The in vitro behavior of hemopoietic cells transformed by polyoma middle T antigen parallels that of primary human myeloid leukemic cells

A retrovirus encoding polyoma middle T antigen has been used to infect a murine hemopoietic cell line (FDC-P1) dependent on either granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) or multipotential colony-stimulating factor (Multi-CSF). A number of cell lines have been established on the basis of their initial ability to proliferate in the absence of added colony-stimulating factor (CSF). The transformed lines display one of three patterns of growth in vitro: those able to grow fully autonomously; those whose proliferation depends on cell density; and those displaying dependence on added CSF regardless cell density. This latter class of cells are reminiscent of the majority of primary myeloid leukemic cells. Unlike parental FDC-P1 cells, all three classes of transformed cells are leukemogenic in syngeneic mice; moreover, they produce variable amounts of GM-CSF which we believe underlies their neoplastic behavior.     

Binding, internalization and degradation of radio-iodinated interleukin 3 and granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor by various hemopoietic cells

The proliferation and differentiation of hemopoietic committed progenitor cells depend on colony stimulating factors (CSF). However, isolated mouse granulocyte-macrophage progenitor cells can still undergo limited proliferation in serum-free cultures after CSF deprivation. To test whether this is due to an accumulated pool of internalized factor, we examined the binding, internalization and degradation of radiolabelled interleukin 3 (IL-3) and granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in various hemopoietic cells. We found 20,000 high affinity IL-3 receptors on cells of two IL-3-dependent hemopoietic cell lines, FDC-P1 and FDC-P2 (Kd = 85 and 129 pM). FDC-P1 cells, which also respond to GM-CSF, possess 600 high-affinity GM-CSF receptors (Kd = 64 pM). Cells of both lines internalize IL-3, but only FDC-P1 cells release degraded IL-3 at a rapid rate. Both cell lines have similar dose-response curves for IL-3 and survival kinetics after factor removal. All other cells tested behave like FDC-P1, suggesting that the metabolism of IL-3 by FDC-P2 is exceptional. Our study indicates that transient proliferation of committed progenitor cells in the absence of added factors is apparently not due to a stable pool of internalized CSF but merely represents an intrinsic capability of these cells.     

Close genetic and physical linkage between the murine haemopoietic growth factor genes GM-CSF and Multi-CSF (IL3).

The two murine haemopoietic growth factors, granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and Multi-CSF (interleukin 3) stimulate the proliferation and differentiation of an overlapping set of haemopoietic progenitor cells and are produced coordinately following activation of T lymphocytes. Here we report the chromosomal location of the genes encoding these two factors. Initially both genes were assigned to chromosome 11 by analysis of mouse/Chinese hamster somatic cell hybrids. Genetic analysis using an interspecies (Mus musculus X Mus spretus) back-cross confirmed this assignment by demonstrating that both the GM-CSF and Multi-CSF genes are genetically linked to the SPARC gene, which had been independently assigned to sub-band B1 of chromosome 11. Analysis of physical distances by pulsed field gel electrophoresis demonstrated further that the two CSF genes lie within 230 kb of each other. However examination of the subchromosomal region containing all three loci by pulsed field gel analysis showed that SPARC is at least 400-500 kb distant from the region containing the two CSF genes.     

Hierarchical down-modulation of hemopoietic growth factor receptors

Granulocytes and macrophages can be produced in vitro when progenitor cells from mouse bone marrow are stimulated by any of four distinct colony stimulating factors, Multi-CSF (IL-3), GM-CSF, G-CSF, and M-CSF (CSF-1). At 0 degrees C the four CSFs do not cross-compete for binding to bone marrow cells, indicating that each has a specific cell surface receptor. However, at 21 degrees C or 37 degrees C, Multi-CSF inhibits binding of the other three CSFs and GM-CSF inhibits binding of G-CSF and M-CSF. Rather than competing directly for receptor binding, the binding of Multi-CSF, GM-CSF, or G-CSF to their own receptor induces the down-modulation (and thus activation) of other CSF receptors at 37 degrees C. The pattern and potency of down-modulation activity exhibited by each type of CSF parallels the pattern and potency of its biological activity. We propose a model in which the biological interactions of the four CSFs are explained by their ability to down-modulate and activate lineage-specific receptors.     

An assay for colony-stimulating factor (CSF) production by single T lymphocytes: estimation of the frequency of cells producing granulocyte-macrophage CSF and multi-lineage CSF within a T lymphocyte clone

The frequency of cells producing hemopoietic colony-stimulating factors (CSF) in a murine T lymphocyte clone has been determined by using a simple microassay that does not require clonal expansion or the addition of accessory cells. When stimulated with concanavalin A (Con A), the clone LB3 produced both granulocyte-macrophage CSF (GM-CSF) and multi-lineage CSF (Multi-CSF), which could be detected by using the cell line FDC-P1, whose proliferation is dependent on the presence of either of these factors. Limiting dilution analysis of Con A-stimulated LB3 cells indicated a requirement for cell-cell contact for optimal production of CSF, which could be bypassed by preincubation of the cells at high density with Con A for 4 hr before dilution in the assay. Limiting dilution estimates of the frequency of CSF-producing cells among Con A-pretreated LB3 cells ranged from 20 to 50%. Direct measurement of CSF production by single Con A-pretreated cells isolated by micromanipulation revealed that 10 to 20% could secrete detectable CSF. However, when isolated Con A-pretreated two-cell and three-cell aggregates were assayed, 50 to 99% were positive, indicating that 30 to 80% of the cells in the aggregates secreted CSF. Assay of the supernatants from single cells and two-cell aggregates on both FDC-P1 cells and another cell line, 32D c13, which responds only to Multi-CSF, demonstrated that many cells produced GM-CSF only, and others varied in the relative quantities of GM-CSF and Multi-CSF produced.     

Intracisternal A-type particle-mediated activations of cytokine genes in a murine myelomonocytic leukemia: generation of functional cytokine mRNAs by retroviral splicing events.

Previously we have described the derivation of three distinct classes of leukemic cell clones from a single in vivo-passaged myelomonocytic leukemia, WEHI-274, that arose in a mouse infected with the Abelson leukemia virus/Moloney leukemia virus complex (K. B. Leslie and J. W. Schrader, Mol. Cell. Biol. 9:2414-2423, 1989). The three classes of cell clones were characterized by distinct patterns of growth in vitro, the production of cytokines, and the presence of cytokine gene rearrangements. However, all three classes of WEHI-274 clones bore a common rearrangement of the c-myb gene, suggesting that all were derived from the one ancestral cell and that at least three distinct and independent autostimulatory events were involved in the progression of a single myeloid leukemic disease. In this article, we demonstrate that the autocrine growth factor production by the WEHI-274 leukemic clones resulted from cytokine gene activations mediated by the insertion of an intracisternal A-type particle (IAP) sequence 5' to the interleukin-3 (IL-3) gene, in the case of the class I clone, or 5' to the gene for granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), in the case of the class II clones. IAPs are defective murine retroviruses encoded by endogenous genetic elements which may undergo transpositions and act as endogenous mutagens. The functional IL-3 and GM-CSF mRNAs were generated by mechanisms in which the splice donor apparatus of the IAP sequence has been used in IAP gag-to-IL-3 or -GM-CSF splicing events.     

Growth regulation of multi-factor-dependent myeloid cell lines: IL-4, TGF-beta and pertussis toxin modulate IL-3- or GM-CSF-induced growth by controlling cell cycle length

The stimulatory effects of lymphokines, interleukin 3 (IL-3), granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and interleukin 4 (IL-4), and the inhibitory effects of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) and the pertussis toxin, islet activating protein (LAP), on multi-factor-dependent myeloid cell lines were examined. The effects of IL-3 on a mast cell progenitor clone, IC2 were indistinguishable from those of GM-CSF with respect to their concentration-response curves for induction of DNA synthesis and capability to maintain cell growth for many months. IL-4 acts differently on IC2 cells: the maximum level of DNA synthesis induced by IL-4 is always lower than that induced by IL-3 or GM-CSF and IL-4-induced proliferation is transient. IL-4, however, synergistically induced DNA synthesis of IC2 cells with limiting concentrations of IL-3 or GM-CSF. When IC2 cells were cultured with saturating concentrations of IL-3, GM-CSF or a combination of both, the doubling time was 25 +/- 1 h, whereas it decreased to 17 +/- 1 h when IL-4 was further added to the cultures. IAP reduced the DNA synthesis of IC2 cells induced by the above three growth factors. The doubling time of IC2 cells was 30 +/- 2 h when IC2 cells were cultured with sufficient concentrations of IL-3 in the presence of IAP. Cell cycle analysis revealed that the fraction of cells in Gl was decreased by IL-4 but was increased by IAP. TGF-beta also reduced IL-3-dependent DNA synthesis and increased the fraction of cells in Gl. The inhibitory effect on IL-3-dependent growth of IC2 cells was not increased when these cells were exposed simultaneously to TGF-beta and IAP. The results suggest that IL-3 and GM-CSF stimulate the growth of IC2 cells through similar pathways and that IL-4 augments the action of IL-3 or GM-CSF by decreasing the Gl period. It is also suggested that IAP and TGF-beta retard the growth of IC2 cells by increasing the fraction of cells in GI.     

The role of humoral factors in the regression of leukemia in chickens as measured by in vitro colony formation

Leukemic myeloblasts induced by avian myeloblastosis virus in the chicken formed small compact (type II) colonies in semi-solid agar medium. Normal yolk sac cells from 12-day old embryos formed large diffuse (type I) colonies under the same conditions. Type I colony formation (but not type II) was strictly dependent upon the presence in the medium of a colony stimulating factor (CSF) present in fresh chicken serum or conditioned medium. Serum CSF levels were determined for normal, leukemic, and birds which had spontaneously regressed from myeloblastic leukemia. When type I colony formation was used as the assay, serum CSF levels of leukemic birds were found to be significantly lower than levels in either normal or regressed birds. When the same sera were tested for their ability to induce type II colonies, leukemic birds demonstrated a significantly higher CSF level than either normal or regressed sera. Regressed chickens had serum CSF levels similar to normal birds.     

Role of colony-stimulating factors in the biology of acute myelogenous leukemia

A high proportion of acute myeloid leukemias (AML) recently investigated for their capacity to synthesize biologically active bioregulatory molecules was found to accumulate messenger (m) RNA and to produce membrane-bound or -secreted forms of stimulating factors for granulocyte, macrophage and mixed granulocyte-macrophage colony growth. Blast cells have also been found to secrete interleukin 1, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin 6, and to express receptors for various growth factors as well. However, growth factors like interleukin 2 and interleukin 3 have not been identified as AML products, and several other factors including interleukin 4, interleukin 5, etc. need further evaluation. Responsiveness of clonogenic leukemic cells to exogenous growth-promoting factors in vitro suggests a possible role of these biomolecules in the course of these disorders. Important evidence for the crucial role of growth factors, at least in some subtypes of AML, has been provided by demonstrating constitutive growth factor production by leukemic cells and their autonomous in vitro growth which is dependent on autocrine secretion of a specific growth factor. The concert of mechanisms providing stimulatory and inhibitory signals for hematopoiesis, which is adapted to the various physiological requirements of the organism, may have multiple defects in AML. This leads to successive steps of malfunctioning of cells, which finally express a fully malignant phenotype. In addition, these derangements also lead to defects in accessory cells on the level of mediator communication. However, there is evidence for autonomous growth promotion of AML blast by constitutive production of growth factors active in an autocrine fashion (GM-CSF, G-CSF, interleukin 6) and by recruitment of accessory cells to increase CSF supply (GM-CSF, G-CSF) via molecules such as interleukin 1 and TNF-alpha in a paracrine fashion. Molecular analysis of transformed hematopoietic cells has revealed changes of the genome, e.g., insertion of viral genetic information or cytogenetic fractures at DNA sites controlling growth factor gene activation. These events appear to be crucial in the induction of uncontrolled growth factor expression promoting oncogenic transformation of hematopoietic progenitor cells.     

Gangliosides of the stroma layer participate in the interferon-gamma receptor-dependent controls of myelopoiesis

Stroma-mediated myelopoiesis depends upon growth-factors and an appropriate intercellular microenvironment, whose polarity is relevant for granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) mediated myeloid cell proliferation. Here we have studied qualitative and quantitative aspects of ganglioside participation in controls of the microenvironment required to sustain myelopoiesis. We analysed ganglioside synthesis, expression and shedding by two primary liver stromal cell cultures isolated from wild type and interferon-gamma (IFNgamma) receptor knockout mice. The latter one has a higher capacity to sustain myelopoiesis. FDC-P1 myeloid growth factor-dependent cell line was used as the reporter system, monitoring the cell survival and proliferation that reflect the bio-availability and the activity of GM-CSF. Although the two stromal cells synthesised the same gangliosides their relative content was quite different. FDC-P1 proliferation decreased in cultures in which ganglioside synthesis was inhibited in the stroma, as well as in presence of stroma cell supernatants in which GM3 was neutralised by the anti-GM3 monoclonal antibody. Addition of exogenous GM3 reverted the inhibition and sustained proliferation of FDC-P1 cells. FDC-P1 cells do not accumulate GM3, but they are able to take up the stroma-produced sphingolipids. Thus, stroma has a double role in sustaining myelopoiesis, providing both growth factor(s) and ganglioside(s) required for the optimal stimulation of the myeloid cell proliferation, and the IFNgamma mediated stroma-dependent controls of myelopoiesis are determinant for this cell interaction.     

Leukemic transformation of hematopoietic cells in mice internally exposed to depleted uranium

Depleted uranium (DU) is a dense heavy metal used in military applications. During military conflicts, US military personnel have been wounded by DU shrapnel. The health effects of embedded DU are unknown. Published data from our laboratory demonstrated that DU exposure in vitro can transform immortalized human osteoblast cells (HOS) to the tumorigenic phenotype. Results from our laboratory have also shown that DU is genotoxic and mutagenic in cultured human cells. Internalized DU could be a carcinogenic risk and concurrent alpha particle and heavy metal toxic effects complicate this potential risk. Anecdotal reports have suggested that DU can cause leukemia. To better assess this risk, we have developed an in vivo leukemogenesis model. This model involves using murine hematopoietic cells (FDC-P1) that are dependent on stimulation by granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) or interleukin 3 (IL-3) and injected into mice to produce myeloid leukemia. Although immortalized, these cells are not tumorigenic on subcutaneous inoculation in mice. Intravenous injection of FDC-P1 cells into DU-implanted DBA/2 mice was followed by the development of leukemias in 76% of all mice implanted with DU pellets. In contrast, only 12% of control mice developed leukemia. Karyotypic analysis confirmed that the leukemias originated from FDC-P1 cells. The growth properties of leukemic cells from bone marrow, spleen, and lymph node were assessed and indicate that the FDC-P1 cells had become transformed in vivo. The kidney, spleen, bone marrow, muscle, and urine showed significant elevations in tissue uranium levels prior to induction of leukemia. These results demonstrated that a DU altered in vivo environment may be involved in the pathogenesis of DU induced leukemia in an animal model.     

Interaction of serum and colony-stimulating factor for survival of a factor-dependent hemopoietic progenitor cell line

The growth in vitro of the murine myeloid cell line FDC-P1 depends on the presence of serum and a murine hemopoietic growth factor (either granulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) or multipotential colony-stimulating factor (multi-CSF, IL3]. To determine the differential roles of serum and colony-stimulating factor (CSF) during the growth of FDC-P1 cultures, we investigated the kinetics of proliferation and death after withdrawal of serum or CSF, using flow cytometry to quantitate the numbers of vital and dead cells. After withdrawal of CSF, the cells died without entering a quiescent state. The life span of cultures lacking CSF increased with increasing concentrations of serum (greater than 50 h at 30% serum), and the cells kept dividing until they died. During the period of population death caused by the absence of CSF, the re-addition of CSF immediately prevented further cells from dying. After the withdrawal of serum in the presence of CSF, the cells continued to live and proliferate for weeks, but required high cell densities (much greater than 10(5)/ml), which suggests that the cells produced an active substance that can substitute for serum. Serum as well as serum-free conditioned medium from dense cultures made the survival and growth of FDC-P1 cultures independent of cell density. Without sufficient quantities of this activity, all cells of the population died within an interval that was much shorter than one cell cycle, which indicates that the factor acts throughout most of the cell cycle. The results suggest that both the CSF and the serum factor act together to permit cell survival, rather than to drive proliferation.     

The in vitro autocrine secretion of CSFs alone does not account for the longterm growth of murine myeloid leukemic cells in suspension cultures

To investigate the mechanisms supporting the in vitro longterm growth of murine leukemic myeloblastic cells, factor-dependent and autonomous myeloblastic cells have been examined for their CSF responsiveness, CSF secretion, and autostimulation of growth. Purified CSF-1, GM-CSF, and IL-3 stimulated cloning and proliferation of both autonomous (ACL) and factor-dependent cell lines (FDCL), and were unable to induce differentiation of these cells. Sensitivities to CSFs were similar for ACL, FDCL and normal bone marrow cells. Most of the cell lines secreted CSFs, stimulating colony formation from normal bone marrow cells in bilayer agar cultures. The number of induced granulo-macrophagic colonies was similar in the presence of either ACL or FDCL. The ability to stimulate their own proliferation was similar for both ACL and FDCL in a longterm suspension culture assay as well as in a shortterm cloning assay. These results strongly suggest that the autocrine secretion of CSF-related activities are not sufficient to fully account for the in vitro longterm proliferation of virus-transformed myelomonocytic cells.     

Transduction of human colony-stimulating factor-1 (CSF-1) receptor into interleukin-3-dependent mouse myeloid cells induces both CSF-1-dependent and factor-independent growth.

A retroviral vector encoding the receptor for human colony-stimulating factor-1 (CSF-1) was introduced into murine myeloid FDC-P1 cells which require interleukin-3 (IL-3) for their proliferation and survival in culture. Cells expressing the CSF-1 receptor (CSF-1R), selected by fluorescence-activated cell sorting in the continued presence of murine IL-3, formed colonies in semisolid medium and were able to proliferate continuously in liquid cultures containing human recombinant CSF-1. Thus, although they do not synthesize endogenous murine CSF-1R, FDC-P1 cells express the downstream components of the CSF-1 mitogenic pathway necessary for its signal-response coupling. After receptor transduction, slowly proliferating factor-independent variants that produced neither CSF-1 nor growth factors able to support the proliferation of parental FDC-P1 cells also arose. When the human CSF-1R was expressed in FDC-P1 cells under the control of an inducible metallothionein promoter, the frequencies of both CSF-1-responsive and factor-independent variants increased after heavy-metal treatment. In addition, a monoclonal antibody to human CSF-1R arrested colony formation by both the CSF-1-dependent and factor-independent cells but did not affect their growth in response to IL-3. Therefore, the induction of both the CSF-1-dependent and factor-independent phenotypes depended on expression of the transduced human CSF-1R.     

Expression of the fusion protein recombinant human granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor and leukemia inhibitory factor in a baculovirus vector system

A fusion gene coding human granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) cDNAs was inserted into the transfer vector pSXIVVI⁺ X3 with the control of Syn and XIV promoters. The Sf9 cells (Spodoptera frugiperda) were co-transfected with the recombinant plasmid and TnNPV DNA (Trichoplusia ni nuclear polyhedrosis virus DNA). The fusion protein recombinant human granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) could be synthesized in cells infected with recombinant virus at a level of about 23% of their total cellular protein. Activity analysis of the fusion protein in infected cells revealed that it exhibited the dual activities of GM-CSF and LIF. Western blot analysis of the expressed fusion protein in infected larvae showed that the virus-mediated fusion protein, with a molecular weight of ∼35 kDa, is confirmed with immunoreactivity. Received 02 December 1998/ Accepted in revised form 07 May 1999     

GM-CSF在登革热病毒和丙型肝炎病毒DNA疫苗诱导的免疫应答中的作用

研究GM-CSF在DV、HCV等几种黄病毒DNA疫苗诱导的免疫应答中的作用,并分析其作为黄病毒DNA疫苗佐剂的可能性。构建各种真核表达质粒,抽提质粒DNA,分组免疫小鼠,通过ELISA及间接免疫荧光染色检测小鼠血清抗体的动态水平。DV1及DV2prM/E核酸疫苗与GM-CSF质粒共接种的佐剂组小鼠血清抗体水平低于无佐剂的疫苗组,即GM-CSF显示了一定的免疫抑制作用,其中以DV1prM/E核酸疫苗更为显著;而在HCVC及E1蛋白核酸疫苗中,GM-CSF则具有一定免疫增强作用。GM-CSF作为疫苗佐剂,其作用具有复杂的多样性,因抗原的不同可能会呈现免疫提升或免疫抑制,因此选择其作为核酸疫苗佐剂时需慎重。     

Levels of human serum granulocyte colony-stimulating factor and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor under pathological conditions

Levels of serum granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) and granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in patients with various leukocyte disorders were estimated by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Some cases of acute myelogenous leukemia and aplastic anemia showed elevated serum levels of G-CSF and/or GM-CSF, whereas almost all of 23 healthy controls showed G-CSF and GM-CSF levels lower than 100 pg/ml. High levels of both types of CSF were noted in patients with granulocytosis due to infection. These levels became lower after resolution of the infection. Daily changes in serum CSF levels were also examined in a patient with autoimmune neutropenia, and it was found that the peripheral neutrophilic granulocyte count changed almost in parallel with the serum G-CSF level but not with GM-CSF, following the pattern with a delay of about 4–5 h, suggesting the possibility that G-CSF mainly regulates peripheral neutrophil circulation.