Deficient IFN Signaling by Myeloid Cells Leads to MAVS-Dependent Virus-Induced Sepsis

The type I interferon (IFN) signaling response limits infection of many RNA and DNA viruses. To define key cell types that require type I IFN signaling to orchestrate immunity against West Nile virus (WNV), we infected mice with conditional deletions of the type I IFN receptor (IFNAR) gene. Deletion of the Ifnar gene in subsets of myeloid cells resulted in uncontrolled WNV replication, vasoactive cytokine production, sepsis, organ damage, and death that were remarkably similar to infection of Ifnar ^−/− mice completely lacking type I IFN signaling. In Mavs^−/−×Ifnar^−/− myeloid cells and mice lacking both Ifnar and the RIG-I-like receptor adaptor gene Mavs, cytokine production was muted despite high levels of WNV infection. Thus, in myeloid cells, viral infection triggers signaling through MAVS to induce proinflammatory cytokines that can result in sepsis and organ damage. Viral pathogenesis was caused in part by massive complement activation, as liver damage was minimized in animals lacking complement components C3 or factor B or treated with neutralizing anti-C5 antibodies. Disease in Ifnar ^−/− and CD11c Cre⁺ Ifnar ^f/f mice also was facilitated by the proinflammatory cytokine TNF-α, as blocking antibodies diminished complement activation and prolonged survival without altering viral burden. Collectively, our findings establish the dominant role of type I IFN signaling in myeloid cells in restricting virus infection and controlling pathological inflammation and tissue injury.     

PTEN is indispensable for cells to respond to MAPK inhibitors in myeloid leukemia

Constitutively activated MAPK and AKT signaling pathways are often found in solid tumors and leukemias. PTEN is one of the tumor suppressors that are frequently found deficient in patients with late-stage cancers or leukemias. In this study we demonstrate that a MAPK inhibitor, PD98059, inhibits both AKT and ERK phosphorylation in a human myeloid leukemia cell line (TF-1), but not in PTEN-deficient leukemia cells (TF-1a). Ectopic expression of wild-type PTEN in myeloid leukemia cells restored cytokine responsiveness at physiological concentrations of GM-CSF (<0.02 ng/mL) and significantly improved cell sensitivity to MAPK inhibitor. We also found that Early Growth Response 1 (EGR1) was constitutively over-expressed in cytokine-independent TF-1a cells, and ectopic expression of PTEN down-regulated EGR1 expression and restored dynamics of EGR1 expression in response to GM-CSF stimulation. Data from primary bone marrow cells from mice with Pten deletion further supports that PTEN is indispensible for myeloid leukemia cells in response to MAPK inhibitors. Finally, We demonstrate that the absence of EGR1 expression dynamics in response to GM-CSF stimulation is one of the mechanisms underlying drug resistance to MAPK inhibitors in leukemia cells with PTEN deficiency. Our data suggest a novel mechanism of PTEN in regulating expression of EGR1 in hematopoietic cells in response to cytokine stimulation. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that PTEN is dispensable for myeloid leukemia cells in response to MAPK inhibitors, and PTEN regulates EGR1 expression and contributes to the cytokine sensitivity in leukemia cells.     

GM-CSF rescues TF-1 cells from growth factor withdrawal-induced, but not differentiation-induced apoptosis: the role of BCL-2 and MCL-1.

Cytokines such as granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and IL-3 promote the survival and stimulate the proliferation of haematopoietic cells. Using the GM-CSF-dependent TF-1 myeloid leukaemia cell line, the authors show that the endogenous levels of BCL-2 and MCL-1 are downregulated upon GM-CSF withdrawal, whereas the levels of BCL-x(L)and Bax are unchanged. Re-exposure of growth factor deprived cells to GM-CSF resulted in an early and transient increase in MCL-1 expression, and prolonged induction of BCL-2, which prevented apoptosis. In contrast, the expression of BCL-2 and MCL-1 were not modulated during TPA-induced differentiation of TF-1 cells, which was followed by apoptosis despite the presence of GM-CSF. TF-1 cells overexpressing BCL-2 or MCL-1 underwent delayed apoptosis upon growth factor withdrawal, but displayed no impaired apoptosis in response to TPA. Erythropoietin (Epo) induced the expression of BCL-2 and MCL-1 protein in TF-1 cells, however it did not support their long term proliferation, further demonstrating that upregulation of these anti-apoptotic genes is insufficient for the long term proliferation of TF-1 cells.     

A Cell Free Assay System Estimating the Neutralizing Capacity of GM-CSF Antibody using Recombinant Soluble GM-CSF Receptor

BACKGROUNDS: Previously, we demonstrated that neutralizing capacity but not the concentration of GM-CSF autoantibody was correlated with the disease severity in patients with autoimmune pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (PAP)^1-3. As abrogation of GM-CSF bioactivity in the lung is the likely cause for autoimmune PAP^4,5, it is promising to measure the neutralizing capacity of GM-CSF autoantibodies for evaluating the disease severity in each patient with PAP.Until now, neutralizing capacity of GM-CSF autoantibodies has been assessed by evaluating the growth inhibition of human bone marrow cells or TF-1 cells stimulated with GM-CSF^6-8. In the bioassay system, however, it is often problematic to obtain reliable data as well as to compare the data from different laboratories, due to the technical difficulties in maintaining the cells in a constant condition.OBJECTIVE: To mimic GM-CSF binding to GM-CSF receptor on the cell surface using cell-free receptor-binding-assay.METHODS: Transgenic silkworm technology was applied for obtaining a large amount for recombinant soluble GM-CSF receptor alpha (sGMRα) with high purity^9-13. The recombinant sGMRα was contained in the hydrophilic sericin layers of silk threads without being fused to the silk proteins, and thus, we can easily extract from the cocoons in good purity with neutral aqueous solutions^14,15. Fortunately, the oligosaccharide structures, which are critical for binding with GM-CSF, are more similar to the structures of human sGMRα than those produced by other insects or yeasts.RESULTS: The cell-free assay system using sGMRα yielded the data with high plasticity and reliability. GM-CSF binding to sGMRα was dose-dependently inhibited by polyclonal GM-CSF autoantibody in a similar manner to the bioassay using TF-1 cells, indicating that our new cell-free assay system using sGMRα is more useful for the measurement of neutralizing activity of GM-CSF autoantibodies than the bioassay system using TF-1 cell or human bone marrow cells.CONCLUSIONS: We established a cell-free assay quantifying the neutralizing capacity of GM-CSF autoantibody.Download video file.^{(45M, mov)}     

CBL Linker Region and RING Finger Mutations Lead to Enhanced Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-stimulating Factor (GM-CSF) Signaling via Elevated Levels of JAK2 and LYN

Juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML) is characterized by hypersensitivity to granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). SHP2, NF-1, KRAS, and NRAS are mutated in JMML patients, leading to aberrant regulation of RAS signaling. A subset of JMML patients harbor CBL mutations associated with 11q acquired uniparental disomy. Many of these mutations are in the linker region and the RING finger of CBL, leading to a loss of E3 ligase activity. We investigated the mechanism by which CBL-Y371H, a linker region mutant, and CBL-C384R, a RING finger mutant, lead to enhanced GM-CSF signaling. Expression of CBL mutants in the TF-1 cell line resulted in enhanced survival in the absence of GM-CSF. Cells expressing CBL mutations displayed increased phosphorylation of GM-CSF receptor βc subunit in response to stimulation, although expression of total GM-CSFR βc was lower. This suggested enhanced kinase activity downstream of GM-CSFR. JAK2 and LYN kinase expression is elevated in CBL-Y371H and CBL-C384R mutant cells, resulting in enhanced phosphorylation of CBL and S6 in response to GM-CSF stimulation. Incubation with the JAK2 inhibitor, TG101348, abolished the increased phosphorylation of GM-CSFR βc in cells expressing CBL mutants, whereas treatment with the SRC kinase inhibitor dasatinib resulted in equalization of GM-CSFR βc phosphorylation signal between wild type CBL and CBL mutant samples. Dasatinib treatment inhibited the elevated phosphorylation of CBL-Y371H and CBL-C384R mutants. Our study indicates that CBL linker and RING finger mutants lead to enhanced GM-CSF signaling due to elevated kinase expression, which can be blocked using small molecule inhibitors targeting specific downstream pathways.     

IL-4 and TNF-α-MEDIATED PROLIFERATION OF THE HUMAN MEGAKARYOCYTIC LINE M-O7E IS REGULATED BY INDUCED AUTOCRINE PRODUCTION OF GM-CSF

In this study, the authors examined the effects of recombinant human interleukin 4 (rhIL-4) and recombinant human tumour necrosis factor alpha (rhTNF-α) alone or in combination on proliferation of the human cytokine dependent myeloid cell line, M-O7e. While rhIL-4 or rhTNF-α alone induced only a weak proliferative response, a synergistic proliferative signal was clearly evident on stimulation of cells with a combination of both cytokines. The stimulatory effect of rhTNF-α is mediated predominantly by the 55-kDa TNF receptor because the agonistic monoclonal antibody Htr-9 and the Trp₃₂Thr₈₆TNF-α mutant protein specific for this receptor type produced similar results to rhTNF-α. In contrast, the Asn₁₄₃Arg₁₄₅TNF-α mutant protein specific for the 75-kDa TNF receptor produced only minimal proliferation of M-O7e cells. Using RT-PCR, we found that rhTNF-α rapidly and strongly induced granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) mRNA production, while rhIL-4 was a slow and less efficient inducer of GM-CSF mRNA. However, there was little evidence of the TNF-α/IL-4 combination acting synergistically on GM-CSF mRNA production as the levels of GM-CSF mRNA increased only marginally compared with IL-4 or TNF-α alone. Thus, the observed synergistic effect of TNF-α/IL-4 costimulation of M-O7e cells seems to be mediated via induction of GM-CSF secretion rather than an enhanced production of GM-CSF mRNA. Higher levels of GM-CSF were detectable in supernatants of cells treated with both rhIL-4 and rhTNF-α than in cells stimulated with either cytokine alone. Furthermore, addition of a neutralising antibody against GM-CSF abrogated the observed synergistic effect of rhIL?4 and rhTNF-α treatment, indicating that the rhIL-4/THF-α combination acts to significantly increase GM-CSF release which then acts in an autocrine manner to enhance the proliferation of M-O7e cells.     

Survival factor withdrawal-induced apoptosis of TF-1 cells involves a TRB2-Mcl-1 axis-dependent pathway

Tribbles, an atypical protein kinase superfamily member, coordinates cell proliferation, migration, and morphogenesis during the development of Drosophila and Xenopus embryos. Although Tribbles are highly conserved throughout evolution, the physiological functions of mammalian Tribbles family remain largely unclear. Here we report that human TRB2 is a pro-apoptotic molecule that induces apoptosis of cells mainly of the hematopoietic origin. TRB2 mRNA is selectively induced by removal of granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) or interleukin-2 from human erythroleukemia-derived TF-1 cell line or activated primary CD4(+) T cells, respectively. It is, however, not induced by many other treatments that trigger apoptosis of these two cell types. Overexpression of TRB2 activates many apoptotic events observed in GM-CSF-deprived TF-1 cells, including loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, Mcl-1 cleavage/degradation, and activation of Bax and a number of caspases. Specific knockdown of TRB2 significantly suppresses GM-CSF deprivation-induced apoptosis and all apoptotic events mentioned above. Finally, we demonstrate that TRB2-induced cleavage and degradation of Mcl-1 are mediated via a caspase-dependent but proteasome-independent mechanism, and overexpression of Mcl-1 or its upstream activator Akt can markedly overcome the apoptogenic effect of TRB2. Altogether, these results suggest that the TRB2-Mcl-1 axis plays an important role in survival factor withdrawal-induced apoptosis of TF-1 cells.     

The Interleukin-17 Receptor B Subunit Is Essential for the Th2 Response to Helicobacter pylori,but Not for Control of Bacterial Burden

Helicobacter pylori infection leads to an inflammatory response in 100% of infected individuals. The inflammatory cells which are recruited to the gastric mucosa during infection produce several pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines including several cytokines in the interleukin-17 family. The anti-inflammatory cytokine, interleukin 25 (IL-25, also known as IL-17E), signals through a receptor, which is a heterotrimeric receptor comprised of two IL-17 receptor A subunits and an IL-17 receptor B subunit. Previous studies in our laboratory demonstrated that IL-17RA is required to control infection with Helicobacter pylori in the mouse model. Moreover, the absence of IL-17 receptor A leads to a significant B cell infiltrate and a remarkable increase in lymphoid follicle formation in response to infection compared to infection in wild-type mice. We hypothesized that IL-25, which requires both IL-17 receptor A and IL-17 receptor B for signaling, may play a role in control of inflammation in the mouse model of Helicobacter pylori infection. IL-17 receptor B deficient mice, IL-17 receptor A deficient mice and wild-type mice were infected with Helicobacter pylori (strains SS1 and PMSS1). At several time points H. pylori- infected mice were sacrificed to investigate their ability to control infection and inflammation. Moreover, the effects of IL-17 receptor B deficiency on T helper cytokine expression and H. pylori- specific serum antibody responses were measured. IL-17 receptor B−/− mice (unlike IL-17 receptor A−/− mice) exhibited similar or modest changes in gastric colonization, inflammation, and Th1 and Th17 helper cytokine responses to wild-type mice infected with Helicobacter pylori. However, H. pylori-infected IL-17 receptor B−/− mice have reduced expression of IL-4 and lower serum IgG1 and IgG2a levels compared to infected IL-17 receptor A−/− and wild-type mice. These data indicate that signaling through the IL-17 receptor B subunit is not necessary for control of Helicobacter pylori in our model.     

Deficiency of β Common Receptor Moderately Attenuates the Progression of Myeloproliferative Neoplasm in NrasG12D/+ Mice

Activating Ras signaling is a major driver in juvenile and the myeloproliferative variant of chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML/MP-CMML). Numerous studies suggest that GM-CSF signaling plays a central role in establishing and maintaining JMML/MP-CMML phenotypes in human and mouse. However, it remains elusive how GM-CSF signaling impacts on JMML/MP-CMML initiation and progression. Here, we investigate this issue in a well characterized MP-CMML model induced by endogenous Nras^G12D/+ mutation. In this model, Nras^G12D/+ hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are required to initiate and maintain CMML phenotypes and serve as CMML-initiating cells. We show that the common β chain of the GM-CSF receptor (βc) is dispensable for Nras^G12D/+ HSC function; loss of βc does not affect the expansion, increased self-renewal, or myeloid differentiation bias in Nras^G12D/+ HSCs. Therefore, βc^−/− does not abrogate CMML in Nras^G12D/+ mice. However, βc deficiency indeed significantly reduces Nras^G12D/+-induced splenomegaly and spontaneous colony formation and prolongs the survival of CMML-bearing mice, suggesting that GM-CSF signaling plays an important role in promoting CMML progression. Together, our results suggest that inhibiting GM-CSF signaling in JMML/MP-CMML patients might alleviate disease symptoms but would not eradicate the disease.     

Induction of IL-4 release and upregulated expression of protease activated receptors by GM-CSF in P815 cells

GM-CSF has been showed to be able to induce up-regulated receptor and cytokine expression in mast cells in inflammatory conditions. However, little is known of its effects on protease activated receptor (PAR) expression and Th2 cytokine secretion from mast cells. In the present study, we examined potential influence of GM-CSF on mast cell PAR expression and IL-4 and IL-10 release by using flow cytometry analysis, quantitative real time PCR, ELISA and cellular activation of signaling ELISA (CASE) techniques. The results showed that GM-CSF induced up to 3.0-fold increase in IL-4 release from P815 cells, and FSLLRY-NH₂ and trans-cinnamoyl (tc)-YPGKF-NH₂ did not affect GM-CSF induced IL-4 release. GM-CSF reduced tryptase and trypsin induced IL-4 release by up to approximately 55.8% and 70.3%, respectively. GM-CSF elicited the upregulated expression of PAR-1, PAR-2, PAR-3 and PAR-4 mRNAs, but enhanced only PAR-4 protein expression in P815 cells. U0126, PD98059 and LY204002 almost completely abolished GM-CSF induced IL-4 release when they were preincubated with P815 cells for 30 min, indicating ERK and Akt cell signaling pathways may be involved in the event. In conclusion, GM-CSF can stimulate IL-4 release from mast cells through an ERK and Akt cell signaling pathway dependent, but PAR independent mechanism. GM-CSF may serve as a regulator for IL-4 production in mast cells and through which participates in the mast cell related inflammation.     

Shp2E76K mutant confers cytokine-independent survival of TF-1 myeloid cells by up-regulating Bcl-XL

Shp2 has been known to mediate growth factor-stimulated cell proliferation, but its role in cell survival is less clear. Gain-of-function Shp2 mutants such as Shp2E76K are associated with myeloid leukemias. We found that Shp2E76K could transform cytokine-dependent human TF-1 myeloid cells into cytokine independence and further characterized the Shp2E76K-induced cell survival mechanism in this study. Expression of Shp2E76K suppressed the cytokine withdrawal-induced intrinsic/mitochondrial apoptosis pathway, which is controlled by the Bcl-2 family proteins. Analysis of Bcl-2 family proteins showed that Bcl-XL and Mcl-1 were up-regulated in Shp2E76K-transformed TF-1 (TF-1/Shp2E76K) cells. Knockdown of Bcl-XL but not Mcl-1 with short hairpin RNAs prevented Shp2E76K-induced cytokine-independent survival. Roscovitine, which down-regulated Mcl-1, also did not prevent cytokine-independent survival of TF-1/Shp2E76K cells, whereas the Bcl-XL inhibitor HA14-1 did. Ras and mitogen-activated protein kinases Erk1 and Erk2 (Erk1/2) were constitutively activated in TF-1/Shp2E76K cells, whereas little active Akt was detected under cytokine-free conditions. Shp2E76K-induced Bcl-XL expression was suppressed by Mek inhibitors and by a dominant-negative Mek1 mutant but not by the phosphoinositide 3-phosphate inhibitor LY294002 and the Akt inhibitor API-2. Inhibition of Erk1/2 blocked cytokine-independent survival of TF-1/Shp2E76K cells, whereas inhibition of Akt had a minimal effect on cytokine-independent survival of TF-1/Shp2E76K cells. These results show that Shp2E76K can evoke constitutive Erk1/2 activation in TF-1 cells. Furthermore, Shp2E76K induces cytokine-independent survival of TF-1 cells by a novel mechanism involving up-regulation of Bcl-XL through the Erk1/2 pathway.     

cDNA cloning and expression of an apoptosis-related gene, humanTFAR15 gene

By means of cDNA-RDA method, some cDNA fragments were found to have high levels of expression during deprivation of GM-CSF (granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor) in a human myeloid cell line, TF-1 cells. One of these fragments was identified as a novel gene. To get the full length of cDNA, rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) and expressed sequence tags (EST) overlapping fragments assembling strategies were used. The novel gene was named TRAF15 (TF-1 cell apoptosis related gene-15), which consists of 1 218 nucleotides and encodes 212 amino acids. The putative protein product of TFAR15 is partially homologous toC. elegans protein C14A4.11. TFAR15 mRNA is expressed in fetal liver, kidney, spleen and lung, and also in some human myeloid cell lines. Both of the TFAR15 mRNA and protein were highly expressed in TF-1 cells after GM-CSF withdrawal.In vitro analysis showed that the recombinant TFAR15 protein could inhibit the natural cell death of 293 cells, an embryonic kidney cell line.     

The Soluble Interleukin-6 Receptor Is a Mediator of Hematopoietic and Skeletal Actions of Parathyroid Hormone

Both PTH and IL-6 signaling play pivotal roles in hematopoiesis and skeletal biology, but their interdependence is unclear. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of IL-6 and soluble IL-6 receptor (sIL-6R) on hematopoietic and skeletal actions of PTH. In the bone microenvironment, PTH stimulated sIL-6R protein levels in primary osteoblast cultures in vitro and bone marrow in vivo in both IL-6^+/+ and IL-6^−/− mice. PTH-mediated hematopoietic cell expansion was attenuated in IL-6^−/− compared with IL-6^+/+ bone marrow, whereas sIL-6R treatment amplified PTH actions in IL-6^−/− earlier than IL-6^+/+ marrow cultures. Blocking sIL-6R signaling with sgp130 (soluble glycoprotein 130 receptor) inhibited PTH-dependent hematopoietic cell expansion in IL-6^−/− marrow. In the skeletal system, although intermittent PTH administration to IL-6^+/+ and IL-6^−/− mice resulted in similar anabolic actions, blocking sIL-6R significantly attenuated PTH anabolic actions. sIL-6R showed no direct effects on osteoblast proliferation or differentiation in vitro; however, it up-regulated myeloid cell expansion and production of the mesenchymal stem cell recruiting agent, TGF-β1 in the bone marrow microenvironment. Collectively, sIL-6R demonstrated orphan function and mediated PTH anabolic actions in bone in association with support of myeloid lineage cells in the hematopoietic system.     

Mcl-1 downregulation by pro-inflammatory cytokines and palmitate is an early event contributing to β-cell apoptosis

Pancreatic β-cell apoptosis is a key feature of diabetes mellitus and the mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis is a major mediator of β-cell death. We presently evaluated the role of the myeloid cell leukemia sequence 1 (Mcl-1), an antiapoptotic protein of the Bcl-2 family, in β-cells following exposure to well-defined β-cell death effectors, for example, pro-inflammatory cytokines, palmitate and chemical endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stressors. All cytotoxic stresses rapidly and preferentially decreased Mcl-1 protein expression as compared with the late effect observed on the other antiapoptotic proteins, Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL. This was due to ER stress-mediated inhibition of translation through eIF2α phosphorylation for palmitate and ER stressors and through the combined action of translation inhibition and JNK activation for cytokines. Knocking down Mcl-1 using small interference RNAs increased apoptosis and caspase-3 cleavage induced by cytokines, palmitate or thapsigargin, whereas Mcl-1 overexpression partly prevented Bax translocation to the mitochondria, cytochrome c release, caspase-3 cleavage and apoptosis induced by the β-cell death effectors. Altogether, our data suggest that Mcl-1 downregulation is a crucial event leading to β-cell apoptosis and provide new insights into the mechanisms linking ER stress and the mitochondrial intrinsic pathway of apoptosis. Mcl-1 is therefore an attractive target for the design of new strategies in the treatment of diabetes.     

Neuropeptide Y Is Produced by Adipose Tissue Macrophages and Regulates Obesity-Induced Inflammation

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is induced in peripheral tissues such as adipose tissue with obesity. The mechanism and function of NPY induction in fat are unclear. Given the evidence that NPY can modulate inflammation, we examined the hypothesis that NPY regulates the function of adipose tissue macrophages (ATMs) in response to dietary obesity in mice. NPY was induced by dietary obesity in the stromal vascular cells of visceral fat depots from mice. Surprisingly, the induction of Npy was limited to purified ATMs from obese mice. Significant basal production of NPY was observed in cultured bone marrow derived macrophage and dendritic cells (DCs) and was increased with LPS stimulation. In vitro, addition of NPY to myeloid cells had minimal effects on their activation profiles. NPY receptor inhibition promoted DC maturation and the production of IL-6 and TNFα suggesting an anti-inflammatory function for NPY signaling in DCs. Consistent with this, NPY injection into lean mice decreased the quantity of M1-like CD11c⁺ ATMs and suppressed Ly6c^hi monocytes. BM chimeras generated from Npy^−/− donors demonstrated that hematopoietic NPY contributes to the obesity-induced induction of Npy in fat. In addition, loss of Npy expression from hematopoietic cells led to an increase in CD11c⁺ ATMs in visceral fat with high fat diet feeding. Overall, our studies suggest that NPY is produced by a range of myeloid cells and that obesity activates the production of NPY in adipose tissue macrophages with autocrine and paracrine effects.     

Interleukin-1β suppresses apoptosis in CD34 positive bone marrow cells through activation of the type I IL-1 receptor

Interleukin-1 is a pleiotropic cytokine that has been shown previously to suppress active cell death in T cells. Two cell surface receptors for interleukin-1 have been identified and their genes cloned, type I (IL-RI) and type II (IL-RII) receptors. In the present study, we provide evidence for a role of interleukin-1β in the short-term suppression of cell death both in purified CD34⁺/Lin⁻ bone marrow precursors and in the GM-CSF dependent cell line TF-1. Several lines of evidence suggest that the biologic effects of IL-1β are mediated by activation of type I IL-1 receptors (IL-1RI) and induction of GM-CSF production. First, neutralizing antibodies to IL-1RI but not IL-1RII drastically abrogated cell survival induced by IL-1β in CD34⁺/Lin⁻ cells and TF-1 cells. Second, neutralizing antibodies against GM-CSF abrogate cell survival supported by IL-1 both in CD34⁺/Lin⁻ bone marrow cells and in the cell line TF-1. Furthermore, exposure of TF-1 cells to IL-1β results in a transient accumulation of GM-CSF mRNA, with a peak at 3 h, which was dramatically decreased by neutralizing anti-IL-1RI antibodies. In contrast, neutralizing anti-IL-1RII did not change the IL-1 induced cell survival of bone marrow cells and was followed by a paradoxical increase in viable cell numbers, in c-myc and c-myb mRNA accumulation in IL-1 treated TF-1 cells. Together our results indicate that the increase in cell survival induced IL-1β occurs through binding to IL-1RI and the subsequent production of endogenous GM-CSF. IL-1RII does not appear to be involved in signal transduction in primary CD34⁺/Lin⁻ cells but could negatively regulate the response to IL-1β in TF-1 cells. © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor signaling and proteasome inhibition delay neutrophil apoptosis by increasing the stability of Mcl-1

Human neutrophils normally have a very short half-life and die by apoptosis. Cytokines such as granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) can delay this apoptosis via increases in the cellular levels of Mcl-1, an anti-apoptotic protein of the Bcl-2 family with a rapid turnover rate. Here we have shown that inhibition of the proteasome (a) decreases the rate of Mcl-1 turnover within neutrophils and (b) significantly delays apoptosis. This led us to determine whether GM-CSF could enhance neutrophil survival by altering the rate of Mcl-1 turnover. Addition of GM-CSF to neutrophils enhanced Mcl-1 stability and delayed apoptosis by signaling pathways requiring PI3K/Akt and p44/42 Erk/Mek, because inhibitors of these pathways completely abrogated the GM-CSF-mediated effect on both Mcl-1 stability and apoptosis delay. Conversely, induction of Mcl-1 hyperphosphorylation by the phosphatase inhibitor, okadaic acid, significantly accelerated both Mcl-1 turnover and apoptosis. Neither the calpain inhibitor, carbobenzoxy-valinyl-phenylalaninal, nor the pan caspase inhibitor, benzyloxycarbonyl-VAD-fluoromethylketone, had any effect on Mcl-1 stability under these conditions. These observations indicate that profound changes in the rate of neutrophil apoptosis following cytokine signaling occur via dynamic changes in the rate of Mcl-1 turnover via the proteasome.     

mcl-1特异性siRNA对HepG2细胞增殖及凋亡的影响

目的：肝癌分子靶向治疗是目前研究的热点,肝癌相关基因mcl-1在肝癌增殖及凋亡中的作用尚不明确,本研究拟探讨mcl-1特异性siRNA对体外培养肝癌细胞HepG2增殖及凋亡的影响。方法：设计、合成有效的mcl-1特异性siRNA序列,体外转染HepG2细胞;通过绘制细胞生长曲线和MTT实验检测mcl-1特异性siRNA对HepG2细胞增殖的影响;通过AnnexinV／PI双标记流式细胞仪检测mcl-1特异性siRNA对HepG2细胞凋亡率的影响。结果：通过绘制细胞生长曲线发现,mcl-1特异性siRNA能够抑制HepG2细胞的增殖（P〈0．05）,MTT实验提示转染mcl-1特异性siRNA24h、48h、72h后,HepG2细胞存活率均显著下降（P〈O．05）;流式细胞仪检测分析发现,转染mcl．1特异性siRNA后AnnexinV＋／PI-细胞百分率显著增高（P〈0．01）,提示mcl-1具有促进HepG2细胞凋亡的作用。结论：Mcl-1蛋白具有促进肝癌细胞增殖,抑制肝癌细胞凋亡的作用,这种分子特性符合肿瘤靶向治疗的要求,Mcl-1可能成为肝癌靶向治疗的潜在靶点。     

Pro-apoptotic Bax is the major and Bak an auxiliary effector in cytokine deprivation-induced mast cell apoptosis

The process of apoptosis in immune cells like mast cells is essential to regain homeostasis after an inflammatory response. The intrinsic pathway of apoptosis is ultimately controlled by the pro-apoptotic Bcl-2 family members Bax and Bak, which upon activation oligomerize to cause increased permeabilization of the mitochondria outer membrane leading to cell death. We examined the role of Bax and Bak in cytokine deprivation-induced apoptosis in mast cells using connective tissue-like mast cells and mucosal-like mast cells derived from bax^−/−, bak^−/− and bax^−/−bak^−/− mice. Although both Bax and Bak were expressed at readily detectable protein levels, we found a major role for Bax in mediating mast cell apoptosis induced by cytokine deprivation. We analyzed cell viability by propidium iodide exclusion and flow cytometry after deprivation of vital cytokines for each mast cell population. Upon cytokine withdrawal, bak^−/− mast cells died at a similar rate as wild type, whereas bax^−/− and bax^−/−bak^−/− mast cells were partially or completely resistant to apoptosis, respectively. The total resistance seen in bax^−/−bak^−/− mast cells is comparable with mast cells deficient of both pro-apoptotic Bim and Puma or mast cells overexpressing anti-apoptotic Bcl-2. These results show that Bax has a predominant and Bak a minor role in cytokine deprivation-induced apoptosis in both connective tissue-like and mucosal-like mast cells.