NF-kappaB involvement in the activation of primary adult T-cell leukemia cells and its clinical implications.

The HTLV-I provirus-encoded Tax protein induces NF-kappaB in Tax-transfected Jurkat T cells or HTLVL-I- infected T cells in vitro. Tax induction of NF-kappaB is presumed to be involved in proliferation and activation of primary leukemia cells in vivo. Recent studies have demonstrated that NF-kappaB activities in human T cells are mediated by at least four c-Rel-related DNA binding proteins - p50, p55, p75 and p85. We examined the significance of NF-kappaB induction in primary adult T cell leukemia cells and the induction kinetics of each of the four NF-kappaB species. Marked NF-kappaB activity was detected using an electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) in the primary cells of patients with acute disease, but little activity was noted in the cells of chronic patients. NF-kappaB activity was enhanced in a time-dependent manner in acute type cells cultured with mitogen-free medium; there was no induction of activity in chronic type cells. UV crosslinking demonstrated all four species of NFkappaB complex - high levels of p50 and lower levels of p55 and p75, in acute type cells; chronic type cells showed only the p50. As a control, normal resting T cells similarly showed only p50; control cells showed little change in activity when cultured without mitogenic stimulation, analogous to chronic type ATL. Northern blotting revealed enhancement of c-rel (encoding p85) and KBFI (encoding p50 and p55) expression in acute type cells during culture, while there was no significant enhancement of mRNAs in chronic type ATL cells or unstimulated normal T cells. Northern blotting also revealed that Tax is upregulated at the mRNA level in acute- but not chronic-type cells during culture. Expression of c-rel and KBF1 mRNAs in acute type cells appeared to be related to Tax mRNA expression. These results suggest that Tax is capable of inducing nuclear expression of all four NF-kappaB species in primary ATL cells of acute type patients, with marked effects on p55, p75, and p85. Tax induction of NF-kappaB species is regulated, at least in part, at a pretranslational level involving increases in c-rel and KBF1 mRNA.     

Expression of P-glycoprotein in adult T-cell leukemia cells

We have examined the expression of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) in adult T-cell leukemia (ATL) samples from 25 patients. Based on immunoblotting with a monoclonal antibody against P-gp, C219, 8 of 20 ATL patients were P-gp positive at the initial presentation. All 6 patients at the relapsed stage were P-gp positive, and refractory to chemotherapy. The expression of MDR1 mRNA in P-gp-positive ATL cells was increased at the relapsed stage of one patient. P-gp of this patient was photolabeled with [3H]azidopine and the labeling was inhibited with nimodipine, vinblastine and progesterone. These results suggest that P-gp expressed in ATL cells from patients at relapsed stage has the same binding site(s) for the drugs as that in multidrug resistant cells, and is correlated with the refractory nature of the cells to chemotherapy.     

转录因子AP-1在慢性阻塞性肺疾病中的作用

目的探讨慢性阻塞性肺疾病（COPD）炎症发生的分子生物学机制。方法对12例COPD患者（COPD组）、10例支气管哮喘患者（哮喘组）、10例健康成年人（对照组）采用免疫细胞化学和逆转录-聚合酶链反应技术,检测其外周血单个核细胞（PBMC）中转录因子激活蛋白AP-1（c-fos和c-jun）及白细胞介素8（IL-8）的表达水平。结果c-fos表达在COPD组和哮喘组之间无显著性差异,但均高于对照组（P〈0．05）。c-jun、IL-8的表达在COPD组明显高于其他两组（P〈0．05）,且c-jun与IL-8的表达呈明显正相关。结论c-jun的高表达在COPD的慢性炎症过程中具有重要作用,高表达的c-jun可能使AP-1活性增强,促进IL-8表达升高。     

Interleukin-4 inhibits the production of interleukin-1 by adult T-cell leukemia cells

Abstract: Freshly isolated leukemic cells from patients with adult T-cell leukemia (ATL) produce high levels of interleukin-1 (IL-1), which is believed to play an important role in neutrophilia, elevation of C-reactive protein, osteolytic bone lesions, hypercalcemia, and fever in ATL. However, relatively little is known regarding the regulatory mechanism of IL-1 production in ATL. Interleukin-4 (IL-4) affects the monocytes- and neoplastic cells-mediated cytokine production. In this study, we investigated the effect of IL-4 on IL-1 α and IL-1 β production by ATL cells in vitro. IL-4 was found to markedly inhibit the release of IL-1 α and IL-1 β into the conditioned medium in a dose-dependent manner. Northern blot analysis of steady-state IL-1 mRNA demonstrated that IL-4 treatment of ATL cells resulted in a reduction of IL-1 mRNA. These results support the notion that ATL cells spontaneously produce IL-1 α and IL-1 β; however, such production can be inhibited by the immunomodulating agent, IL-4. IL-4 may play an important regulatory role in the production of IL-1 in ATL.     

Interleukin-4 induces proliferation of adult T-cell leukemia cells

Abstract: To evaluate the effect of IL-4 on the growth of leukemic cells from adult T-cell leukemia (ATL) patients (ATL cells) and determine whether the IL-4 autocrine mechanism is involved in the growth of ATL cells, we studied the proliferative response of ATL cells, from 11 patients, cultured in the presence or absence of IL-4 in vitro. Leukemic cells from 10 of the 11 patients examined proliferated in response to both IL-2 and IL-4 in a dose-dependent manner. The proliferative response to IL-4 was higher than that obtained with IL-2 in 8 patients. The expression of the IL-2 receptor (IL-2R) αα-chain in leukemic cells from some patients was also enhanced by IL-4. The IL-4 receptor was demonstrated by flow cytometry on the surface of ATL cells. Neither IL-4-induced proliferation of ATL cells nor IL-4-induced IL-2R expression on ATL cells was inhibited by anti-Tac or anti-IL-2 antibody and, therefore, these effects of IL-4 are considered independent of endogenous IL-2 activity. However, IL-2 and IL-4 were undetectable in the culture supernatants of ATL cells from any patient by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Interferon-γ (IFN-γ) partially inhibited IL-2- or IL-4-induced proliferation of ATL cells. These results suggest that leukemic cells from ATL patients proliferate by an IL-2 or IL-4 paracrine mechanism in lymphoid tissue in vivo and that IFN-γ inhibits IL-2- or IL-4-induced proliferation of ATL cells.