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P Parnet

Publications and source records attributed to P Parnet.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Regulation of cytokine gene expression in the central nervous system by glucocorticoids: mechanisms and functional consequences.

The proinflammatory cytokines which are released by activated accessory immune cells during the course of an infection have profound effects on the brain. These effects include activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, fever and behavioral depression. They are mediated by cytokines which are synthesized and released in the brain, in response to peripherally released cytokines. Glucocorticoids have potent regulatory effects on the synthesis of cytokines by activated macrophages and monocytes. These hormones are also able to regulate the synthesis and action of cytokines in the brain, as demonstrated by the sensitizing effects of adrenalectomy and the depressing effects of stress on the increased cytokine and interleukin-1 beta converting enzyme gene expression that occurs in response to lipopolysaccharide in mice. Preliminary experiments indicate that another way glucocorticoids can contribute to down regulation of the IL-1 system is by increasing the expression of the type II IL-1 receptor in the brain. The regulatory effects of glucocorticoids on cytokine expression in the brain have functional consequences, as demonstrated by the enhanced sensitivity of adrenalectomized animals to the behavioral actions of centrally administered LPS and IL-1. The effects of adrenalectomy are inhibited by compensation with a corticosterone implant and they are mimicked by administration of the type II glucocorticoid receptor, RU 38486. The regulatory role of glucocorticoids on the expression and action of cytokines in the brain makes these hormones and their mechanisms of action key targets for therapeutic interventions in psychopathology and neuropathology.

Animals↗

T1/ST2 signaling establishes it as a member of an expanding interleukin-1 receptor family.

Through data base searches, we have discovered new proteins that share homology with the signaling domain of the type I interleukin-1 receptor (IL-1RI): human "randomly sequenced cDNA 786" (rsc786), murine MyD88, and two partial Drosophila open reading frames, MstProx and STSDm2245. Comparisons between these new proteins and known IL-1RI homologous proteins such as Toll, 18-Wheeler, and T1/ST2 revealed six clusters of amino acid similarity. We tested the hypothesis that sequence similarity between the signaling domain of IL-1RI and the three mammalian family members might indicate functional similarity. Chimeric IL-1RI receptors expressing the putative signaling domains of T1/ST2, MyD88, and rsc786 were assayed by three separate IL-1 responsive assays, NF-kappaB, phosphorylation of an epidermal growth factor receptor peptide, and an interleukin 8 promoter-controlled reporter construct, for their ability to transduce an IL-1-stimulated signal. All three assays were positive in response to the T1/ST2 chimera, while the MyD88 and rsc786 chimeras failed to respond. These data indicate that the sequence homology between IL-1RI and T1/ST2 indicates a functional homology as well.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

IL-1Rrp is a novel receptor-like molecule similar to the type I interleukin-1 receptor and its homologues T1/ST2 and IL-1R AcP.

A novel member of the interleukin-1 receptor family has been cloned by polymerase chain reaction using degenerate oligonucleotide primers derived from regions of sequence conservation, using as template a yeast artificial chromosome known to contain both interleukin-1 (IL-1) receptors and T1/ST2. The new receptor, called IL-1 receptor-related protein or IL-1Rrp, fails to bind any of the known IL-1 ligands. A chimeric receptor, in which the IL-1Rrp cytoplasmic domain is fused to the extracellular and transmembrane regions of the IL-1 receptor, responds to IL-1 following transfection into COS cells by activation of NFkappaB and induction of IL-8 promoter function.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Effects of lipopolysaccharide and glucocorticoids on expression of interleukin-1 beta converting enzyme in the pituitary and brain of mice.

The present study was carried out to determine whether those factors which regulate the expression of IL-1 beta in immune and non-immune tissues are also able to regulate the expression of ICE. In a first experiment, mice were injected with LPS (10 micrograms/mouse, i.p.) and killed before, 1, 3 or 6 h after the injection. Total RNAs were extracted from the spleen, pituitary and brain (hippocampus and hypothalamus) and submitted to RT-PCR to determine the levels of ICE mRNA as compared to beta 2 microglobulin mRNA. ICE mRNAs were more abundant in the spleen and hippocampus than in the pituitary and hypothalamus but they were not significantly altered by LPS treatment. In a second experiment mice were submitted to adrenalectomy or a 15 min restraint stress and injected with saline or LPS (10 micrograms/mouse. sc). They were killed 1-2 h later and total RNA was extracted from the same tissues as in experiment 1. Adrenalectomized mice had significantly higher ICE mRNA levels whereas stressed mice had significantly lower ICE mRNA levels than their respective controls. These results are discussed with respect to the possible regulatory influence of glucocorticoids on the expression of ICE.

Adrenalectomy↗

Adrenalectomy enhances pro-inflammatory cytokines gene expression, in the spleen, pituitary and brain of mice in response to lipopolysaccharide.

To assess the possible influence of endogenous glucocorticoids on cytokine expression in the brain, adrenalectomized mice and sham operated mice were injected with saline or lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 10 micrograms/mouse, subcutaneously) and the levels of transcripts for IL-1 alpha, IL-1 beta, IL-1ra, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF alpha) were determined 2 h after treatment in the spleen, pituitary, hypothalamus, hippocampus and striatum, using semi-quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Levels of IL-1 beta were measured by ELISA in plasma and tissues of mice sacrificed after the administration of LPS or saline. LPS induced the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines at the mRNA level in all tissues under investigation, except for TNF alpha in the hippocampus. This effect was potentiated by adrenalectomy in the spleen for IL-1 alpha and IL-1ra, the pituitary for cytokines other than IL-1ra, the hypothalamus for all cytokines, the hippocampus for cytokines other than TNF alpha, and the striatum for IL-1 alpha and IL-6. In saline-treated mice, adrenalectomy increased IL-1 alpha and IL-1 beta gene expression in the hypothalamus and IL-1 alpha gene expression in the hippocampus and striatum. LPS increased plasma and tissue levels of IL-1 beta, as determined by ELISA, and this effect was potentiated by adrenalectomy in plasma and tissues other than the spleen. These results can be interpreted to suggest that endogenous glucocorticoids regulate the neural components of the host response to infection and inflammation by inhibiting cytokine expression in peripheral organs and the brain.

Adrenal Glands↗

Dual expression of p80 type I and p68 type II interleukin-I receptors on anterior pituitary cells synthesizing growth hormone.

Interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1 alpha) and IL-1 beta bind to either the p80 type I IL-1 receptor (IL-1RI) or the p68 type II IL-1R (IL-1RII) on both T and B lymphocytes. We and others have previously shown that the anterior pituitary gland also has specific high affinity binding sites for IL-1 alpha (Kd = approximately 1 nM) and expresses transcripts for both isoforms of the IL-1R. However, the identity of cells in the anterior pituitary gland that express the IL-1R and whether different populations of adenohypophyseal cells express different isoforms of the IL-1R remain unknown. Here we have used a combination of immunohistochemistry and histochemistry to localize IL-1RI and IL-1RII to specific target cells in the mouse anterior pituitary gland. Perfusion-fixed, paraffin-embedded sections of anterior pituitary gland were immunolabeled with well characterized monoclonal antibodies to either IL-1RI or IL-1RII and counterstained using a modified Gomori's method to document acidophils and basophils. Immunolabeling demonstrated that both IL-1RI and IL-1RII were abundantly expressed on a single population of anterior pituitary gland cells and that these cells could be classified on the basis of histochemical staining as a subpopulation of acidophils. The distribution, morphology, and proportion of cells immunolabeled for IL-1RI and IL-1RII were consistent with GH-synthesizing cells. To confirm this hypothesis, a modified indirect avidin-biotin complex, sequential peroxidase/alkaline phosphatase technique was used to label anterior pituitary gland cells with antibodies to IL-1RI followed by antibodies to IL-1RII, GH, PRL, or ACTH. The IL-1RI-positive cells predominately coexpressed IL-1RII and GH, but very little, if any, PRL or ACTH. These data establish that the predominant cell population in the murine anterior pituitary gland that constitutively expresses IL-1R stain as acidophils histochemically, is round to oval with dense granular cytoplasm and eccentric nuclei, synthesizes GH, and simultaneously expresses IL-1RI and IL-1RII isoforms.

Animals↗

Endogenous glucocorticoids down regulate central effects of interleukin-1 beta on body temperature and behaviour in mice.

Adrenalectomy sensitizes laboratory animals to the pyrogenic and behavioural effects of proinflammatory cytokines. To determine whether these effects are mediated by central sites of action of glucocorticoids, interleukin-1 beta was injected intracerebroventricularly (i.c.v.) in adrenalectomized mice with or without corticosterone supplementation and in mice pretreated i.c.v. with the glucocorticoid type II receptor antagonist RU38486. Adrenalectomized mice were more sensitive to the depressing effects of i.c.v. IL-1 beta on body temperature and social exploration than sham-operated mice. Corticosterone supplementation reversed the increased sensitivity to the low (300 pg/mouse) but not to the high dose (900 pg/mouse) of IL-1 beta. Central administration of RU38486 (0.5-1 microgram/mouse) mimicked the effects of adrenalectomy on behaviour but not on body temperature. These results suggest that endogenous glucocorticoids released in response to IL-1 beta act in the brain to modulate the sensitivity of the cellular targets of this cytokine.

Animals↗

Stress downregulates lipopolysaccharide-induced expression of proinflammatory cytokines in the spleen, pituitary, and brain of mice.

Mice injected with LPS (10 mu g/mouse, sc) or saline were submitted to a 15-min restraint stress and sacrificed 1 or 2 h later to assess the effect of stress on the induction of interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) and other proinflammatory cytokines (IL-1alpha, IL-1ra, IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha) in the spleen, pituitary, hypothalamus, hippocampus, and striatum. LPS-induced cytokine gene expression, as determined by comparative RT-PCR, was lower in stressed than in nonstressed mice. LPS increased plasma and tissue levels of IL-1beta, as determined by ELISA, but this effect was less marked in stressed than in nonstressed mice. These results are discussed in relation to the modulatory effects of glucocorticoids on cytokine production.

Animals↗

Subdiaphragmatic vagotomy blocks induction of IL-1 beta mRNA in mice brain in response to peripheral LPS.

To test the possibility that the vagus nerve is involved in the communication between the immune system and the brain, we injected sham-operated and vagotomized mice with physiological saline or lipopolysaccharide (LPS; 400 micrograms/kg ip). Vagotomy attenuated LPS-induced depression of general activity measured 2 h after treatment but did not alter the increase in plasma levels of IL-1 beta in response to LPS. In addition, vagotomy abrogated the LPS-induced increase in the levels of transcripts for IL-1 beta, as determined by semiquantitative polymerase chain reaction after reverse transcription, in the hypothalamus and hippocampus, but not in the pituitary of vagotomized mice. This relationship between the effects of vagotomy on the behavioral effects of LPS and the LPS-induced brain expression of IL-1 beta mRNA indicates that vagal afferent fibers play a prominent role in the pathways of communication between the immune system and the brain.

Animals↗

Corticosterone regulates behavioral effects of lipopolysaccharide and interleukin-1 beta in mice.

The modulatory role of endogenous corticoids in the behavioral effects of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and recombinant human interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) was studied in mice. Adrenalectomy enhanced the depression of social exploration induced by subcutaneous injection of 200 ng of IL-1 beta or 2 micrograms of LPS. This effect was mimicked by an acute injection of the progesterone antagonist RU-38486 (0.25-1 mg). Chronic replacement with a 15-mg corticosterone pellet abrogated the enhanced susceptibility of adrenalectomized animals to 200 ng of IL-1 beta but had only partial protective effects on their response to 400 ng of IL-1 beta and LPS. These results suggest that the pituitary-adrenal response to cytokines exerts an inhibitory feedback on the cell targets that mediate the behavioral effects of LPS and IL-1 beta.

Adrenalectomy↗

Expression of type I and type II interleukin-1 receptors in mouse brain.

Although binding sites for IL-1 have been identified in the mouse brain, it is still unknown whether these binding sites correspond to the type I or type II IL-1 receptor. Quantitative autoradiography was used to confirm the presence of specific binding sites for radiolabelled recombinant human IL-1 alpha (125I-HuIL-1 alpha) in the brain of DBA/2 mice. IL-1 binding was highest in the dentate gyrus, consisting of a single class of high affinity binding sites with a Kd of 0.1 nM and a Bmax of 57 fmol/mg protein. A similar Kd of 0.2 nM was obtained using isolated membranes from the whole hippocampus, although the number of binding sites was lower (2 fmol/mg protein). Affinity cross-linking of 125I-Hu-IL-1 alpha to hippocampal membranes revealed the existence of two types of IL-1 receptor proteins, consistent with the sizes of the type I (85 kD) and type II (60 kD) IL-1 receptor. Oligonucleotide probes were then synthesized and used in RT-PCR followed by Southern blotting to show that the whole brain expresses transcripts for both the type I and type II IL-1 receptors. The murine neuroblastoma cell line, C1300, expresses type I rather than type II IL-1 receptor mRNA. The type I receptor protein can be identified by flow cytometry on the membrane of the C1300 neuronal cell line using indirect immunofluorescence with a rat anti-mouse type I IL-1 receptor MoAb. These data show that mouse brain expresses both type I and type II IL-1 receptor mRNA and proteins and offer further support to the idea that type I IL-1 receptors are synthesized and expressed by neurons.

Animals↗

Peripheral administration of lipopolysaccharide induces the expression of cytokine transcripts in the brain and pituitary of mice.

The reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to assess the induction of mRNA of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-1 beta, IL-6 and TNF alpha in the spleen, pituitary, hypothalamus and hippocampus of mice after an intraperitoneal injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 10 micrograms/mouse). The kinetics of cytokine gene expression induced by peripheral LPS in the pituitary and brain structures were different from that observed in the spleen. For IL-1 beta the dose-response curve was also measured and also found to be different. These results support the idea that one pathway by which peripheral immune stimuli affect brain functions includes local synthesis of proinflammatory cytokines in certain brain structures.

Animals↗

Synergy between tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin-1 in the induction of sickness behavior in mice.

Like interleukin-1, recombinant human tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) has been found to decrease social exploration and induce weight loss in mice in a dose and time-dependent manner. The present study was carried out to study the interaction between these two cytokines. Mice were injected IP with subthreshold doses of TNF alpha (2.5 micrograms/mouse) and IL-1 beta (50 ng/mouse). Social exploration was decreased 2 and 4 h after injection of TNF and IL-1, but body weight was not affected. Subthreshold doses of TNF alpha (90 ng/mouse) and IL-1 beta (100 pg/mouse) were also injected intracerebroventricularly (ICV). Social exploration was decreased 1.5 and 3 h after injections of the two cytokines and body weight was decreased for 6 h. To test the possibility of central induction of IL-1 by TNF alpha, mice pretreated with IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra, 1.8 micrograms/mouse, ICV) were injected with 90 ng TNF alpha. Pretreatment with IL-1ra antagonized the depressive effect of TNF alpha on behavior, but had no effect on weight loss induced by this cytokine. These results suggest that TNF alpha-induced behavioral alterations are mediated by endogenously released IL-1, whereas metabolic changes are dependent on the release of other cytokines.

Animals↗

Competitive reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction using a synthetic internal RNA standard to quantitate transcripts for leukocyte-derived hormones.

Leukocytes synthesize a variety of hormones that were once thought to be unique products of endocrine tissues. Understanding the regulation of leukocyte-derived hormone synthesis requires an accurate means for measuring steady-state expression of specific mRNA transcripts. Here we describe a competitive reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique to accurately quantitate macrophage-derived insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) mRNA, and demonstrate the utility of this approach for measuring expression of leukocyte-derived hormone transcripts. A riboprobe was constructed to generate approximately 1 kb of synthetic competitor IGF-I RNA (exons 1 and 3-6) that differed from cellular IGF-I RNA by insertion of 122 bp of beta-actin RNA. One set of oligonucleotide primers could thus be used to simultaneously reverse transcribe and amplify both 144 bp of cellular (exons 3 and 4) and 266 bp of competitor IGF-I RNA. Densitometric scanning of the PAGE-separated PCR products revealed that the ratio of competitor to cellular amplified DNA bore a linear relationship (r2 > or = 0.98) to the amount of competitor RNA for both rat liver and splenocytes. However, rat liver contained 104 x 10(6) IGF-I molecules per microgram of total cellular RNA compared to only 2 x 10(6) IGF-I molecules for splenocytes.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

Lipopolysaccharide induces sickness behaviour in rats by a vagal mediated mechanism.

To assess the possibility that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induces sickness behaviour by activating primary afferent nerves, the effects of LPS (1.25 mg kg-1, intraperitoneally) were compared in vagotomized and sham-operated rats. Subdiaphragmatic vagotomy blocked the LPS-induced depression of social investigation but had no effect on LPS-induced increases in levels of IL-1 beta in plasma and peritoneal macrophages and on LPS-induced changes in dehydrogenase activity of peritoneal macrophages.

Animals↗

Molecular identification of two types of interleukin-1 receptors in the murine pituitary gland.

The present study was carried out to characterize interleukin-1 (IL-1) receptors on murine pituitary cells. Receptor autoradiography confirmed the existence of binding sites for IL-1 alpha in the murine adenohypophysis, but not in the neural or intermediate lobes. Specific binding of IL-1 to isolated pituitary membranes revealed a Kd of 0.9 nM with a Bmax of 37 fmol/mg protein. To examine the possibility that the adenohypophysis synthesizes a receptor for IL-1, immunocytochemistry experiments with a specific monoclonal antibody against the type I receptor revealed the existence of this protein in only the adenohypophysis. Identity of the type I IL-1 receptor was similar to that found on T cells as determined by: 1) amplification of the predicted 619 bp fragment spanning the cytoplasmic, transmembrane and extracellular domains from RNA of pituitary and T cell origin, as well as clonal AtT-20 pituitary cells, and 2) restriction fragment analysis and sequencing of the amplified cDNAs. The pituitary gland and AtT-20 cells also expressed transcripts for the newly identified type II receptor for IL-1 as assessed by amplification of a specific 325 bp fragment, restriction fragment analysis and nucleotide sequencing, and these transcripts were similar to those found on B lymphocytes. These data identify two different forms of the IL-1 receptor in both normal and transformed pituitary cells and establish that these receptors are similar at the molecular level to those first identified on T and B lymphocytes.

Animals↗

Tachykinin receptor cross-talk. Immunological cross-reactivity between the external domains of the substance K and substance P receptors.

In the present study, we have chemically synthesized peptides which correspond to the four putative extracellular domains of the predicted substance K (SK) receptor protein and raised specific polyclonal antibodies against these peptides. These antibodies were then tested for both structural and functional recognition of epitopes on the substance P (SP) receptor on rat AR42J pancreatic cells and human IM9 lymphoblasts, which express the SP receptor, but not the SK receptor. Antibodies directed against the first, second, and fourth external domains of the predicted SK receptor recognized a 58-kDa protein on AR42J cells. This protein has a molecular weight similar to the previously demonstrated SP receptor on both AR42J cells and IM9 cells. Furthermore, antibodies against the second and fourth extracellular domains significantly inhibited specific 125I-SP binding on both AR42J and IM9 cells, and also significantly inhibited SP-induced mobilization of [Ca2+]i on AR42J cells. These data suggest that the second and fourth extracellular domains of the SK and SP receptors may share common structural motifs for ligand binding and signaling mechanism.

Amino Acid Sequence↗