Differential effects of the antioxidant alpha-lipoic acid on the proliferation of mitogen-stimulated peripheral blood lymphocytes and leukaemic T cells

The effects of the antioxidant alpha-lipoic acid (LA) on the proliferation of mitogen-stimulated human peripheral blood lymphocytes (HPBL) were investigated in comparison to its effects on the proliferation of two leukaemic T cell lines, Jurkat and CCRF-CEM. At low mM concentrations, LA inhibited in a dose-dependent manner DNA synthesis of HPBL stimulated with either phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) in combination with ionomycin (IoM), or phytohaemagglutinin (PHA). At similar concentrations, LA inhibited the proliferation of Jurkat and CCRF-CEM cells. However, LA was preferentially cytotoxic to the leukaemic cell lines. The selective toxicity of LA to Jurkat cells was shown by electron microscopy (EM) to be due to the induction of apoptosis. Furthermore, LA had different effects on the secretion of interleukin-2 (IL-2) and steady-state levels of IL-2 mRNA in mitogen-stimulated HPBL depending on the mitogens used. LA dramatically increased the induction of IL-2 mRNA and IL-2 protein secretion in PMA/IoM-stimulated HPBL, whereas it inhibited these in HPBL stimulated with PHA. The differential effects of LA on normal and leukaemic T lymphocytes may indicate a new route towards development of therapeutic agents.