Increased inosine-5'-phosphate dehydrogenase gene expression in solid tumor tissues and tumor cell lines.

Inosine-5'-phosphate (IMP) dehydrogenase, a regulatory enzyme of guanine nucleotide biosynthesis, may play a role in cell proliferation and malignancy. To assess this role we examined IMP dehydrogenase expression in a series of human solid tumor tissues and tumor cell lines in comparison with their normal counterparts. Increased IMP dehydrogenase gene expression was observed in brain tumors relative to normal brain tissue and in sarcoma cells relative to normal fibroblasts. Similarly, in several B- and T-lymphoid leukemia cell lines, elevated levels of IMP dehydrogenase mRNA and cellular enzyme were observed in comparison with the levels in peripheral blood lymphocytes. These results are consistent with an association between increased IMP dehydrogenase expression and either enhanced cell proliferation or malignant transformation.

Glycosphingolipid patterns of peripheral blood lymphocytes, monocytes, and granulocytes are cell specific.

We analyzed the amounts and types of glycosphingolipids (GSLs) from peripheral blood lymphocytes, monocytes, and granulocytes isolated by counter-current elutriation. The three cell types contained different amounts of neutral and acidic GSLs. The highest amount of neutral GSLs (109 micrograms/10(8) cells) was found in granulocytes, with considerably less found in monocytes (11 micrograms/10(8) cells) and lymphocytes (4 micrograms/10(8) cells). The neutral GSLs were composed of four types of lipids, GL1 through GL4 (mono-, di-, tri-, and tetraosylceramide). The highest percentage of GL1 was detected in lymphocytes and the lowest percentage in granulocytes, with the reverse order observed for GL2. GL3 and GL4, which were minor components of the neutral GSLs, were highly cell specific, with lymphocytes containing GL3 and GL4 of the globo series, granulocytes containing GL3 and GL4 of the lacto or neolacto series, and monocytes containing GL3 and GL4 of both types. The acidic GSL, sialosyl hexaosylceramide (lacto-series), was abundant in granulocytes but not in monocytes or lymphocytes. Another ganglioside, GM3, although present in all three cell types, was most abundant in monocytes and lymphocytes, whereas sialosyl paragloboside was higher in granulocytes than in lymphocytes and monocytes. These results indicate that peripheral blood lymphocytes, monocytes, and granulocytes have distinct "GSL fingerprints."

Cannabinoids induce incomplete maturation of cultured human leukemia cells.

Monocyte maturation markers were induced in cultured human myeloblastic ML-2 leukemia cells after treatment for 1-6 days with 0.03-30 microM delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the major psychoactive component of marijuana. After a 2-day or longer treatment, 2- to 5-fold increases were found in the percentages of cells exhibiting reactivity with either the murine OKM1 monoclonal antibody or the Leu-M5 monoclonal antibody, staining positively for nonspecific esterase activity, and displaying a promonocyte morphology. The increases in these differentiation markers after treatment with 0.03-1 microM THC were dose dependent. At this dose range, THC did not cause an inhibition of cell growth. The THC-induced cell maturation was also characterized by specific changes in the patterns of newly synthesized proteins. Pronounced among these changes was an increase in the synthesis of at least 10 proteins that are found abundantly in monocytes. The THC-induced differentiation did not, however, result in cells with a highly developed mature monocyte phenotype; the THC-treated cells failed to exhibit other monocyte markers such as attachment to the surface of tissue culture dishes or morphological maturation beyond the promonocyte stage. However, treatment of these "incompletely" matured cells with either phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate or 1 alpha,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol, which are inducers of differentiation in myeloid leukemia cells (including ML-2 cells), produced cells with a mature monocyte morphology. Two other cannabinoids, cannabidiol and cannabinol, which were more cytotoxic than THC at comparable doses, also caused an increase in the expression of maturation markers, but at doses higher than those required for THC. The ML-2 cell system described here may be a useful tool for deciphering critical biochemical events that lead to the cannabinoid-induced "incomplete" cell differentiation of ML-2 cells and other related cell types. Findings obtained from this system may have important implications for studies of cannabinoid effects on normal human bone-marrow progenitor cells.

Interaction between alpha 5 beta 1 integrin and secreted fibronectin is involved in macrophage differentiation of human HL-60 myeloid leukemia cells.

We examined the role of fibronectin (FN) and FN-binding integrins in macrophage differentiation. Increased FN and alpha5beta1 integrin gene expression was observed in phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate PMA-treated HL-60 cells and PMA- or macrophage-CSF-treated blood monocytes before the manifestation of macrophage markers. After treatment of HL-60 cells and monocytes, newly synthesized FN was released and deposited on the dishes. An HL-60 cell variant, HL-525, which is deficient in the protein kinase Cbeta (PKC-beta) and resistant to PMA-induced differentiation, failed to express FN after PMA treatment. Transfecting HL-525 cells with a PKC-beta expression plasmid restored PMA-induced FN gene expression and macrophage differentiation. Untreated HL-525 cells (which have a high level of the alpha5beta1 integrin) incubated on FN differentiated into macrophages. The percentage of cells having a macrophage phenotype induced by PMA in HL-60 cells, by FN in HL-525 cells, or by either PMA or macrophage-CSF in monocytes was reduced in the presence of mAbs to FN and alpha5beta1 integrin. The integrin-signaling nonreceptor tyrosine kinase, p72Syk, was activated in PMA-treated HL-60 and FN-treated HL-525 cells. We suggest that macrophage differentiation involves the activation of PKC-beta and expression of extracellular matrix proteins such as FN and the corresponding integrins, alpha5beta1 integrin in particular. The stimulated cells, through the integrins, attach to substrates by binding to the deposited FN. This attachment, in turn, may through integrin signaling activate nonreceptor tyrosine kinases, including p72Syk, and later lead to expression of other genes involved in evoking the macrophage phenotype.

Translocation of protein kinase C in human leukemia cells susceptible or resistant to differentiation induced by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate.

We investigated the possible relationship between the susceptibility of cells to differentiation induced by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and the subcellular translocation of calcium- and phospholipid-dependent protein kinase (protein kinase C) activity from the cytosol to the membrane. These two events were analyzed in a number of human leukemia cell lines, including four cell variants of the promyelocytic cell line HL-60 that exhibit different degrees of susceptibility to PMA-induced differentiation. The phenotype of the differentiated cells was characterized by increased reactivity with monoclonal antibodies against maturation-specific cell surface antigens, increased nonspecific esterase activity, and acquisition of morphological cell maturation. Analysis of the subcellular distribution of protein kinase C activity in each of these cell types revealed that 90% of the kinase activity was present in the cytosolic fraction, with the remaining activity in the membrane fraction. Treatment of the differentiation-susceptible cells with 160 nM PMA resulted, within 5 min after treatment, in a greater than 60% decrease in protein kinase C activity in the cytosolic fraction and a greater than 1500% increase in the activity in the membrane fraction. No such subcellular redistribution of protein kinase C activity was found after treatment of the differentiation-resistant cells. On the basis of these findings, we suggest that the process of subcellular translocation of protein kinase C activity, initiated after the binding of PMA to this kinase, is required for the induction of cell differentiation by this phorbol diester.