Phosphatidylcholine Synthesis for Lipid Droplet Expansion is Mediated by Localized Activation of CTP:phosphocholine Cytidylyltransferase

Overview

Journal Cell Metab

Publisher Cell Press

Specialties Cell Biology
Endocrinology

Date 2011 Oct 11

PMID 21982710

Citations 240

Authors

Natalie Krahmer

Yi Guo

Florian Wilfling

Maximiliane Hilger

Susanne Lingrell

Klaus Heger

Heather W Newman

Marc Schmidt-Supprian

Dennis E Vance

Matthias Mann

Robert V Farese Jr

Tobias C Walther

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Lipid droplets (LDs) are cellular storage organelles for neutral lipids that vary in size and abundance according to cellular needs. Physiological conditions that promote lipid storage rapidly and markedly increase LD volume and surface. How the need for surface phospholipids is sensed and balanced during this process is unknown. Here, we show that phosphatidylcholine (PC) acts as a surfactant to prevent LD coalescence, which otherwise yields large, lipolysis-resistant LDs and triglyceride (TG) accumulation. The need for additional PC to coat the enlarging surface during LD expansion is provided by the Kennedy pathway, which is activated by reversible targeting of the rate-limiting enzyme, CTP:phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase (CCT), to growing LD surfaces. The requirement, targeting, and activation of CCT to growing LDs were similar in cells of Drosophila and mice. Our results reveal a mechanism to maintain PC homeostasis at the expanding LD monolayer through targeted activation of a key PC synthesis enzyme.

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