In the present study, we focused on the production of the chemokine CXCL1, also termed KC, by cultured Theiler murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV)-infected mouse astrocytes. cRNA from mock- and TMEV-infected cells was hybridized to the Affymetrix murine genome U74v2 DNA microarray. Hybridization data analysis demonstrated upregulation of two sequences coding for IL-8 and related to the GRO 1 oncogene MGSA. The murine counterpart of the above human genes has been reported to be the chemokine CXCL1 or KC, and therefore we studied its regulation, confirming its mRNA increase by Northern blots. The presence of CXCL1 in the supernatants of infected cells was further demonstrated by a specific ELISA and its intracellular accumulation by flow cytometry. This secreted CXCL1 was biologically active in a non species-specific way as it induces chemoattraction on human neutrophils and monocyte/macrophages, but not on CD3 positive lymphocytes. Its induction does not follow the MAP kinase pathway which transcripts are decrease in infected cells compared with uninfected astrocytes. Two inflammatory cytokines, IL-1alpha and TNF-alpha, which are also induced by TMEV in astrocytes, were potent inducers of CXCL1. Nevertheless, both mechanisms of induction follow different pathways as antibodies to both cytokines fail to inhibit TMEV-induced CXCL1 upregulation. Spinal cords but not brains from TMEV-infected SJL/J animals contain CXCL1 at the start of clinical signs of the disease. As no CXCL1 induction can be detected neither in cultured BALB/c astrocytes nor in nervous tissue, we propose an important role for CXCL1 in this experimental model of multiple sclerosis as a chemoattractant of destructive immune cells.
A study of the brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)‐binding capacity of pure astrocytes demonstrated that these cells bind and endocytose [125l]BDNF rapidly using the gp95trkb truncated receptor. A linear Scatchard plot indicated the presence of only one type of receptor that bound the ligand, with a low Kd of 1.24 × 10−8 M. There were an average of 36 468 copies of this receptor on untreated astrocytes. Interestingly, the neurotrophin was not degraded intracellularly, as demonstrated by HPLC experiments. Furthermore, the stored molecule was released by a mechanism regulated by the extracellular BDNF concentration as a bioactive neurotrophic molecule that supports neuron survival, in a time‐ and temperature‐dependent manner. The data demonstrate that astrocytes exert an active role in the bioavailability of this neurotrophin, which is further enhanced in an inflammatory‐like situation induced experimentally in culture using interferon‐SgM.
Previous reports have shown that tumor necrosis factor (TNF) exerts a role on the physiology of astrocytes under inflammatory situations. The signalling for biological effects of this and other cytokines are usually exerted through cell surface receptors. In this study, we have demonstrated the presence of a surface TNF alpha receptor type I in murine astrocytes of both SJL/J and BALB/c origin, using 125I-labelled recombinant mouse TNF alpha. A linear Scatchard plot indicates the presence of only one type of receptor with a MW of 58 kDa (Type I TNF receptor) that binds the ligand with a Kd of 1 x 10(-9) M. There are 3,000 copies of this receptor on untreated astrocytes. The results also indicate that receptor-bound TNF is rapidly internalized at 37 degrees C and degraded intracellularly to a principal molecular species which elutes from HPLC reverse-phase columns at 38% acetonitrile rather than at 60%, as native TNF alpha does. The binding is up-regulated by increasing the number of receptors (but not its affinity) by treatments with Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV), Con A and inflammatory cytokines such as IL-1 alpha, IL-6, and INF-gamma. It is not influenced by vaccinia virus, IL-2, or LPS. This receptor may contribute to the initiation of perpetuation of the immune response which mediates the demyelinating inflammation induced by Theiler's virus.
Oligodendrocyte precursor cells require exogenous neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) for differentiation into oligodendrocytes. We transfected precursor cells with the gene for NT-3 and looked for changes in their development into myelin-forming cells. The expression of NT-3 in transfected cells was demonstrated by reverse transcription followed by PCR as well as by Northern blots. Direct synthesis of the neurotrophin product and its release to the culture supernatants were also shown by specific ELISA. Transfection converts precursor cells into actively dividing cells that can incorporate 3H-thymidine into DNA. In the absence of growth factors, a parallel increase in the survival of the transfected cultures was also demonstrated by the MTT test. The final demonstration of biological changes in transfected versus untreated cells was a 10-fold increase in myelin basic protein production observed in Western blots and the direct observation by phase-contrast and electron microscopy of myelin membranes in cocultures with hippocampal neurons. We discuss the future use of this transfected cells in regeneration and functional recovery in experimental models of multiple sclerosis.
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