Expression data from hepatocyte specific Klf6 knockout mice vs. control on high fat diet

Dysregulated glucose homeostasis and lipid accumulation characterize non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), but underlying mechanisms are obscure. We report here that Krüppel-like factor 6 (KLF6), a ubiquitous transcription factor that promotes adipocyte differentiation, also provokes the metabolic abnormalities of NAFLD. Mice with either hepatocyte-specific knockdown of KLF6 (DeltaHepKlf6) or global KLF6 heterozygosity (Klf6 +/-) have reduced body fat content and improved glucose and insulin tolerance. Mice with KLF6 depletion, compared to wild type mice, are protected from high fat diet-induced steatosis. Three mice with a hepatocyte-specific knockdown of KLF6 (DeltaHepKlf6) on high fat diet and 3 littermate controls on the same diet were sacrificed after 8 weeks of diet. Liver tissue was preserved in RNAlater® (Ambion, Austin, TX). RNA was isolated from liver tissue and homogenized in TRIzol® reagent (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA). In order to identify potential KLF6 targets that contributed to changes in glucose- and lipid-metabolism, we performed an Affymetrix Exon1 S.T. Genearray® (Affymetrix, Santa Clara, CA).