| First Author | Canali S | Year | 2016 |
| Journal | Endocrinology | Volume | 157 |
| Issue | 3 | Pages | 1146-62 |
| PubMed ID | 26735394 | Mgi Jnum | J:233837 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:5788205 | Doi | 10.1210/en.2015-1747 |
| Citation | Canali S, et al. (2016) Activin B Induces Noncanonical SMAD1/5/8 Signaling via BMP Type I Receptors in Hepatocytes: Evidence for a Role in Hepcidin Induction by Inflammation in Male Mice. Endocrinology 157(3):1146-62 |
| abstractText | Induction of the iron regulatory hormone hepcidin contributes to the anemia of inflammation. Bone morphogenetic protein 6 (BMP6) signaling is a central regulator of hepcidin expression in the liver. Recently, the TGF-beta/BMP superfamily member activin B was implicated in hepcidin induction by inflammation via noncanonical SMAD1/5/8 signaling, but its mechanism of action and functional significance in vivo remain uncertain. Here, we show that low concentrations of activin B, but not activin A, stimulate prolonged SMAD1/5/8 signaling and hepcidin expression in liver cells to a similar degree as canonical SMAD2/3 signaling, and with similar or modestly reduced potency compared with BMP6. Activin B stimulates hepcidin via classical activin type II receptors ACVR2A and ACVR2B, noncanonical BMP type I receptors activin receptor-like kinase 2 and activin receptor-like kinase 3, and SMAD5. The coreceptor hemojuvelin binds to activin B and facilitates activin B-SMAD1/5/8 signaling. Activin B-SMAD1/5/8 signaling has some selectivity for hepatocyte-derived cells and is not enabled by hemojuvelin in other cell types. Liver activin B mRNA expression is up-regulated in multiple mouse models of inflammation associated with increased hepcidin and hypoferremia, including lipopolysaccharide, turpentine, and heat-killed Brucella abortus models. Finally, the activin inhibitor follistatin-315 blunts hepcidin induction by lipopolysaccharide or B. abortus in mice. Our data elucidate a novel mechanism for noncanonical SMAD activation and support a likely functional role for activin B in hepcidin stimulation during inflammation in vivo. |
