Ectopic expression of murine TPO receptor (c-mpl) in mice is pathogenic and induces erythroblastic proliferation.

c-mpl, the cellular homologue of the v-mpl oncogene transduced in the myeloproliferative leukemia virus (MPLV), encodes the receptor for thrombopoietin, a cytokine involved in the proliferation and differentiation of cells of the megakaryocytic lineage. Here, we show that a retrovirus containing murine c-mpl cDNA (HSFmmpl) is pathogenic in vivo when inoculated in adult mice. All mice developed hepatosplenomegaly and died within 9 to 12 weeks after infection. Histological analysis showed that spleen, liver, and peripheral blood were invaded by erythroblasts at every stage of differentiation. In contrast to the myeloproliferative syndrome induced by MPLV, we did not observe an infiltration of these organs with cells from the granulocytic lineage nor a thrombocytosis. In fact, the platelet count of HSFmmpl mice progressively decreased and a severe thrombocytopenia was observed late in the course of the disease. Further characterization of the target progenitor of HSFmmpl virus in the spleen and bone marrow of diseased animals was accomplished using in vitro clonogenic progenitor cell assays. This analysis indicated that both late and early erythroid compartment (colony-forming unit-erythroid and burst-forming unit-erythroid) were largely increased in the spleens. The colony-forming unit-granulocyte-macrophage compartment was also increased but to a lesser extent. This study shows for the first time that ectopic expression of a member of the cytokine receptor superfamily promotes hematopoietic progenitor cell proliferation and could play a role in leukemogenesis.

CD44 and hyaluronan binding by human myeloid cells.

The CD44 cell surface molecule has been shown to be the principal cell surface receptor for hyaluronan (or hyaluronic acid), a glycosaminoglycan component of marrow extracellular matrix. However, its affinity for hyaluronan is not constitutive, since it depends on the cell type, the stage of differentiation and on activation by external stimuli including certain anti-CD44 antibodies and phorbol esters. Except for a few lymphoid cell lines, hematopoietic cells do not spontaneously bind hyaluronan and initial studies reported that, contrary to lymphocytes, myeloid cells could not be activated to bind hyaluronan. Because CD44 plays an important role in the initial phases of hematopoiesis, as shown by experiments using blocking anti-CD44 monoclonal antibodies, its capacity to mediate adhesion of primitive myeloid cells has been investigated. It was found that CD44 could mediate spontaneous adhesion to hyaluronan of immature myeloid cell lines KG1, KG1a, and TF1, which serve as a model for hematopoietic progenitors. However, despite expressing high amounts of CD44, no more than 15% of bone marrow progenitors could adhere to hyaluronan. Recent experiments have shown that a very important feature of CD44 is its capacity to be rapidly activated by certain antibodies and cytokines (GM-CSF and KL) from a low affinity to a high affinity state for hyaluronan. These data shed light on striking similarities in the functional regulation of CD44 and of the two integrin receptors VLA-4 (a4b1), and VLA-5 (a5b1), which are also expressed on hematopoietic progenitors. The relevance of these data to the regulation of normal hematopoiesis and mobilization of CD34+ progenitors in the view of cell grafting is analyzed. In addition, we show that in idiopathic myelofibrosis, the amount of hyaluronan is markedly increased in the extracellular matrix from the myeloproliferative spleen. Considering that the production of cytokines is enhanced in this disease, we discuss whether CD44-hyaluronan interaction may have a role in the pathophysiology of this myeloproliferative syndrome.

In vitro chronopharmacology of recombinant mouse IL-3, mouse GM-CSF, and human G-CSF on murine myeloid progenitor cells.

Circadian changes in in vitro pharmacodynamic effects of recombinant mouse interleukin-3 (rmIL-3), rm granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (rmGM-CSF), and recombinant human G-CSF (rhG-CSF) were investigated in 418 male B6D2F1 mice. Seven distinct experiments were staggered from July to December 1991. All mice were standardized for 3 weeks with a lighting schedule consisting of 12 hours of light and 12 hours of dark (LD12:12). In each experiment, bone marrow was sampled from separate groups of nine to 10 mice each every 4 hours for 24 hours. Data were analyzed with analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Cosinor. This latter method computes the probability of rhythm detection and its parameters. Femoral myeloid progenitors were quantified using the colony-forming units granulocyte/macrophage (CFU-GM) assay in the presence or absence of recombinant CSFs. For each CSF, the number of colonies is a function of circadian time of bone marrow exposure (ANOVA and Cosinor; p < 0.0001) with the values at peak time being double those found at the trough. Peak CSF efficacy occurred at 3 hours after light onset (HALO, early rest span) irrespective of CSF type or dose. Furthermore, in the absence of any added CSF, the number of clusters varied significantly according to sampling time, with a similar peak at 3 HALO (ANOVA and Cosinor; p < 0.001). Further in vivo chronopharmacologic experiments are needed to assess the relevance of these in vitro rhythms in bone marrow responsiveness to hematopoietic growth factors.

Increased synthesis of extracellular spleen glycosaminoglycans in an experimental myeloproliferative syndrome.

The changes occurring in the hematopoietic extracellular matrix in an experimental myeloproliferative syndrome were explored by comparing the glycosaminoglycan (GAG) composition of normal mouse spleens and spleens infected with myeloproliferative sarcoma virus (MPSV). Large quantities of hyaluronate and of sulfated GAGs accumulated in the extracellular matrix of infected spleens, as shown by histoimmunoassay and alcian blue staining, respectively. The splenic GAGs were either labeled with 35S-sulfate injected in vivo or unlabeled. The spleens were fractionated to separate hematopoietic cells from the stromal component containing extracellular matrix material and fibroblasts, and the GAGs were extracted from each fraction. Specific degradative treatments and electrophoresis indicated that sulfated GAGs were mostly chondroitin sulfate and heparan sulfate. Three hours after in vivo injection of 35S-sulfate, the amount of 35S-GAGs was increased approximately fivefold per mg stromal proteins. The bulk of these 35S-GAGs (70%) was recovered in the stromal fraction. The higher amount of sulfated GAGs in leukemic spleen was due both to the presence of more producer cells (infected fibroblasts and hematopoietic cells) and to a stimulation of GAG synthesis per cell, as evidenced 35S-labeling in in vitro experiments. Chondroitin sulfate was the main sulfated GAG present in the culture medium of both hematopoietic and fibroblastic cells and in the pericellular material released by trypsin from fibroblastic cells. High amounts of chondroitin sulfate, which has a possible role in the detachment of hematopoietic cells from the stromal cells, may favour the release of hematopoietic cells from the spleen into the peripheral blood. Heparan sulfate was produced by fibroblastic cells and it was principally present in their pericellular material. Considering the capacity of heparan sulfate to retain cytokines, as demonstrated by others in vitro, large amounts of heparan sulfate may result in the retention of large amounts of the cytokines, which production is enhanced in the infected spleen. This phenomenon may contribute to promote the hematopoietic stem cell proliferation characteristic of the MPSV-induced myeloproliferative disease.

Autocrine growth of leukemic cells.

Autocrine growth is a process whereby a cell both secretes and responds to a growth factor. This paper describes the stepwise malignant progression of leukemic cells which has been demonstrated in many experimental models of autocrine leukemic growth. In contrast, autocrine growth has not been proven as a major physiopathological mechanism for the growth of leukemic cells in vivo in human myeloid and lymphocytic leukemias. Growth-factor independency of human leukemic cell lines may be due to clonal selection.

The role of growth-factor receptors (excluding IL-2 receptors) in the proliferation and differentiation of normal and leukemic hematopoietic cells.

Receptors (R) are considered as allosteric enzymes whose action on metabolic chains is modulated through binding to the ligand. They play an essential role in the transduction of the multiple signals (e.g. interleukins or CSF) which intervene in the regulation of hematopoiesis. Their ordered interactions are necessary to regulate the growth and differentiation of normal hematopoietic precursors. This paper summarizes recent data concerning the structure-action relationship of growth-factor receptors in the signal transduction and alterations of growth-factor receptors which may play an important role in leukemic transformation. Some therapeutic modulations of growth-factors cascades are also discussed.

Hematopoietic precursors in disease induced by the myeloproliferative sarcoma virus.

Granulocyte and macrophage precursors (GM-CFU-C-), which differentiate in vitro without added granulocyte and macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), can be detected in the hematopoietic organs of mice infected with myeloproliferative sarcoma virus (MPSV). Retransplantation experiments have shown that the GM-CFU-C- are incapable of autonomous growth and depend on a factor present in medium conditioned by MPSV spleen cells (MPSV-CM). This factor is not MPSV and is not produced by spleen cells of noninfected mice. Two classical sources of GM-CSF, lung GM-CSF and GM-CSF contained in the plasma of endotoxin-treated mice, cannot replace the MPSV factor. Inversely, MPSV-CM does not stimulate the growth of retransplanted clusters induced in normal bone marrow with lung GM-CSF, whereas lung GM-CSF does. Two conditioned media containing activity promoting the in vitro proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic stem cells in the mixed colony assay stimulate the growth of MPSV clusters: one medium was conditioned by pokeweed-mitogen-stimulated spleen cells, the other by the WEHI 3 cell line. The implication of the results in the comprehension of MPSV disease is discussed.

A study of added GM-CSF independent granulocyte and macrophage precursors in mouse spleen infected with myeloproliferative sarcoma virus (MPSV).

A subpopulation of granulocyte and macrophage precursors (GM-CFUc) differentiating in the agar colony technique of Bradley and Metcalf into mature granulocytes and macrophages, without the addition of granulocyte and macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), can be detected in MPSV infected mice. These precursors were detected 5 days after virus infection, reaching a maximal concentration of 1/10,000 spleen or bone marrow cells, 25 days after viral infection. The number of the added GM-CSF independent GM-CFUc was linearly correlated with the number of seeded MPSV hematopoietic cells. No GM-CSF producing cells could be detected in the MPSV spleen using normal bone marrow GM-CFUc as responder cells. Study of the GM-CSF sensitivity of the GM precursors has demonstrated the existence of two GM-CFUc populations in the MPSV spleen: a) a GM-CSF dependent population with a GM-CSF sensitivity similar to that of normal GM-CFUc b) a GM-CFUc population which differentiated in the absence of detectable amount of GM-CSF and of which differentiation was not affected by the addition of progressive amounts of GM-CSF. A possible model explaining these results is proposed.

In vivo effect of a new mineral condensed ion (HPA 39) on murine Friend leukaemia.

HPA 39 is a tungsto-antimoniate compound, closely related to the mineral consensed ion HPA 23, from which it differs only by the presence of a potassium instead of a sodium ion inside the central cage. A single parenteral injection of HPA 39 on the same day as virus inoculation decreased the splenomegaly induced by Friend virus in DBA/2 mice and protected 90% of the infected animals against leukaemia. It also lowered the virus content in spleen extracts compared to untreated animals. The efficiency of treatment with HPA 39 on leukaemic mice at a late stage of the disease suggested that the compound may act at the cellular level as well as by inducing virus growth inhibition. HPA 39 also induced an early decrease of peripheral blood reticulocytes, and of the most differentiated erythroblasts in the bone marrow 1 day after injection of the compound. Mineral condensed ions therefore appear to have multiple biological effects both in vitro and in vivo.