Given worldwide increases in the incidence of obesity and type 2 diabetes, new strategies for preventing and treating metabolic diseases are needed. The nuclear receptor PPARγ (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma) plays a central role in lipid and glucose metabolism; however, current PPARγ-targeting drugs are characterized by undesirable side effects. Natural products from edible biomaterial provide a structurally diverse resource to alleviate complex disorders via tailored nutritional intervention. We identified a family of natural products, the amorfrutins, from edible parts of two legumes, Glycyrrhiza foetida and Amorpha fruticosa, as structurally new and powerful antidiabetics with unprecedented effects for a dietary molecule. Amorfrutins bind to and activate PPARγ, which results in selective gene expression and physiological profiles markedly different from activation by current synthetic PPARγ drugs. In diet-induced obese and db/db mice, amorfrutin treatment strongly improves insulin resistance and other metabolic and inflammatory parameters without concomitant increase of fat storage or other unwanted side effects such as hepatoxicity. These results show that selective PPARγ-activation by diet-derived ligands may constitute a promising approach to combat metabolic disease.nuclear receptors | nutrition | compound screening | organic synthesis | x-ray structure

Amorfrutins are a family of natural products with high affinity to the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ), a nuclear receptor regulating lipid and glucose metabolism. The PPARγ agonist rosiglitazone increases insulin sensitivity and is effective against type II diabetes but has severe adverse effects including weight gain. Amorfrutins improve insulin sensitivity and dyslipidemia but do not enhance undesired fat storage. They bear potential as therapeutics or prophylactic dietary supplements. We identified amorfrutin B as a novel partial agonist of PPARγ with a considerably higher affinity than that of previously reported amorfrutins, similar to that of rosiglitazone. Crystal structures reveal the geranyl side chain of amorfrutin B as the cause of its particularly high affinity. Typical for partial agonists, amorfrutins 1, 2, and B bind helix H3 and the β-sheet of PPARγ but not helix H12.

SUMMARY Actin assembly beneath enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) attached to its host cell is triggered by the intracellular interaction of its translocated effector proteins Tir and EspFU with human IRSp53 family proteins and N-WASP. Here, we report the structure of the N-terminal I-BAR domain of IRSp53 in complex with a Tir-derived peptide, in which the homodimeric I-BAR domain binds two Tir molecules aligned in parallel. This arrangement provides a protein scaffold linking the bacterium to the host cell's actin polymerization machinery. The structure uncovers a specific peptide-binding site on the I-BAR surface, conserved between IRSp53 and IRTKS. The Tir Asn-Pro-Tyr (NPY) motif, essential for pedestal formation, is specifically recognized by this binding site. The site was confirmed by mutagenesis and in vivo-binding assays. It is possible that IRSp53 utilizes the NPY-binding site for additional interactions with as yet unknown partners within the host cell.

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