Research Article Collection: Genetics and Lipids (2022)
Genetic Mimicry Analysis Reveals the Specific Lipases Targeted by the ANGPTL3-ANGPTL8 Complex and ANGPTL4

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jlr.2022.100313Get rights and content
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Abstract

Angiopoietin-like proteins, ANGPTL3, ANGPTL4, and ANGPTL8, are involved in regulating plasma lipids. In vitro and animal-based studies point to LPL and endothelial lipase (EL, LIPG) as key targets of ANGPTLs. To examine the ANGPTL mechanisms for plasma lipid modulation in humans, we pursued a genetic mimicry analysis of enhancing or suppressing variants in the LPL, LIPG, lipase C hepatic type (LIPC), ANGPTL3, ANGPTL4, and ANGPTL8 genes using data on 248 metabolic parameters derived from over 110,000 nonfasted individuals in the UK Biobank and validated in over 13,000 overnight fasted individuals from 11 other European populations. ANGPTL4 suppression was highly concordant with LPL enhancement but not HL or EL, suggesting ANGPTL4 impacts plasma metabolic parameters exclusively via LPL. The LPL-independent effects of ANGPTL3 suppression on plasma metabolic parameters showed a striking inverse resemblance with EL suppression, suggesting ANGPTL3 not only targets LPL but also targets EL. Investigation of the impact of the ANGPTL3-ANGPTL8 complex on plasma metabolite traits via the ANGPTL8 R59W substitution as an instrumental variable showed a much higher concordance between R59W and EL activity than between R59W and LPL activity, suggesting the R59W substitution more strongly affects EL inhibition than LPL inhibition. Meanwhile, when using a rare and deleterious protein-truncating ANGPTL8 variant as an instrumental variable, the ANGPTL3-ANGPTL8 complex was very LPL specific. In conclusion, our analysis provides strong human genetic evidence that the ANGPTL3-ANGPTL8 complex regulates plasma metabolic parameters, which is achieved by impacting LPL and EL. By contrast, ANGPTL4 influences plasma metabolic parameters exclusively via LPL.

Supplementary key words

angiopoietin-like proteins
dyslipidemias
cardiovascular disease
lipase/endothelial
lipase/hepatic
lipidomics
lipids
lipolysis and fatty acid metabolism
lipoprotein/metabolism
triglycerides

Abbreviations

ANGPTL
angiopoietin-like protein
ASCVD
atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease
EL
endothelial lipase
eQTL
expression quantitative trait loci
GWAS
genome-wide association study
IV
instrumental variable
LD
linkage disequilibrium
LDLR
LDL receptor
LIPC
lipase C hepatic type
LIPG
lipase G endothelial type
PCSK9
proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9
PTV
protein-truncating variant
R2
coefficient of determination
TG
triglyceride

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