Rac1 Activation Caused by Membrane Translocation of a Guanine Nucleotide Exchange Factor in Akt2-Mediated Insulin Signaling in Mouse Skeletal Muscle

Insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in skeletal muscle is mediated by the glucose transporter GLUT4, which is translocated to the plasma membrane following insulin stimulation. Several lines of evidence suggested that the protein kinase Akt2 plays a key role in this insulin action. The small GTPase Rac1 has also been implicated as a regulator of insulin-stimulated GLUT4 translocation, acting downstream of Akt2. However, the mechanisms whereby Akt2 regulates Rac1 activity remain obscure. The guanine nucleotide exchange factor FLJ00068 has been identified as a direct regulator of Rac1 in Akt2-mediated signaling, but its characterization was performed mostly in cultured myoblasts. Here, we provide in vivo evidence that FLJ00068 indeed acts downstream of Akt2 as a Rac1 regulator by using mouse skeletal muscle. Small interfering RNA knockdown of FLJ00068 markedly diminished GLUT4 translocation to the sarcolemma following insulin administration or ectopic expression of a constitutively activated mutant of either phosphoinositide 3-kinase or Akt2. Additionally, insulin and these constitutively activated mutants caused the activation of Rac1 as shown by immunofluorescent microscopy using a polypeptide probe specific to activated Rac1 in isolated gastrocnemius muscle fibers and frozen sections of gastrocnemius muscle. This Rac1 activation was also abrogated by FLJ00068 knockdown. Furthermore, we observed translocation of FLJ00068 to the cell periphery following insulin stimulation in cultured myoblasts. Localization of FLJ00068 in the plasma membrane in insulin-stimulated, but not unstimulated, myoblasts and mouse gastrocnemius muscle was further affirmed by subcellular fractionation and subsequent immunoblotting. Collectively, these results strongly support a critical role of FLJ00068 in Akt2-mediated Rac1 activation in mouse skeletal muscle insulin signaling.