NAC1, a POZ/BTB protein present in the adult mammalian brain, triggers apoptosis after adenovirus-mediated overexpression in PC-12 cells.

POZ/BTB proteins influence cellular development and in some examples act as oncoproteins. However, several POZ/BTB transcription factors have been found in terminally differentiated neurons, where their functions remain unknown. One example is NAC1, a constitutively-expressed protein that can regulate behaviors associated with cocaine use. The present study represents an initial attempt to understand the actions of NAC1 within neurons by using adenoviral-mediated gene transfer into differentiated PC-12 cells. Cell survival in PC-12 cells overexpressing NAC1 was greatly reduced compared with cells infected by a control Ad-GFP. The morphological appearance of the dying cells was consistent with programmed cell death. Fragmentation of genomic DNA occurred in PC-12 cells infected with adenoviruses encoding NAC1 but not control viruses. NAC1 over expression was followed by the down regulation of the anti-apoptotic proteins Bcl-2 and Bcl-2-xl. Concurrently, levels of the pro-apoptotic proteins Bax and p53 increased following NAC1 overexpression. These observations suggest that NAC1expression in PC-12 cells induces apoptosis by altering the expression of these upstream mediators of the execution phase of programmed cell death. These findings raise the possibility that aberrantly regulated NAC1 expression in the mammalian brain may contribute to programmed cell death.

Molecular analysis of tumor-promoting CD8+ T cells in two-stage cutaneous chemical carcinogenesis.

T-pro are tumor-infiltrating TCRalphabeta(+)CD8(+) cells of reduced cytotoxic potential that promote experimental two-stage chemical cutaneous carcinogenesis. Toward understanding their mechanism of action, this study uses whole-genome expression analysis to compare T-pro with systemic CD8(+) T cells from multiple groups of tumor-bearing mice. T-pro show an overt T helper 17-like profile (high retinoic acid-related orphan receptor-(ROR)gammat, IL-17A, IL-17F; low T-bet and eomesodermin), regulatory potential (high FoxP3, IL-10, Tim-3), and transcripts encoding epithelial growth factors (amphiregulin, Gro-1, Gro-2). Tricolor flow cytometry subsequently confirmed the presence of TCRbeta(+) CD8(+) IL-17(+) T cells among tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). Moreover, a time-course analysis of independent TIL isolates from papillomas versus carcinomas exposed a clear association of the "T-pro phenotype" with malignant progression. This molecular characterization of T-pro builds a foundation for elucidating the contributions of inflammation to cutaneous carcinogenesis, and may provide useful biomarkers for cancer immunotherapy in which the widely advocated use of tumor-specific CD8(+) cytolytic T cells should perhaps accommodate the cells' potential corruption toward the T-pro phenotype. The data are also likely germane to psoriasis, in which the epidermis may be infiltrated by CD8(+) IL-17-producing T cells.