Increased plasminogen-activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) activity is a common finding in patients with coronary heart disease. Here we provide evidence for an independent, etiological role of PAI-1 in myocardial infarction. The 4G allele of a recently described common 4/5-guanine-tract (4G/5G) polymorphism in the PAI-i promoter is associated with higher plasma PAI-1 activity. The prevalence of the 4G allele is significantly higher in patients with myocardial infarction before the age of 45 than in population-based controls (allele frequencies of 0.63 vs. 0.53). Both alleles bind a transcriptional activator, whereas the 5G allele also binds a repressor protein to an overlapping binding site. In the absence of bound repressor, the basal level of PAI-i transcription is increased.

Expression of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) encoded nuclear antigens (EBNA 1 to 6) and membrane-associated protein (LMP) was investigated by immunoblotting in 83 nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) biopsies and 25 other tumor and normal tissue specimens from the head and neck region. Fifty-eight of the 83 NPC biopsies were large enough to yield parallel data on virus DNA and viral expression. All 16 cases of clinically diagnosed and histologically confirmed NPCs from North Africa contained EBV DNA and expressed EBNA-1. Of 31 clinically diagnosed NPCs from China, 29 contained EBV DNA and 25 of these expressed EBNA-1. One control tissue biopsy from the oropharynx of NPC patients contained EBV DNA, but none expressed EBNA-1. The latent membrane protein (LMP) was detected in 22/31 of the Chinese and in 10/16 of the North African NPC biopsies. None of the NPC biopsies or control tissues expressed detectable amounts of EBNA 2 or any of the other 4 nuclear antigens which are invariably expressed in EBV-transformed B cells. A smaller number of tumors from Malaysia and East Africa exhibited a similar pattern of expression. EBV was rescued from a nude-mouse-passaged North African NPC tumor by co-cultivation of the tumor cells with umbilical cord blood lymphocytes. The tumor expressed EBNA 1 and LMP, but not EBNA 2 or the other 4 EBNAs. The resulting LCLs expressed all 6 nuclear antigens, EBNA 1 to 6 and LMP. Our data suggest that expression of the EBV genome is regulated in a tissue-specific fashion.

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Tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) plays a key role in orchestrating the complex events involved in inflammation and immunity. Accordingly, TNF-alpha has been implicated in a wide range of autoimmune and infectious diseases, but also in conditions such as obesity and insulin resistance. The regulation of TNF-alpha expression in man is indicated to be partly genetically determined. We therefore screened a 1263 bp section of the proximal promoter of the TNF-alpha gene for common genetic variants affecting the transcriptional activity of the gene. Here we report the characterization of a common functional polymorphism in the promoter region of the TNF-alpha gene, a C-->A substitution at position -863. Electromobility shift assays provided evidence for a distinct difference in the binding of monocytic and hepatic nuclear factors to the -863C and -863A alleles. The rare -863A allele was associated with 31% lower transcriptional activity ( P < 0.001) in chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) reporter gene studies in human hepatoblastoma (HepG2) cells, indicating that the-863C/A polymorphism influences the basal rate of transcription of the TNF-alpha gene in vitro. Allele frequencies were 0.83/0.17 amongst 254 apparently healthy men of Swedish origin, aged 35-50 years. In 156 men, the -863C/A polymorphism was associated with the serum TNF-alpha concentration, carriers of the rare A allele having a significantly lower TNF-alpha level ( P < 0.05). It is concluded that the common-863C/A polymorphism in the promoter region of the TNF-alpha gene is functional in vitro in monocytic and hepatic cells and influences the serum TNF-alpha concentration in vivo in healthy middle-aged men.

The uptake of oxidatively modified low density lipoprotein (Ox-LDL) by intimal macrophages is believed to play a key role in the development of atherosclerosis. The present study demonstrates that Ox-LDL in low concentrations activates monocyte/macrophage release of factors that stimulate smooth muscle cell growth, whereas higher concentrations are inhibitory. Exposure of monocytes/macrophages to 8 micrograms/mL Ox-LDL increased expression of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) mRNA but had no effect on interleukin-1 beta, platelet-derived growth factor B and heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like mitogen mRNA levels. Ox-LDL also stimulated monocyte/macrophage release of TNF-alpha in a dose-dependent manner, with maximal effect at an LDL concentration of 8 micrograms/mL. Addition of TNF-alpha-blocking antibodies to conditioned medium from monocytes/ macrophages already exposed to Ox-LDL reduced mitogenic activity by 44.7 +/- 8.4% (P < .005). Stimulation of TNF-alpha release by Ox-LDL was associated with activation of transcription factor AP-1, whereas the activity of transcription factor nuclear factor-kB remained unchanged. These findings suggest that enhanced secretion of TNF-alpha by macrophages exposed to Ox-LDL may be involved in the formation of atherosclerotic lesions.