Summary Phosphorylation of the insulin receptor substrates (Irs) on serine residues—typified by Ser307 of rodent Irs1—is thought to mediate insulin resistance. To determine whether Ser307 negatively regulates Irs1 in vivo, we generated knock-in mice in which Ser307 (human Ser312) was replaced with alanine (A/A). Unexpectedly, A/A mice that were fed a high fat diet developed more severe insulin resistance than control mice, accompanied by enhanced pancreatic compensation and impaired muscle insulin signaling. Chow-fed mice whose livers lacked Irs2, but retained a single knock-in allele (A/lox::LKO2) were profoundly insulin resistant (versus +/lox::LKO2 mice), and their hepatocytes showed impaired insulin signaling ex vivo. Similarly, mutant A307 Irs1 adenovirus only partially restored the response to injected insulin in mice lacking hepatic Irs1 and Irs2. Thus, contrary to the results of cell-based experiments, Ser307 in mice is a positive regulatory site that moderates the severity of insulin resistance by maintaining proximal insulin signaling.

Background: Metabolic stresses, including hyperinsulinemia, promote insulin resistance. Results: Monoclonal antibodies raised against Ser(P)/Thr(P) residues in IRS1 were used to quantify phosphorylation in response to insulin or agents that model metabolic stress. Conclusion: Similar IRS1 Ser(P)/Thr(P) residues are increased by insulin or metabolic stress, and some correlate significantly with reduced IRS1 tyrosine phosphorylation. Significance: Metabolic stress co-opts insulin-dependent IRS1 phosphorylation to aggravate insulin resistance.

Phosphatidylcholine transfer protein (PC-TP) is a phospholipid-binding protein that is enriched in liver and that interacts with thioesterase superfamily member 2 (THEM2). Mice lacking either protein exhibit improved hepatic glucose homeostasis and are resistant to diet-induced diabetes. Insulin receptor substrate 2 (IRS2) and mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) are key effectors of insulin signaling, which is attenuated in diabetes. We found that PC-TP inhibited IRS2, as evidenced by insulin-independent IRS2 activation following knockdown, genetic ablation, or chemical inhibition of PC-TP. In addition, IRS2 was activated after knockdown of THEM2, providing support for a role for the interaction of PC-TP with THEM2 in suppressing insulin signaling. Additionally, we showed that PC-TP bound to tuberous sclerosis complex 2 (TSC2) and stabilized the components of the TSC1-TSC2 complex, which functions to inhibit mTORC1. Preventing phosphatidylcholine from binding to PC-TP disrupted interactions of PC-TP with THEM2 and TSC2, and disruption of the PC-TP–THEM2 complex was associated with increased activation of both IRS2 and mTORC1. In livers of mice with genetic ablation of PC-TP or that had been treated with a PC-TP inhibitor, steady-state amounts of IRS2 were increased, whereas those of TSC2 were decreased. These findings reveal a phospholipid-dependent mechanism that suppresses insulin signaling downstream of its receptor.