc30a8 expression in beta cells, a conclusion consistent with developmental studies showing that restriction of Pdx-1 to pancreatic islet beta cells correlates with the induction of Slc30a8 gene and ZnT-8 protein expression in vivo.

Genome-wide association (GWA) studies have shown that a polymorphic variant in SLC30A8, which encodes zinc transporter-8 (ZnT-8), is associated with altered susceptibility to type 2 diabetes (T2D). This association is consistent with the observation that glucose-stimulated insulin secretion is decreased in islets isolated from Slc30a8 knockout mice. In the present study immunohistochemical staining was first used to show that SLC30A8 is expressed specifically in pancreatic islets. Fusion gene studies were then used to examine the molecular basis for the islet-specific expression of SLC30A8. The analysis of SLC30A8-luciferase expression in βTC-3 cells revealed that the proximal promoter region, located between −6154 and −1, relative to the translation start site, was only active in stable but not transient transfections. VISTA analyses identified three regions in the SLC30A8 promoter and a region in SLC30A8 intron 2 that are conserved in the mouse Slc30a8 gene. Additional fusion gene experiments demonstrated that none of these Slc30a8 promoter regions exhibited enhancer activity when ligated to a heterologous promoter whereas the conserved region in SLC30A8 intron 2 conferred elevated reporter gene expression selectively in βTC-3 but not αTC-6 cells. Finally, the functional effects of a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), rs62510556, in this conserved intron 2 enhancer were investigated. Gel retardation studies showed that rs62510556 affects the binding of an unknown transcription factor and fusion gene analyses showed that it modulates enhancer activity. However genetic analyses suggest that this SNP is not a causal variant that contributes to the association between SLC30A8 and T2D, at least in Europeans.