Quantitation and characterization of gamma-interferon receptors on human tumor cells.

The vast majority (71 of 77) of human tumor cells derived from various tissue origins were found to express specific membrane receptors for gamma-interferon (IFN-gamma). Six receptor-negative tumors were found among leukemic cells of lymphoid origin. Scatchard analysis with 125I-labeled human recombinant IFN-gamma revealed a similar binding affinity with a mean dissociation constant (Kd) of around 2 X 10(-11) M not only for various established cell lines, but also for leukemic and carcinoma cells derived from biopsy material. In contrast to similar KdS, large differences in the number of expressed IFN-gamma membrane receptors were found on distinct tumor cells of the same cell type ranging from a few hundred up to 2 X 10(4) for both carcinoma cells and leukemic cells. For comparison, the IFN-gamma receptor number on normal lymphocytes (mean, approximately 300/cell) and normal bone marrow cells (mean, approximately 1000/cell) was consistently found to be low. Cross-linking of membrane-bound 125I-IFN-gamma with disuccinimidyl suberate and subsequent sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis revealed, in both leukemia and carcinoma cells, three distinct complexes with molecular weights of approximately 70,000, 92,000, and 160,000, suggesting the existence of IFN-gamma receptor subunits. A dimeric structure of the functional IFN-gamma receptor with an estimated molecular weight of about 128,000 +/- 10,000 is proposed. Together with the Scatchard analysis, these data suggest the existence of a single class of high affinity IFN-gamma receptors in tumor cells of distinct tissue origin.

Differential gamma-interferon response of human colon carcinoma cells: inhibition of proliferation and modulation of immunogenicity as independent effects of gamma-interferon on tumor cell growth.

The effect of recombinant gamma-interferon (IFN-gamma) on established human colon carcinoma cell lines as well as fresh tumor cells from colon carcinoma patients has been investigated with respect to growth inhibition, enhancement of HLA expression, and modulation of immunogenicity. A direct antiproliferative activity of IFN-gamma was observed in five of seven cell lines tested, with a reduction of [3H]thymidine incorporation between 30 and 90%. Depending on the cell line, the IFN-gamma doses required for maximal inhibition varied between 20 and 2 X 10(4) units/ml. Independent of this effect, IFN-gamma enhanced the expression of HLA-A,B,C antigens in all cells investigated and induced expression of HLA-DR in three of seven carcinoma cell lines. Antigenic modulation of Class I and II major histocompatibility complex antigens was paralleled by an enhancement of the in vitro immunogenicity in three of four established carcinoma lines and in three of three cases, using cells derived from primary tumor cultures. Induction or enhancement of both proliferative and cytolytic T-cell responses was obtained in allogeneic and in autologous mixed-lymphocyte tumor cell cultures.

Characterization of N-ethylmaleimide-reactive proteins from human tonsillar ribosomes by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.

Human tonsillar 80-S ribosomes were 17% and 43% inactivated by 1 mM N-ethylmaleimide after 12 min at 30 or 37 degrees C, respectively. The ribosomes were unaffected by the reagent during the same period of time at 0 or 20 degrees C. 4, 12, 27 and 59 sulfhydryl groups per 80-S ribosomes were found labeled by 1 mM N-ethyl[14C] maleimide after 12 min at 0, 20, 30 or 37 degrees C, respectively. The analysis of radioactively labeled proteins by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis revealed the following: after 3 min at 37 degrees C only two 40-S proteins, S3 and S7, displayed a significant amount of label. After 12 min at 37 degrees C, there was a several-fold increase in the extent of radioactivity found in each of these proteins and, additionally, S1, S2, S4, S5, S15, S22 and S31 were also found among labeled 40-S proteins. S3 appeared to be the most N-ethylmaleimide-reactive 40S protein. After 3 min at 37 degrees C, L10, L17, L20 (and/or S20), L26, L32 and L33, and after 12 min at 37 degrees C, additionally L1, L2, L7, L9, L11, L15, L16, L18, and L25 were labeled among 60-S proteins. l17 and 32 were the most N-ethylmaleimide-reactive proteins under these conditions. After 12 min at 37 degrees C, approx. 26% and 39% of the radioactivity incorporated into the 80 S or 60 S ribosomal protein, respectively, was found in these two proteins. After 12 min at 0 degrees C, S3, L17, L32 and L33 were the only labeled proteins.

Effect of neuraminidase on luteinizing hormone/chorionic gonadotrophin binding to the ovarian and testicular membranes from different mammalian species.

After treatment of the ovarian and testicular membranes from several mammalian species an elevation in the specific binding of human [125I]-labelled CG could be observed. With the assumption that this effect is due to sialic acid-masked receptors, the presence of such receptors seem to be a common property of most mammalian gonads. An interesting observation was the abnormally high hormone binding capacity of the Syrian hamster ovary, as compared to other hamster species, and the lack of a neuraminidase effect in the ovary of the Syrian hamster.

IFN-gamma receptors on human tumor cells: relationship between receptor ligand interactions and induction of IFN-gamma response.

Scatchard analysis of 125I-IFN-gamma binding on fresh lymphoid and myeloid tumor cells derived from 34 leukemia patients and on normal cells obtained from 14 healthy individuals revealed similar high affinity binding with a mean Kd of around 2 X 10(-11) M in 14/14 normal and 30/34 malignant cells, but large quantitative differences in the receptor number of malignant cells with a range of 300 to 12,000 receptors/cell. In contrast, normal lymphoid and myeloid cells expressed consistantly low numbers of receptors with a mean of 300 and 1,000 receptors/cell, respectively. Kinetic studies of IFN-gamma binding in relation to induction of HLA-DR antigens in established cell lines revealed the existence of close correlations between the quantity of receptor ligand interaction and induction of IFN-gamma response, indicating that at limiting IFN-gamma concentrations the height of response is controlled by the number of expressed membrane receptors. In the light of the observed quantitative differences in IFN-gamma receptors on various tumors, this finding may have implications for the definition of therapeutically effective IFN-gamma doses.

Noncytocidal mechanisms of action of tumor necrosis factor-alpha on human tumor cells: enhancement of HLA gene expression synergistic with interferon-gamma.

In this report, we present evidence that tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) exerts regulatory activity on the expression of HLA genes in human tumor cell lines at the level of mRNA expression and at a posttranscriptional level. These mechanisms are independent of direct cytotoxic/cytostatic effects, as enhancement of HLA antigen expression was observed in both sensitive cell lines and in cell lines resistant to TNF-mediated growth inhibition. In a priori HLA-negative cells, a strong TNF-alpha-mediated enhancement of the Interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) induced expression of HLA genes was revealed by Northern blot and immunofluorescence analysis. A distinct mechanism of TNF-alpha action is suggested from enhancement of constitutively expressed HLA genes. In this case, TNF-alpha raised HLA antigen density without apparent enhancement of cytoplasmic mRNA levels. This indicates that TNF-alpha influences HLA expression also at the level of translation or at a posttranslational level. TNF-alpha treatment of HLA-negative cells did not by itself result in HLA gene induction, suggesting that TNF-alpha acts as an enhancer and not as an inducer of HLA gene expression.

The effects of neuraminidase and gangliosides on ovarian LH/hCG receptors during rat development.

Ovaries of neonatal rats are not endowed with specific LH/hCG receptors up to 6-8 days of age. Treatment of ovarian membranes of the neonatal rat with neuraminidase results in a specific binding of radioactively labeled hCG, while an increase of hormone binding is observed after neuraminidase treatment of ovarian membranes of the 21-day-old rat. These changes in hormone receptor sites in the ovary are dependent on the neuraminidase concentration used and are due to a receptor with a dissociation constant (KD) of about 10(-9) M. The KD of the receptor in the LH/hCG sensitive ovary without neuraminidase treatment is about 10(-10) M. These results indicate the presence of two different LH/hCG receptors in the ovarian membrane. The unmasking effect of neuraminidase onto LH/hCG receptors indicate that ganglioside-like structures are responsible for the masking of receptors in the neonatal, insensitive rat ovary and also in the 21-day-old sensitive ovary. Ganglioside preparations are able to inhibit the binding, and the fractionation of ovary gangliosides results in a fraction with a rather high inhibition potency of LH/hCG binding to the receptor. It is hypothesized that the masked receptor in the sensitive period represent a store of receptors for the reconstitution of the ovarian cells with active receptors after internalization of the hormone-receptor complex. Thus the masking of the receptors in the early postnatal rat ovary could be a prerequisite for the female differentiation of hypothalamic centers. The observed neuraminidase effect in vitro could reflect a physiologic situation. Neuraminidase was found in the ovary, and during early postnatal development the neuraminidase activity pattern coincides with that of the ovarian LH/hCG receptor changes.

Comparison of the biological and immunological activities of serum luteinizing hormone and follicle stimulating hormone in infertile males.

The biological and immunological activities of luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) in the serum of infertile males were determined by radioreceptor (RRA) and radioimmunoassay (RIA), respectively. In some sera the biological activity of serum LH was lower than expected on the basis of the RIA-data. In contrast, some sera contained unusually high levels of biologically active LH as demonstrated by RRA, despite not being detected in these amounts by RIA. Prolonged exposure of the gonad to such high levels of biologically active LH might cause end-organ desensitization resulting in infertility. The detection of such cases by the use of RRA could permit therapy in these individuals or exclude patients from treatment.

Absence of specific luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) receptors in the ovaries of Djungarian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus).

High affinity binding sites for luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) were characterized in Djungarian hamsters. Scatchard analysis was used to demonstrate specific LHRH-binding in hamster and, serving as controls, rat pituitaries (dissociation constant, KD = 0.6 nM, binding capacity, BM = 2.5 +/- 0.7 fmol/mg tissue; KD = 0.6 nM, BM = 6.9 +/- 1.9 fmol/mg tissue, respectively). In contrast to results obtained with rat ovaries (KD = 0.9 nM, BM = 3.0 +/- 0.9 fmol/mg tissue), no specific LHRH-binding was detected in hamster ovaries. Thus, it seems that direct gonadal action of LHRH in the Djungarian hamster is not involved in ovarian regulation.

The effect of sulfhydryl reagents upon the activity of 40S ribosomal subunits.

p-Chloromercuribenzoate inhibited the poly (U)-dependent binding of the Phe-tRNA to the 40S ribosomal subunit but displayed no inhibitory effect on the binding of poly (U) to the ribosome. Other sulfhydryl reagents tested, like N-ethylmaleimide and iodoacetamide, did not affect the binding of Phe-tRNA to the small ribosomal subunit.

Immunoregulatory activity of recombinant human tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha: induction of TNF receptors on human T cells and TNF-alpha-mediated enhancement of T cell responses.

The expression of specific tumor necrosis factor (TNF) membrane receptors and biological effects of recombinant TNF (rTNF)-alpha on normal human T lymphocytes were studied. Although resting T cells lacked specific binding capacity for rTNF-alpha, high affinity (Kd 70 pM) TNF receptors were de novo induced upon primary activation of T cells. Comparison of TNF receptor expression with that of high affinity interleukin 2 (IL-2) and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) receptors, respectively, revealed similarities to IL 2-receptor expression with respect to kinetics of induction. However, maximum expression of TNF receptors (approximately equal to 5000/cell at day 6) and subsequent decline occurred approximately 3 days after the peak of IL 2-receptor expression. In contrast, no change in the expression of IFN-gamma receptors (Kd 10 pM, 300 to 400 receptors/cell) was found in the course of T cell activation. On activated TNF receptor positive T cells, TNF-alpha exerted multiple stimulatory activities. Thus TNF increased the expression of HLA-DR antigens and high affinity IL 2 receptors. As a consequence, TNF-treated T cells showed an enhanced proliferative response to IL 2. Moreover, TNF-alpha was effective as a co-stimulator of IL 2-dependent IFN-gamma production. These data indicate that TNF-alpha may regulate growth and functional activities of normal T cells.

Quantification and characterization of high-affinity membrane receptors for tumor necrosis factor on human leukemic cell lines.

The expression of specific membrane receptors for TNF-alpha was determined on various human leukemic cell lines differing in their sensitivity to the growth-inhibitory activity of TNF-alpha. Binding studies with 125I-labelled TNF-alpha indicated specific binding in 8/10 cell lines with approximately 10-fold differences in the quantity of TNF-alpha bound by these distinct cell lines. Scatchard analyses of TNF-binding revealed the existence of high-affinity membrane receptors (Kd 1.5 X 10(-10) M) and approximately 3,000 binding sites/cell on both U937 and K562, representing 2 cell lines with high and low TNF sensitivity, respectively. Disuccinimidyl-suberate cross-linking of receptor-bound 125I-TNF-alpha and SDS-PAGE of membrane preparations of either U937 or K562 cells suggest a single receptor protein with an apparent molecular weight of 76 kDa. Comparison of the TNF-alpha binding capacity versus in vitro growth inhibition provides evidence that sensitivity to TNF-alpha is determined both at the level of receptor expression and at a post-receptor level. IFN-gamma strongly enhanced the TNF-alpha-mediated growth inhibition of 3 sensitive cell lines, but had no effect on 7 other leukemic cell lines with little or no TNF sensitivity. No correlation was found between this enhancement of TNF sensitivity and the IFN-gamma-mediated increase in TNF-cell membrane receptors, suggesting that IFN-gamma predominantly exerts its synergistic effect distal to TNF-binding.

Biological effects of gamma-interferon on human tumor cells: quantity and affinity of cell membrane receptors for gamma-IFN in relation to growth inhibition and induction of HLA-DR expression.

A large difference in the number of gamma-IFN receptors was found on a variety of human tumor cell lines with a range of 0.4 to 15 X 10(3) binding sites/cell. The receptor number did not correlate with the potential responsiveness of the cells to gamma-IFN, in regard to either growth inhibition or induction of HLA-DR expression, two independently regulated gamma-IFN effects. However, with respect to HLA-DR expression it was found that the gamma-IFN sensitivity of inducible cell lines depended on the number of receptors, so that with increasing number of receptors present on these cells lower doses of gamma-IFN were required for induction of the gamma-IFN effect.

Early events during primary activation of T cells: antigen receptor cross-linking and interleukin 1 initiate proliferative response of human T cells.

To study early events during primary activation of human T cells, a simple method was developed which simultaneously allows positive selection of T cells from peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) and their polyclonal, antigen receptor-mediated stimulation with anti-T3 monoclonal antibodies. In the absence of accessory cells, T cells activated with matrix-bound OKT3 express high levels of the Tac antigen within 15 h and produce interleukin 2 (IL2). Tac expression was further enhanced by addition of exogenous IL2. However, under these conditions purified T cells were unable to mount a proliferative response, whereas unfractionated PBL proliferated already after 24 h of culture. This unresponsiveness of purified T cells could be overcome by either re-addition of low numbers of autologous accessory cells or semipurified human IL1. As IL1 had no significant effect on Tac expression of T3-stimulated T cells, we conclude from these data that IL1 exerts in addition to its influence on IL2 production an effect, which allows antigen receptor-triggered T cells to enter the cell cycle.

Sequential therapy with recombinant interferons gamma and alpha in patients with unfavorable prognosis of chronic myelocytic leukemia: clinical responsiveness to recombinant IFN-alpha correlates with the degree of receptor down-regulation.

Natural and recombinant interferons (IFNs) have already demonstrated therapeutic efficacy, including cytogenetic remissions, in patients with chronic myelocytic leukemia (CML). We investigated at the level of ligand-receptor interaction the question whether heterogeneity of receptor number or affinity might contribute to primary or secondary treatment failures in CML. We therefore analyzed IFN-gamma and IFN-alpha receptor expression and regulation during treatment with recombinant IFN-gamma and IFN-alpha in 15 patients with advanced CML. We found no difference in number or affinity of constitutively expressed IFN-gamma receptors (mean 1,100) and, on average, a 30% reduction of IFN-alpha receptors (mean 750) on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNC) of patients with chronic or accelerated CML as compared to mature granulocytes and/or bone marrow cells of healthy controls, which express on average 1,050 and 1,100 IFN-gamma and IFN-alpha receptors, respectively. While IFN-gamma receptor expression on PBMNC is not influenced upon treatment with rIFN-gamma, there is a substantial downregulation of IFN-alpha receptors in the course of rIFN-alpha therapy. Our data also show a differential pattern of receptor downregulation between patients achieving complete hematologic remission (CHR) (4 out of 12) compared with patients with partial hematologic remission (PHR) and non-responders. We conclude that differences in IFN receptor number cannot explain primary or secondary treatment failures. However, the differential ligand induced downregulation of IFN-alpha receptors in patients achieving CHR compared to those with PHR or non-responders suggest a prospective value of IFN-alpha receptor determination.

Tumor necrosis factor-induced changes of gene expression in U937 cells. Differentiation-dependent plasticity of the responsive state.

TNF-alpha alone or in combination with IFN-gamma differentially affects the proliferation and differentiation of the human leukemic cell line U937 and two derivatives C27 and G3. All three cell lines express similar numbers of functional, high affinity receptors for both TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma. In C27 and G3 cells, TNF-alpha as well as IFN-gamma induced changes in steady state levels of specific mRNA, which appear to be associated with TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma diverse effects on cell growth and differentiation. Constitutive differences in membrane phosphorylation patterns suggest that altered transduction of TNF-alpha signals may account for the differential response of these three cell lines. Several lines of evidence indicate that C27 and G3 cells, when compared with parental U937 cells represent discretely higher stages of monocytic differentiation, suggesting that cellular differentiation may contribute to the development of resistance to the action of TNF-alpha.

Specific membrane receptors for human interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma).

IFN-gamma is a T-cell derived lymphokine which possesses antitumoral activity for a variety of malignant cells by virtue of its direct effect on cell growth and by its immunomodulatory activity. All IFN-gamma actions are initiated by binding to high affinity cell surface receptors, which are constitutively expressed in virtually all cell lines from various tissues. Although the detailed structure of the IFN-gamma receptor is still elusive, the available data suggest that the high affinity IFN-gamma binding site is a heterodimeric molecule of 128 kDa comprised of two subunits of 53 and 75 kDa, which is invariantly expressed in distinct tumor cells, differing in their response to IFN-gamma. Thus, the capability and type of cellular response to IFN-gamma appears to be largely determined at a post-receptor level. Nevertheless, in sensitive cell lines, the magnitude of response is proportional to the quantity of receptor ligand interactions. This could be important for the definition of effective doses in clinical applications of IFN-gamma, as distinct tumor cells are heterogeneous with respect to quantity of IFN-gamma receptors, with greater 20-fold differences of the number of receptors per cell.

High affinity human IFN-gamma-binding capacity is encoded by a single receptor gene located in proximity to c-ros on human chromosome region 6q16 to 6q22.

We have used human-rodent somatic cell hybrids to investigate the regional localization of the IFN-gamma R gene on human chromosome 6 and studied functional and antigenic characteristics of the expressed IFN-gamma R by Scatchard analyses of 125I-IFN-gamma binding and binding of an anti-receptor mAb (A6C5). The data obtained revealed coordinate expression of IFN-gamma- and A6C5-binding capacity as well as competition in binding to chromosome 6-positive hybrids and normal cells, indicating that the A6C5-defined protein is by itself capable of high affinity IFN-gamma binding and, thus, is likely to constitute the major IFN-gamma R protein of distinct cell types. The receptor gene could be allocated to region 6q16 to 6q22, which also contains the c-ros oncogene. Genetic linkage of the IFN-gamma R gene to an oncogene located in a region of non-random chromosomal aberrations may have a causal relationship to the deregulated IFN-gamma R expression in several malignancies.