Miki Hiroi

Constitutive nuclear factor kappaB activity is required to elicit interferon-gamma-induced expression of chemokine CXC ligand 9 (CXCL9) and CXCL10 in human tumour cell lines.

CXC ligand 10 (CXCL10) and CXCL9 are chemoattractants for activated T cells and possess angiostatic activity. Both CXCL9 and CXCL10 have been considered as important components for the anti-tumour activities of interferon-gamma (IFNgamma) and interleukin-12 in animal models. In this article we show that the CXCL9 and CXCL10 genes in some types of human tumour cell lines are not inducible by IFNgamma and we describe experiments designed to explore the molecular mechanisms involved in this impaired induction. The human oral squamous carcinoma line Ca9-22 and the glioma line A172 failed to express CXCL9 and CXCL10 mRNAs in response to IFNgamma, whereas other carcinoma lines including HSC-2 did express these mRNAs. Production of these chemokine proteins was also impaired in Ca9-22 cells. The impaired expression was not due to any deficiency in the IFNgamma/signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1)-dependent signalling pathway. Instead, analysis of nuclear factor kappaB (NF-kappaB) activity revealed that the constitutive low level of NF-kappaB activity, which is seen in cells that express these chemokines, was absent in Ca9-22 and A172 cells. Activation of NF-kappaB in Ca9-22 cells restored the expression of IFNgamma-stimulated CXCL9 and CXCL10 mRNAs. In contrast, inhibition of the constitutive NF-kappaB in HSC-2 cells by adenovirus-mediated gene transfer of a dominant-negative IkappaBalpha suppressed the IFNgamma-induced expression of the CXCL9 and CXCL10 mRNAs. These results indicate that constitutive NF-kappaB activity, which is often associated with tumour development, is required for the induced expression of CXCL9 and CXCL10 genes in human tumour cell lines in response to IFNgamma.

Influenza A virus abrogates IFN-γ response in respiratory epithelial cells by disruption of the Jak/Stat pathway

The innate immunity to viral infections induces a potent antiviral response mediated by interferons (IFN). Although IFN‐γ is detected during the acute stages of illness in the upper respiratory tract secretions and in the serum of influenza A virus‐infected individuals, control of influenza A virus is not dependent upon IFN‐γ as evidenced by studies using anti‐IFN‐γ Ab and IFN‐γ–/– mice. Thus, we hypothesized that IFN‐γ is not critical in host survival because influenza A virus has mechanisms to evade the antiviral activity of IFN‐γ. To test this, A549 cells, an epithelial cell line derived from lung adenocarcinoma, were infected with influenza virus strain A/Aichi/2/68 (H3N2) (Aichi) and/or stimulated with IFN‐γ to detect IFN‐γ‐stimulated MHC class II expression. Influenza A virus infection inhibited IFN‐γ‐induced up‐regulation of HLA‐DRα mRNA and the IFN‐γ induction of class II transactivator (CIITA), an obligate mediator of MHC class II expression. Nuclear translocation of Stat1α upon IFN‐γ stimulation was significantly inhibited in influenza A virus‐infected cells and this was associated with a decrease in Tyr701 and Ser727 phosphorylation of Stat1α. Thus, influenza A virus subverts antiviral host defense mediated by IFN‐γ through effects on the intracellular signaling pathways.

Infiltration of M2 Tumor-Associated Macrophages in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Correlates with Tumor Malignancy

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are a major cellular component in the tumor microenvironment of many solid tumors. The functional competence of TAMs varies depending on the type of tumors and their respective microenvironments. The classically activated M1 macrophages exhibit antitumor functions, whereas the alternatively activated M2 macrophages exhibit protumor functions that contribute to tumor development and progression. Although TAMs have been detected in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), little is known about their phenotype. In the present study, we performed an immunohistochemical analysis to identify TAMs in surgically resected specimens from 50 patients with OSCC and evaluated the relationship between infiltrated TAMs and the pathological grade of OSCC. Positive staining for CD163, which has been used as a marker for M2 macrophages, was observed in OSCC specimens, and the percentages of CD163+ cells were significantly increased based on the pathological grade. CD163+ cells were detected in the tumor stroma in grade I tumors, whereas an increase in the CD163+ cells in the tumor nest was observed in higher grades of tumors. Although infiltrated CD4+ and CD8+ T cells were detected in all pathological grades of OSCC, no correlation between the infiltrated T cells and the CD163+ TAMs was observed. These results indicate that the infiltrated TAMs in OSCC have an M2 phenotype and that the M2 macrophages may participate in the development of OSCC.

STAT1 represses hypoxia-inducible factor-1-mediated transcription

Tumor hypoxia is associated with tumor promotion, malignant progression, and resistance to cancer therapy. The hypoxia-induced phenotypic changes in tumors result, at least partially, from the induction of hypoxia-responsive genes, such as chemokine receptor CXCR4. Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) is a critical transcription factor involved in the transcriptional regulation of these genes. Although interferon-gamma (IFNgamma) exerts anti-tumor responses against various tumors, the effect of IFNgamma on HIF-1-dependent transcription remains to be determined. In this study, we examined the inhibitory effect of IFNgamma on hypoxia-induced CXCR4 gene expression in human glioblastoma cell lines and explored the mechanism of inhibition. Hypoxia (1% O(2)) and the iron chelator deferoxamine (DFX), a hypoxia mimetic, increased the levels of CXCR4 mRNA in A172 and T98G cells, and treatment with IFNgamma inhibited the expression of CXCR4 mRNA. Although hypoxia and DFX induced the expression of HIF-1alpha protein and its hypoxia response element (HRE) DNA-binding activity, IFNgamma failed to inhibit its expression or DNA-binding activity. The results of a luciferase reporter assay using a heterologous promoter construct containing the HRE sequence revealed that IFNgamma suppressed the hypoxia- and DFX-induced reporter activities. Lentivirus-mediated RNAi of signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1) expression abolished the inhibitory effect of IFNgamma on hypoxia-induced reporter gene activity. Furthermore, this activity was not detected in a stable cell line expressing dominant-negative STAT1. These results indicate that IFNgamma-activated STAT1 functions as a negative regulator of HIF-1-dependent transcription in tumor cells.

Anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-4 inhibits inducible nitric oxide synthase gene expression in the mouse macrophage cell line RAW264.7 through the repression of octamer-dependent transcription.

Inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) is a signature molecule involved in the classical activation of M1 macrophages and is induced by the Nos2 gene upon stimulation with Th1-cell derived interferon-gamma (IFNγ) and bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Although the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-4 is known to inhibit Nos2 gene expression, the molecular mechanism involved in the negative regulation of Nos2 by IL-4 remains to be fully elucidated. In the present study, we investigated the mechanism of IL-4-mediated Nos2 transcriptional repression in the mouse macrophage-like cell line RAW264.7. Signal transducer and activator of transcription 6 (Stat6) knockdown by siRNA abolished the IL-4-mediated inhibition of Nos2 induced by IFNγ/LPS. Transient transfection of a luciferase reporter gene containing the 5′-flanking region of the Nos2 gene demonstrated that an octamer transcription factor (OCT) binding site in the promoter region is required for both positive regulation by IFNγ/LPS and negative regulation by IL-4. Although IL-4 had no inhibitory effect on the DNA-binding activity of constitutively expressed Oct-1, IL-4-induced Nos2-reporter transcriptional repression was partially attenuated by overexpression of the coactivator CREB-binding protein (CBP). These results suggest that a coactivator/cofactor that functionally interacts with Oct-1 is a molecular target for the IL-4-mediated inhibition of Nos2 and that IL-4-activated Stat6 represses Oct-1-dependent transcription by competing with this coactivator/cofactor.

Identification of a Structural Motif in the Tumor-Suppressive Protein GRIM-19 Required for Its Antitumor Activity

We have previously isolated GRIM-19, a novel growth suppressor, using a genetic method. GRIM-19 ablates cell growth by inhibiting the transcription factor signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3). Up-regulation of STAT3 and growth promotion were observed in a number of human tumors. Although the tumor-suppressive actions of GRIM-19 are known, the structural elements required for its antitumor actions are not understood. Mutational and protein sequence analyses identified a motif in the N terminus of GRIM-19 that exhibited similarity to certain RNA viral proteins. We show that disruption of specific amino acids within this motif cripples the antitumor actions of GRIM-19. These mutants fail to interact with STAT3 efficiently and consequently do not inhibit growth-promoting gene expression. More importantly, we show that a clinically observed mutation in the N terminus of GRIM-19 also weakened its interaction with STAT3 and antitumor action. Together, these studies identify a major role for the N terminus of GRIM-19 in mediating its tumor-suppressive actions.

Mechanisms of resistance to interferon-gamma-mediated cell growth arrest in human oral squamous carcinoma cells

Interferon-γ (IFNγ) has an antiproliferative effect on a variety of tumor cells. However, many tumor cells resist treatment with IFNs. Here, we show that IFNγ fails to inhibit the growth of some types of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) cells that possess a fully functional IFNγ/STAT1 (signal transducer and activator of transcription-1) signaling pathway. IFNγ inhibited the growth of the HSC-2, HSC-3, and HSC-4 OSCC cell lines. However, Ca9–22 cells were resistant to IFNγ despite having intact STAT1-dependent signaling, such as normal tyrosine phosphorylation, DNA binding activity, and transcriptional activity of STAT1. The growth inhibition of HSC-2 cells resulted from S-phase arrest of the cell cycle. IFNγ inhibited cyclin A2 (CcnA2)-associated kinase activity, which correlated with the IFNγ-mediated down-regulation of CcnA2 and Cdk2 expression at both the transcriptional and post-transcriptional level in HSC-2 cells but not in Ca9–22 cells. RNAi-mediated knockdown of CcnA2 and Cdk2 resulted in growth inhibition in both cell lines. These results indicate that the resistance of OSCC to IFNγ is not due simply to the deficiency in STAT1-dependent signaling but results from a defect in the signaling component that mediates this IFNγ-induced down-regulation of CcnA2 and Cdk2 expression at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels.

Suppression of IP-10/CXCL10 gene expression in LPS- and/or IFN-γ-stimulated macrophages by parasite-secreted products

T helper (Th)2 polarized immune responses are characteristically dominant in helminth infections. The gene expression of interferon (IFN)-γ-inducible protein 10 (IP-10/CXCL10), which promotes Th1 responses, in mouse macrophages stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and/or IFN-γ was suppressed by excretory/secretory (ES) products of Spirometra erinaceieuropaei plerocercoids. ES products suppressed LPS- and/or IFN-γ-induced transcriptional activities of a luciferase reporter gene under the control of a 243-bp fragment of the IP-10 gene promoter/enhancer, which contains an IFN-stimulated response element (ISRE) and two κB elements. Consistent with this result, ES products inhibited ISRE-dependent heterologous promoter activities and LPS- or IFN-γ-induced ISRE-binding activity. ES products also suppressed LPS-induced IFN-β gene expression. Furthermore, ES products suppressed nuclear factor (NF)-κB RelA (p65)-dependent transcriptional activity, whereas ES products had no effect on the κB-binding activity. These results suggest that ES products suppress the IP-10 gene expression by inhibiting the ISRE- and RelA-dependent transcriptional activities in mouse macrophages.

Transcriptional Synergism between NF-κB and STAT1

The transcriptional factors nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and signal transducer and activator of transcription-1 (STAT1) play crucial roles in the initiation and development of innate and acquired immunity by inducing transcription of many genes that are essential for host defense mechanisms. Although NF-κB and STAT1 are activated by distinct extracellular stimuli, such as tumor necrosis factor and interferon gamma, respectively, these transcription factors often interact to regulate the expression of inflammatory genes at the transcriptional level. The cross-talk between NF-κB and STAT1 is orchestrated by transcriptional coactivator CREB binding protein (CBP) and p300, which integrate distinct extracellular signals in the nucleus for gene expression in the context of control of immune responses. This review focuses on the cross-talk between NF-κB and STAT1 in the regulation of inflammatory gene expression and the mechanisms involved in the regulation of transcriptional synergy between NF-κB and STAT1.

Costimulation of Murine Osteoblasts with Interferon-γ and Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Induces Apoptosis through Downregulation of Bcl-2 and Release of Cytochrome c from Mitochondria

During chronic inflammation from diseases, such as periodontal disease, the proinflammatory cytokines interferon-gamma (IFNγ) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα) alter bone remodeling. To elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms, we investigated the effect of IFNγ and TNFα on the proliferation and survival of clonal MC3T3-E1 mouse osteoblasts. We found that although IFNγ or TNFα alone affected cell growth and survival only marginally, costimulation with both synergistically inhibited cell growth and reduced cell viability. The diminished cell viability was due to apoptosis, as indicated by increased TUNEL staining and elevated caspase 3, 8, and 9 activities. Western blot also showed that costimulation with IFNγ and TNFα elicited cytochrome c release and downregulated B cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) expression without affecting Bcl-2-associated X (Bax) protein expression. Furthermore, stable Bcl-2 overexpression significantly alleviated cell death following costimulation. Collectively, these results suggested that IFNγ and TNFα elicited osteoblast apoptosis via cytochrome c release from damaged mitochondria, caspase activation, and Bcl-2 downregulation.