The human colonic adenocarcinoma cell line Caco-2 forms monolayers of differentiated enterocyte-like cells when cultured on permeable supports. After confluency, Caco-2 cells express a number of brush-border enzymes including lactase-phlorizin hydrolase, sucrase-isomaltase and dipeptidylpeptidase IV. We have studied, with particular emphasis on lactase-phlorizin hydrolase, the modulation of biosynthesis of these enzymes by stimulating second messenger systems. Forskolin induced lactase-phlorizin hydrolase synthesis approximately fourfold within 7 h, suppressed sucraseisomaltase synthesis, and had little effect on dipeptidylpeptidase IV. Dibutyryl-CAMP, 8-bromocAMP and vasoactive intestinal peptide also increased lactase-phlorizin hydrolase biosynthesis, indicating c-AMP dependent regulation. The induction of lactase-phlorizin hydrolase biosynthesis could be inhibited by actinomycin D and was preceded by a fourfold increase in lactase-phlorizin hydrolase mRNA levels, suggesting transcriptional control. Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate had an inhibitory effect on brush-border enzyme synthesis, in particular on sucrase-isomaltase, and blocked the forskolin-induced biosynthesis of lactase-phlorizin hydrolase. Lactase-phlorizin hydrolase synthesis was also inducible by hydrocortisone, but maximal induction required at least 3 days during which time sucrase-isomaltase synthesis diminished. The results indicate opposite regulation of lactase-phlorizin hydrolase and sucrase-isomaltase via cAMP and corticosteroids, and suggest that the Caco-2 cell line can serve as a model system to study aspects of the humoral regulation of human intestinal brush-border enzymes in cell culture.The human epithelial cell line Caco-2 has been established as a model system to study various aspects of intestinal epithelial cell biology including the synthesis of brushborder enzymes, protein trafficking, epithelial cell polarity (Zweibaum et al., 1991 ;Hauri and Matter, 1991 ;Louvard et al., 1992;Rodriguez-Boulan and Powell, 1992) and transepithelial transport (Thwaites et al., 1993). Although derived from a colonic adenocarcinoma, Caco-2 cells form monolayers of polarized cells on permeable supports and after confluency spontaneously express a number of features that are characteristic for differentiated small intestinal enterocytes rather than large intestinal colonocytes. As it has not been possible to establish non-transformed intestinal epithelial cell lines exhibiting a differentiated phenotype, Caco-2 remains the most promising cell line with which to study small intestinal functions in culture.Among other brush-border enzymes (Howell et al., 1992), Caco-2 cells express lactase-phlorizin hydrolase (LPH;Semenza, 1981Semenza, , 1986 Montgomery et al., 1991;Naim, 1993) which is synthesized as a 200-kDa high-man-