Physical and functional interactions between nuclear receptor LXRα and the forkhead box transcription factor FOXA2 regulate the response of the human lipoprotein lipase gene to oxysterols in hepatic cells

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) catalyzes the hydrolysis of triglycerides from triglyceride-rich lipoproteins such as VLDL and chylomicrons in the circulation. Mutations in LPL or its activator apolipoprotein C-II cause hypertriglyceridemia in humans and animal models. The levels of LPL in the liver are low but they can be strongly induced by a high cholesterol diet or by synthetic ligands of Liver X Receptors (LXRs). However, the mechanism by which LXRs activate the human LPL gene is unknown. In the present study we show that LXR agonists increased the mRNA and protein levels as well as the promoter activity of human LPL in HepG2 cells. A promoter deletion analysis defined the proximal −109/−28 region, which contains a functional FOXA2 element, as essential for transactivation by ligand-activated LXRα/RXRα heterodimers. Silencing of endogenous FOXA2 in HepG2 cells by siRNAs or by treatment with insulin compromised the induction of the LPL gene by LXR agonists whereas mutations in the FOXA2 site abolished the synergistic transactivation of the LPL promoter by LXRα/RXRα and FOXA2. Physical and functional interactions between LXRα and FOXA2 were established in vitro and ex vivo. In summary, the present study revealed a novel mechanism of human LPL gene induction by oxysterols in the liver with is based on physical and functional interactions between transcription factors LXRα and FOXA2. This mechanism, which may not be restricted to the LPL gene, is critically important for a better understanding of the regulation of cholesterol and triglyceride metabolism in the liver under healthy or pathological states.