ABSTRACT
The origin, lineage derivation, and sites of human natural killer (NK) cell differentiation are presently unresolved. The vast majority of NK cells found in peripheral blood have surface membrane expression of CD2 and CD16. Both antigens trigger activation pathways which require the zeta protein, a signal-transducing subunit of the CD3-T cell receptor (CD3-TCR) complex which is found as an isolated homodimer (zeta-zeta) or heterodimer (zeta-Fc epsilon RI gamma) in human NK cells. Unlike NK cells found in adult peripheral blood, NK cells derived in vitro from human CD34+ hematopoietic progenitor cells lack CD2 and CD16, and those found in fetal liver constitutively express CD3 epsilon and delta proteins. However, NK effectors derived in vitro from immature human CD3- thymocytes show striking phenotypic and functional similarities to adult human NK cells. In this report, we characterize zeta protein expression in CD3- thymocytes following short-term culture in recombinant (r)IL-2. CD3-CD56+ thymocyte NK effectors express the zeta protein as a disulphide-linked homodimer of 32 kDa, yet lack other protein components of the CD3-TCR complex. Both CD16+ and CD16- populations were found to express zeta, and within the CD16+ fraction, zeta is physically associated with CD16. These data provide evidence of additional similarities between adult peripheral blood NK cells and CD3-CD56+ NK effectors derived from human thymocytes, and suggest that under these experimental conditions, human NK cells can arise from early thymic precursors.
Subject(s)
Killer Cells, Natural/immunology , Membrane Proteins/biosynthesis , Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/biosynthesis , T-Lymphocyte Subsets/immunology , Thymus Gland/immunology , Antigens, CD , Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte , CD3 Complex , CD56 Antigen , Cells, Cultured , Child, Preschool , Humans , Phenotype , Receptors, IgG , Thymus Gland/cytologyABSTRACT
Natural killer (NK) cells are large granular lymphocytes thought to be important in the host's early immune response to viral infection and malignant transformation. NK cells proliferate and display enhanced cytotoxic activity in response to the T cell growth factor, interleukin 2 (IL-2). Stem cell factor or steel factor (SF) is the ligand for the c-kit receptor, and when combined with other hematopoietic growth factors, SF synergistically promotes the proliferation and differentiation of bone marrow stem cells. In the present study we show the c-kit receptor to be uniquely expressed on a subset of resting human NK cells (CD56bright) which constitutively expresses both the high affinity IL-2 receptor (IL-2R) and the intermediate affinity IL-2R. Other lymphocyte populations, including CD56dim NK cells, did not appear to express the c-kit receptor. Within the CD56bright NK cell subset, SF alone had no obvious effect on proliferation or cytotoxic activity. SF was shown to significantly augment the proliferative effect of IL-2, and caused a marked shift in the dose-response curve at IL-2 concentrations that selectively saturate the high affinity IL-2R. The potentiating effect of SF on NK cell proliferation was dependent on IL-2 binding to the high affinity IL-2R, and was blocked by a monoclonal antibody directed against the c-kit receptor. SF did not enhance proliferation at higher IL-2 concentrations that saturate the intermediate affinity IL-2R, nor did SF enhance IL-2-induced cytotoxic activity. Together, these data indicate that SF and IL-2 act synergistically to directly augment the proliferative capacity of a unique human NK cell subset constitutively expressing the high affinity IL-2R and the c-kit receptor. The implications of these findings on NK cell development and the host's early immune response to pathogen invasion are discussed.
