Hyperproduction of human interferon gamma by rat cells maintained in low-serum medium using the fibronectin gene promoter.

An expression vector, pF1900M, which expresses a cloned gene at a high level in quiescent mammalian cells was constructed using the rat fibronectin (FN) promoter. Human interferon gamma (HuIFN-gamma) cDNA inserted downstream of the FN promoter in pF1900M was introduced into rat 3Y1 cells and several IFN-producing cell lines were established. These cells secreted a low level of IFN when they were growing but secreted at a high level after they had reached confluence. The level was further increased when the confluent cells were maintained in low-serum medium and a cell line, I7, produced 4 x 10(5) IU/ml of IFN, comparable to that produced by genetically engineered Escherichia coli in 2 days. The IFN-producing ability of I7 cells could be maintained by successive replacements of low-serum medium for at least 2 weeks. HuIFN-gamma secreted into the medium had a molecular weight range of 22,000 to 25,000, similar to that of IFN-gamma produced by human lymphocytes. The N-linked glycosylation of HuIFN-gamma seemed to occur properly, since treatment of the IFN with N-glycanase resulted in a reduction of molecular weight to 17,000, which corresponds to that calculated from the deduced amino acid sequence of HuIFN-gamma.     

Induction of cell surface expression of HLA antigens by human IFN-gamma encoded by recombinant vaccinia virus

A recombinant vaccinia virus (VV) encoding human IFN-gamma (VV-huIFN-gamma) was constructed and its effects on MHC Ag expression in human and murine cells in vitro analyzed by flow cytometry. At high multiplicities of infection (5 pfu/cell) the IFN-gamma expressed by vaccinia was not able to overcome the profound decrease of MHC concentration, normally associated with VV infection, in any of the cells tested. However, at successively decreasing multiplicities of infection, a gradual increase in MHC class I concentration above control levels was observed in human 143B cells but not in murine L929 cells, thus indicating that the species specificity of IFN-gamma is preserved in VV-huIFN-gamma-infected cells. We infer from these data that the IFN-gamma secreted by infected 143B cells is able to exert an MHC upregulating effect on uninfected cells in the vicinity. Antiviral activity of the IFN-gamma expressed by the virus was also assessed. Pretreatment for 24 to 48 h of human 143B cells with IFN-gamma containing supernatants had a significant antiviral effect comparable to rhuIFN-gamma. However, when added 1 h after virus infection, antiviral activity was much less evident. Also, the IFN-gamma secreted by infected 143B cells in monolayers infected at low multiplicity did not efficiently inhibit spread of infection to other cells in the vicinity.     

Simultaneous production of IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma by activated human CD4+ and CD8+ T cell clones

In the present study, we have investigated the ability of human T cells to secrete IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma. IL-4 and IFN-gamma were quantified with enzymatic immunoassays and IL-2 with a biologic assay by using the murine IL-2-dependent cell line CTLL-2. PBL, stimulated with Con A or with a combination of the phorbol ester 13-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-12-acetate and the Ca2+ ionophore A23187 secreted IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma. The kinetics of the secretion of the three lymphokines was investigated with two CD4+ clones; one (GEO-2) that produced IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma and another (HY640), that produced only IL-2 and IFN-gamma. Significant IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma production was observed after only 8 h of activation. Maximal levels of IL-2 and IL-4 were found 20 h after the onset of the stimulation which subsequently decreased. In contrast, IFN-gamma levels continued to increase in a period up to 40 h and then leveled off. In spite of these differences in secretion, the kinetics of accumulation of mRNA did not differ. The IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma mRNA were detectable 2 h after stimulation and continued to accumulate for a period up to 20 h. In a series of 22 CD4+ clones, 21 were able to secrete all three lymphokines upon stimulation. Almost all CD8+ clones were able to produce IL-2 and IFN-gamma, but only six of the 23 CD8+ T cell clones secreted IL-4. In addition, five CD4+ (allo)antigen-specific T cell clones were tested for IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma secretion upon specific stimulation. Two alloantigen-specific and two tetanus toxoid-specific T cell clones secreted IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma simultaneously, whereas one alloantigen-specific T cell clone secreted IL-2 and IFN-gamma, but not IL-4. A supernatant of the CD4+ T cell clone GEO-2, that contained high levels of IFN-gamma and IL-4, was unable to induce the low affinity receptor for IgE, CD23, on a Burkitt lymphoma cell line. However, after separation of IL-4 from IFN-gamma by using HPLC, the IL-4-containing fraction-induced CD23, which could be blocked by the fraction that contained IFN-gamma and by a polyclonal rabbit anti-IL-4 antiserum. Finally, the partly purified IL-4, that was devoid of IL-2, promoted the growth of the clone GEO-2.     

Interferon-gamma induces enhanced expression of Ia and H-2 antigens on B lymphoid, macrophage, and myeloid cell lines

The levels of class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC) antigens (la antigens) on cells of a cultured B lymphoma line (WEHI-279) were significantly increased after 24 hr incubation with medium conditioned by concanavalin A-stimulated mouse or rat spleen cells, or by an azobenzenearsonate- (ABA) specific T cell clone that had been stimulated with ABA-coupled spleen cells or concanavalin A. The levels and properties of the la-inducing activity correlated with those of interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) measured by inhibition of virus plaque formation. Both the la-inducing activity and the IFN-gamma from the T cell clone had an apparent m.w. of 40,000 determined by gel filtration, were sensitive to treatment with trypsin or exposure to pH 2, but were stable to heat (56 degrees C, 1 hr). The induction of la antigens on WEHI-279 cells was dose-dependent, and the maximum response occurred at a concentration corresponding to 1 to 2 U/ml of antiviral activity. This T cell-derived IFN-gamma-like molecule also increased the expression of cell surface la antigens on another B cell line (WEHI-231), and cell lines of macrophage (J774) and myeloid (WEHI-3B and WEHI-265) origin. Furthermore, in all cases the levels of class I MHC (H-2K or H-2D) antigens were also increased. Similar patterns of induction of Ia and H-2 antigens were obtained with supernatants containing IFN-gamma produced by a monkey cell line (COS) that had been transfected with a plasmid bearing the cloned murine IFN-gamma gene. This activity was sensitive to pH 2 and was not present in the supernatant from COS cells that were not transfected with the murine IFN-gamma gene. These results established that IFN-gamma is the T cell-derived molecule that induces the enhanced expression of Ia and H-2 antigens on B cells and macrophages. A major physiologic role of IFN-gamma may be to regulate immune function through the enhanced expression of MHC antigens.     

Expression and partial purification of a recombinant secretory form of human liver carboxylesterase.

Serine-dependent carboxylesterases (EC 3.1.1.1) are found in a variety of tissues with high activity detected in the liver. Carboxylesterases (CaE) hydrolyze aliphatic and aromatic esters, and aromatic amides, and play an important role in the detoxification of xenobiotic chemicals that contain organophosphate (OP) compounds. The detoxifying ability of CaE is limited by its low concentration in serum where it encounters OP compounds. Studies in our laboratory have shown that a pRC/CMV-hCaE plasmid construct, stably integrated into 293T cells, expresses a human liver CaE in culture. However, the enzyme remained inside the cell and reached a low steady-state level of expression. The goals of this study were to overexpress a functional human liver CaE from a recombinant cDNA in a human cell line and to isolate and purify the recombinant protein. To accomplish these goals, a single amino acid change was made in the C-terminal retrieval signal, HIEL (His-Ile-Glu-Leu), of human liver CaE. The mutation produced a unique Eco47III restriction site, which aided in clone selection. The recombinant plasmid, pRc/CMV-mhCaE, was isolated and stably integrated into human 293T cells. Expression of the altered cDNA resulted in secretion of an active CaE up to levels of 500 enzyme units per liter of growth medium. Secretory CaE displayed isoelectric focusing patterns similar to those of the native enzyme with no observable changes in activity. The secreted enzyme was partially purified by hydrophobic interaction chromatography and Cibacron blue affinity chromatography. Partial enzyme purification was achieved, and CaE retained a high level of enzymatic activity.     

Biologic-response-modifier-induced indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase activity in human peripheral blood mononuclear cell cultures

Degradation of tryptophan to kynurenine, catalyzed by indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), has been augmented in human epithelial cell lines treated with human interferon-gamma (HuIFN-gamma). Several human biologic response modifiers, including HuIFN-gamma, HuIFN-beta, HuIFN-alpha, interleukin 2 (HuIL-2), and tumor necrosis factor alpha, have now been assessed for their ability to enhance tryptophan degradation in human peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PMC) cultures. PMC were isolated from normal donors, cultivated in RPMI 1640 medium containing [3H]tryptophan, and treated with individual biologic response modifiers. At various intervals, culture supernatants were removed, fractionated by reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography, and radioactivity in resultant fractions was determined. Significantly increased amounts of tryptophan catabolites were observed after treatment with HuIFN-gamma, HuIFN-beta, HuIFN-alpha, and HuIL-2, but not human tumor necrosis factor alpha. Often, greater than 30% of available tryptophan was degraded by treated PMC cultures. Although antibodies to HuIFN-alpha, HuIFN-beta, and HuIFN-gamma specifically neutralized the induction of IDO activity in PMC by their respective HuIFN, only anti-HuIFN-gamma antibody also neutralized HuIL-2-induced IDO activity. Furthermore, T24 bladder carcinoma cells, in which IDO was induced by HuIFN-gamma but not by the other biologic response modifiers, were induced to degrade tryptophan by supernatants of HuIL-2-stimulated PMC cultures, but not by HuIFN-beta-stimulated PMC culture supernatants. Thus, whereas HuIL-2 indirectly induced IDO in PMC cultures by stimulating production of HuIFN-gamma, all cases of interferons appeared to induce IDO directly in PMC cultures.     

Cloning and expression of a novel variant of human interferon-gamma cDNA

A cDNA library was prepared from the poly(A) mRNA isolated from human peripheral blood lymphocytes which were induced by combined treatment with phytohemagglutinin and a phorbol ester. Recombinant plasmids containing human interferon-gamma (HuIFN-gamma) cDNAs were identified by the oligonucleotide-hybridization method. Nucleotide sequence analysis showed that the nucleotide and amino-acid sequences of HuIFN-gamma cDNA in plasmid pIFN gamma-G4 differed from the published data at amino acid position 9 (CAA for glutamine versus AAA for lysine). The cDNA in plasmid pIFN gamma-G4 was expressed under control of the simian virus 40 early promoter in monkey COS cells and a biologically active HuIFN-gamma was secreted from the cells. The cDNA was also inserted into an expression vector carrying an E. coli tryptophan promoter and was expressed in E. coli. The results suggest that the conversion from lysine to glutamine at amino acid position 9 might not affect the specific activity of HuIFN-gamma.     

Expression of human IFN-gamma genomic DNA in transgenic mice

We have introduced an 8.6-kb fragment of human genomic DNA containing the full length IFN-gamma gene into the mouse germline. The transgenic animals had no biologic or developmental defects as human IFN-gamma does not bind to the mouse IFN R. Regulation of the transgene paralleled that of the endogenous murine IFN-gamma gene in that: 1) it is not expressed constitutively in any tissue examined thus far, 2) it can be induced in thymus and spleen cells by T cell mitogens, 3) it is not expressed in B cells stimulated by LPS, and 4) it produces normal mRNA and biologically active IFN protein. Whereas expression of the transgene is likely restricted to T cells, we had observed that both fibroblasts and B cell lines could express the same DNA when transfected in vitro; this indicates that in vivo, developmental factors restrict expression of the IFN-gamma gene to T cells. These findings also indicate that the 8.6-kb fragment contains the regulatory elements necessary for normal tissue specific expression in vivo. Moreover, they indicate that the regulatory elements for this gene are completely preserved over the phylogenetic distance separating mouse and man, even though substantial drift has occurred in the structural gene, and probably in the IFN-gamma R as well.     

Functional heterogeneity among human inducer T cell clones

Analysis of mouse CD4+ inducer T cells at the clonal level has established that a dichotomy among CD4+ T cell clones exists with regard to types of lymphokines secreted. Mouse T cell clones designated Th1 have been shown to secrete IL-2 and IFN-gamma, whereas T cell clones designated Th2 have been shown to produce IL-4 but not IL-2 or IFN-gamma. To determine if such a dichotomy in the helper inducer T cell subset occurred in man, we examined a panel of human CD4+ helper/inducer T cell clones for patterns of lymphokine secretion and for functional activity. We identified human T cell clones which secrete IL-4 but not IL-2 or IFN-gamma, and which appeared to correspond to murine Th2 clones. In marked contrast to murine IL-2 secreting Th1 clones which do not produce IL-4 or IFN-gamma, we observed that some human T cell clones secrete IL-2, and IFN-gamma as well as IL-4. Southern blot analysis indicated that these multi-lymphokine-secreting clones represented the progeny of a single T cell. IL-4 secretion did not always correlated with enhanced ability to induce Ig synthesis. Although one T cell clone which secreted IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma could efficiently induce Ig synthesis, another expressed potent cytolytic and growth inhibitory activity for B cells, and was ineffective or inhibitory in inducing Ig synthesis. These results indicate that although the equivalent of murine Th2 type cells appears to be present in man, the simple division of T cells into a Th1 and Th2 dichotomy may not hold true for human T cells.     

The murine IFN-gamma receptor does not transduce the activation signal to a murine promoter in human cells.

MuIFN-gamma receptor cDNA has been stably transfected in the human WISH cell line. A stable transfectant, denominated WISH-C2, expressed 46;000 receptors/cell whose affinity was similar to that observed on murine cells (Kd = 2.6 x 10(-9) M). When WISH-C2 cells were treated with Hu- or MuIFN-gamma, antiviral and antiproliferative activities were observed with HuIFN-gamma only. These findings suggest that other species-specific components associated to the binding site are required for the signal transduction. To overcome the complexity of measuring biological functions that very likely involve more than one regulatory and structural gene, we set up for the first time a system where a reporter gene driven by a murine promoter was used to directly evaluate the interaction of MuIFN-gamma receptor with an inducible promoter through the missing transducer factor.     

Blockade of physiologically secreted IFN-gamma inhibits human T lymphocyte and natural killer cell activation

The role of physiologically secreted human IFN-gamma in T lymphocyte and NK cell activation has been probed with a panel of mouse mAb directed against various epitopes of the human IFN-gamma molecule, or human IFN-gamma R. Addition to the culture medium of those mAb that neutralize the antiviral activity of IFN-gamma or interact with its receptor inhibited proliferative and cytotoxic responses elicited in PBL by HLA alloantigens, anti-CD3 mAb, and IL-2, but not the proliferative response to PHA. The IFN-gamma blockade also inhibited IFN-gamma, IL-2, and TNF-alpha release during MLC. Kinetic experiments showed that reduction of proliferative and cytotoxic responses to HLA alloantigens is maximal when IFN-gamma is blocked within the first 48 h. Exogenous rIFN-gamma restored the proliferative response only when added at the beginning. Moreover, when IFN-gamma was blocked, T lymphocytes recovered from 6-day MLC displayed a profound decrease in their expression of p55 and p75 chains of the IL-2R, as well as in the number of high-affinity IL-2 binding sites. These findings strongly suggest that IFN-gamma is required in the early phases of induction of the oligo- and polyclonal proliferative and cytotoxic responses of lymphocytes.     

The human fibroblast and human immune interferon genes and their expression in homologous and heterologous cells

The genetic information coding for human fibroblast interferon (IFN-beta) has been cloned both as a DNA copy (cDNA) and as a genomic clone. Human IFN-beta is made as a precursor and consists of a signal sequence 21 amino acid residues long followed by the mature protein 166 amino acids long. A single site for glycosylation is present. The human IFN-beta gene does not contain introns. Transfection of monkey cells with a chimeric SV40 derivative containing the human IFN-beta cDNA clone under control of the late SV40 promoter leads to secretion of high levels of IFN-beta. When a genomic clone is used in the same vector, IFN-beta synthesis can be further enhanced up to 30-fold by treatment with poly(rI) . poly(rC); this shows that a cis-active control element is present in the clone. An efficient expression system in Escherichia coli was worked out based on a plasmid containing the promoter PL of bacteriophage lambda, which is regulated by a temperature-sensitive repressor. This promoter is followed by a segment derived from bacteriophage MS2 that contains the ribosome-binding site of the replicase gene. The latter, however, is replaced by the human IFN-beta gene. Upon induction, high levels (about 5 x 10(9) IU 1(-1)) of IFN-beta are synthesized by the bacteria; this corresponds to about 2% of the total bacterial protein. The human immune (type II) interferon (IFN-gamma) gene has similarly been cloned. Partly purified mRNA derived from human spleen cells that had been induced with staphylococcal enterotoxin A was used as starting material. A full-length cDNA clone was sequenced. The total cDNA sequence is about 1150 nucleotides long; it contains a single open reading frame coding for 166 amino acids, the first 20 of which constitute the transmembrane signal. There are two sites for glycosylation. The amino acid sequence is quite different from that of IFN-alpha or IFN-beta, although a few similarities can be noted. The untranslated 3'-terminal region is about 550 nucleotides long. The IFN-gamma gene was expressed in monkey cells, again by using the SV40-derived vector, and the secreted product was characterized as true human IFN-gamma. A genomic clone in the form of a bacteriophage lambda derivative was also obtained. The IFN-gamma gene extends over at least 5 kilobases and contains at least two introns.     

A high-affinity monoclonal antibody (GIF-1) to human gamma-interferon: neutralization of interferon mediated inhibition of retrovirus production and 2'-5' (A) synthetase induction

An hybridoma clone secreting an IgG1 monoclonal antibody (GIF-1) specific for human gamma-interferon (HuIFN-gamma) has been generated using HAT medium supplemented with insulin (HIAT) at the initial stage of cell fusion. This antibody is capable of neutralizing the antiviral activity of HuIFN-gamma, the ability of HuIFN-gamma to inhibit retroviral replication in RD-114 cells, and the ability of HuIFN-gamma to induce the 2'-5' oligoadenylate (A) synthetase in RD-114 and HeLa cells. Eluate from an immunoaffinity column containing GIF-1 yielded two protein bands of molecular weight of 20 and 25 kd when subjected to SDS-PAGE.     

Deficient production of lysyl oxidase in cultures of malignantly transformed human cells

Lysyl oxidase activity in the culture medium of eight malignantly transformed human cell lines was very low compared with that in four control fibroblast lines, being 9-16% in five sarcoma cell lines and 7-11% in three other tumour cell lines. The low enzyme activity was probably due to deficient enzyme synthesis rather than impaired secretion into the cell medium, as low activity was also found in urea extracts of the cell pellets. Lysyl oxidase production thus appears to be closely regulated with deficient collagen gene expression in malignant transformation.     

Efficient transfer of a tumor antigen-reactive TCR to human peripheral blood lymphocytes confers anti-tumor reactivity.

The tumor-associated-Ag MART-1 is expressed by most human melanomas. The genes encoding an alphabeta TCR from a MART-1-specific, HLA-A2-restricted, human T cell clone have been efficiently transferred and expressed in human PBL. These retrovirally transduced PBL cultures were MART-1 peptide reactive, and most cultures recognized HLA-A2+ melanoma lines. Limiting dilution clones were generated from three bulk transduced PBL cultures to investigate the function of individual clones within the transduced cultures. Twenty-nine of 29 CD8+ clones specifically secreted IFN-gamma in response to T2 cells pulsed with MART-1(27-35) peptide, and 23 of 29 specifically secreted IFN-gamma in response to HLA-A2+ melanoma lines. Additionally, 23 of 29 CD8+ clones lysed T2 cells pulsed with the MART-1(27-35) peptide and 15 of 29 lysed the HLA-A2+ melanoma line 888. CD4+ clones specifically secreted IFN-gamma in response to T2 cells pulsed with the MART-1(27-35) peptide. TCR gene transfer to patient PBL can produce CTL with anti-tumor reactivity in vitro and could potentially offer a treatment for patients with metastatic melanoma. This approach could also be applied to the treatment of other tumors and viral infections. Additionally, TCR gene transfer offers unique opportunities to study the fate of adoptively transferred T cells in vivo.     

IgE production by normal human B cells induced by alloreactive T cell clones is mediated by IL-4 and suppressed by IFN-gamma

Seven T cell clones were established from mixed leukocyte cultures in which PBMC from two healthy donors and from one patient suffering from the hyper-IgE syndrome were stimulated by the irradiated EBV-transformed B cell lines JY or UD53. Five of seven T cell clones, after activation by co-cultivation with JY or UD53 cells, induced a low degree of IgE production by normal blood B cells. In one experiment in which the normal B cells could activate the T cell clones directly, IgE production was also observed in the absence of the specific stimulator cells. IgE production was also obtained with supernatants of the T cell clones collected 4 to 5 days after activation by their specific stimulator cells. In addition, the supernatants induced IgG, IgA, and IgM synthesis. All seven clones produced variable concentrations of IL-4 and IFN-gamma. The clones FA-28 and BG-39, which failed to induce IgE synthesis, produced, compared with the other clones tested, relatively high quantities of IFN-gamma (4700 and 2500 pg/ml, respectively). These high levels of IFN-gamma accounted for the lack of induction of IgE synthesis, because in the presence of a polyclonal anti-IFN-gamma antiserum, supernatants of FA-10 and BG-39 induced significant IgE production. In addition, the low degree of IgE production induced by supernatants of two other T cell clones (FA28 and BG24) was 15- and 3-fold enhanced, respectively, in the presence of the anti-IFN-gamma antiserum. IgE synthesis by normal B cells was also induced by rIL-4, indicating that IL-4 present in T cell clone supernatants was responsible for induction of IgE production. This notion was supported by the finding that IgE production induced by supernatant of BG-24 was strongly inhibited by a polyclonal anti-IL-4 antiserum. In contrast, IgG and IgA production induced by supernatant of BG-24 were not significantly affected by the anti-IL-4 antiserum. Only a slight inhibition of IgM synthesis was observed. Collectively, our results indicate that both recombinant and naturally produced IL-4 induce normal human B cells to synthesize IgE. However, final IgE production induced by T cell clone supernatants is the net result of the inducing and suppressive effects of IL-4 and IFN-gamma respectively, that are secreted simultaneously by the T cell clones upon activation.     

Protection against murine neonatal herpes simplex virus infection by lymphokine-treated human leukocytes

One-week-old mice were protected against a uniformly lethal herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection by IL-2 alone, but especially by the addition of human mononuclear cells (MC) plus IL-2. The dose response of IL-2 was biphasic. The addition of MC from cord blood did not enhance IL-2-mediated survival. Because the effect of IL-2 alone, or IL-2 plus MC, was ablated by anti-IFN-gamma and human neonates have an IFN-gamma production defect, the protective effect of MC plus human IFN-gamma (HuIFN-gamma) was tested. MC from adults cultured for 5 days in HuIFN-gamma afforded protection. At least 1 x 10(6) HuIFN-gamma-treated MC were required with increasing survival to 1 x 10(7) MC. The effector cell activity was ablated by adherence, silica, L-leucine methyl ester treatment or treatment with Leu-M3 plus C (all macrophage markers), and OKT4 plus C treatment (CD4 marker). Use of Leu-11, Leu-7, OKT3, or OKT8 plus C did not inhibit protection and excluded NK or T cell participation. In addition to survival, the ability to produce anti-HSV antibody was reconstituted. For the first time protection was afforded by human cord blood MC after treatment with HuIFN in vitro. We have identified an IFN-gamma-driven protection system against murine neonatal HSV infection mediated by human adult- or cord blood-derived CD4-positive macrophages. Protection is associated with enhanced effector cell function and reconstitution of the neonatal antibody production defect.