ABSTRACT
A proposed mechanism for the As-induced inhibition of cell proliferation is the inhibition of IL-2 secretion. However, the effects of arsenite on IL-2 mRNA expression or on the ERK pathway in activated-T cells have not yet been described. We examined the effect of arsenite on IL-2 mRNA expression, cell activation and proliferation in PHA-stimulated murine lymphocytes. Arsenite (1 and 10 microM) decreased IL-2 mRNA expression, IL-2 secretion and cell proliferation. Arsenite (10 microM) strongly inhibited ERK-phosphorylation. However, the partial inhibition (50%) of IL-2 mRNA produced by 1 microM, consistent with the effects on IL-2 secretion and cell proliferation, could not be explained by the inhibition of ERK-phosphorylation, which was not affected at this concentration. The inhibition of IL-2 mRNA expression caused by 1 microM could be associated to effects on pathways located downstream or parallel to ERK. Arsenite also decreased early activation (surface CD69+ expression) in both CD4+ and CD8+, and decreased total CD8+ count without significantly affecting CD4+, supporting that the cellular immune response mediated by cytotoxic T cells is an arsenic target. Thus, our results suggest that arsenite decreases IL-2 mRNA levels and T-cell activation and proliferation. However, further studies on the effects of arsenite on IL-2 gene transcription and IL-2 mRNA stability are needed.
Subject(s)
Arsenites/toxicity , Cell Proliferation/drug effects , Interleukin-2/genetics , Sodium Compounds/toxicity , T-Lymphocytes/drug effects , Animals , Antigens, CD/metabolism , Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte/metabolism , CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes/drug effects , CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes/metabolism , CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/drug effects , CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/metabolism , Cell Survival/drug effects , Cells, Cultured , Female , Interleukin-2/metabolism , Lectins, C-Type , Mice , Mice, Inbred C57BL , Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 1/metabolism , Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 3/metabolism , Phytohemagglutinins , RNA, Messenger/metabolism , T-Lymphocytes/metabolismABSTRACT
This study examined the effects of sodium arsenite treatment on free [Ca(2+)]i and cell death in mitogen-activated murine lymphocytes. The main findings of this study were that simultaneous sodium arsenite treatment inhibited PHA- but not Con A-induced T cell proliferation, induced a higher increase in free [Ca(2+)]i and an early increase in the proportion of dead cells in PHA than in Con A activated cells. Sodium arsenite pre-treatment reduced both PHA- and Con A-induced T-cell proliferation. Phorbol myristate ester (PMA) did not prevent the inhibitory effects of both sodium arsenite treatments, suggesting that sodium arsenite did not significantly decreased PKC activation or that its effects occurred on events parallel to PKC activation. Both PHA and Con A increased free [Ca(2+)]i after stimulation, yet the effect was more pronounced in mitogen-activated cells simultaneously treated with sodium arsenite and particularly in those activated with PHA. The increase in free [Ca(2+)]i was in agreement with the early cell death induced by sodium arsenite in PHA-activated cells, a finding consistent with the inhibitory effects on PHA-induced proliferation. Sodium arsenite-induced cell death occurred faster in PHA-activated cells. Further studies are needed to ascertain the relationships between the effects of sodium arsenite on free [Ca(2+)]i levels and the type of cell death induced by sodium arsenite and their relevance for the proliferative response of T cells.
