Back

O-GlcNAcylation regulates PPAR-driven metabolic programming in intestinal stem cells

Hartley McDermott, T.; Saiz, D. R.; Barrera Millan, Y.; Ho, N. B. P.; Torel, M.; Uher, E.; Aboagye, C.; Farnsworth, F.; Lahiri, G.; Thiriveedi, V.; Chi, J.; Gu, H.; Fehl, C.; Bartelle, B. B.; Mana, M. D.

2026-03-16 cell biology
10.64898/2026.03.13.711696 bioRxiv
Show abstract

Diet deeply influences health and disease risk by reshaping cellular metabolism. In the intestine, dietary nutrients directly affect intestinal stem cell (ISC) behavior, yet the regulatory mechanisms linking metabolism to transcriptional control remain poorly defined. Because mitochondria function as central metabolic hubs, we focused on mitochondrial signaling to understand how nutrient utilization governs ISC function. Using the MITO-Tag mouse, we isolated metabolites specifically from ISC mitochondria and found that the sugar-derived metabolite UDP-GlcNAc was reduced in ISCs from mice fed a high-fat diet. Moreover, we identified that reducing O-GlcNAcylation (OGN) rapidly increased stem cell frequency, proliferation, regenerative capacity, and the abundance of PPAR target proteins. Mechanistically, these effects depend on PPAR signaling, as genetic loss of Ppar-d/a blocks the ISC phenotypes induced by reduced OGN. These results reveal an OGN-PPAR signaling axis that translates dietary metabolic cues into transcriptional programs governing fuel utilization and ISC behavior in the intestine. Collectively, our findings highlight that OGN is a previously unrecognized regulator of PPAR signaling in intestinal stem cells.

Matching journals

The top 6 journals account for 50% of the predicted probability mass.

1
Cell Metabolism
49 papers in training set
Top 0.1%
12.0%
2
Developmental Cell
168 papers in training set
Top 2%
9.7%
3
Nature Metabolism
56 papers in training set
Top 0.2%
9.7%
4
Cell Reports
1338 papers in training set
Top 5%
8.1%
5
Nature
575 papers in training set
Top 4%
7.9%
6
Cell Stem Cell
57 papers in training set
Top 0.3%
6.1%
50% of probability mass above
7
Molecular Cell
308 papers in training set
Top 3%
6.1%
8
Nature Cell Biology
99 papers in training set
Top 0.9%
4.7%
9
Cell
370 papers in training set
Top 5%
4.1%
10
Nature Communications
4913 papers in training set
Top 38%
3.8%
11
eLife
5422 papers in training set
Top 28%
3.5%
12
Science
429 papers in training set
Top 13%
1.8%
13
Science Advances
1098 papers in training set
Top 17%
1.7%
14
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
2130 papers in training set
Top 37%
1.3%
15
Gastroenterology
40 papers in training set
Top 1%
1.3%
16
Protein & Cell
25 papers in training set
Top 2%
1.3%
17
Nature Aging
51 papers in training set
Top 1%
1.1%
18
Cell Systems
167 papers in training set
Top 10%
0.9%
19
Immunity
58 papers in training set
Top 4%
0.8%
20
Cell Host & Microbe
113 papers in training set
Top 5%
0.8%
21
Cell Discovery
54 papers in training set
Top 5%
0.8%
22
Nature Structural & Molecular Biology
218 papers in training set
Top 5%
0.7%
23
Journal of Cell Biology
333 papers in training set
Top 5%
0.7%
24
Cancer Discovery
61 papers in training set
Top 2%
0.6%
25
Nature Genetics
240 papers in training set
Top 9%
0.6%
26
Advanced Science
249 papers in training set
Top 22%
0.6%