Receptor activator of NF-kappa B ligand and osteoprotegerin regulate proinflammatory cytokine production in mice.

Receptor activator of NF-kappaB ligand (RANKL) is a membrane-bound or soluble cytokine essential for osteoclast differentiation, whereas the decoy receptor osteoprotegerin (OPG) masks RANKL activity. In mouse serum, both soluble RANKL and OPG are detectable. We observed that mice injected with LPS showed significantly down-regulated serum RANKL levels, whereas serum OPG levels were up-regulated. However, the roles of RANKL and OPG in innate immunity remain obscure. We found that RANKL pretreatment suppressed production of proinflammatory cytokines in macrophages in response to stimulation by bacteria and their components. Furthermore, such RANKL-induced tolerance in macrophages was inhibited by GM-CSF treatment, which blocks RANKL signaling. RANKL-induced tolerance occurred in the absence of c-Fos, which is essential for osteoclast differentiation. In mice lacking OPG, LPS-induced production of proinflammatory cytokines was reduced, whereas in mice lacking RANKL, it was increased, and lethality following LPS injection was also elevated, suggesting that constitutive activities of RANKL suppress cytokine responsiveness to LPS in vivo. Strikingly, prior administration of RANKL protected mice from LPS-induced death. These data reveal prophylactic potential of RANKL in acute inflammatory diseases.

Stereoisomers of 1,3,5,7-tetrahydroxy-1,3,5,7-tetraisopropylcyclotetrasiloxane: synthesis and structures in the crystal.

The first synthesis of all four stereoisomers of 1,3,5,7-tetrahydroxy-1,3,5,7-tetraisopropylcyclotetrasiloxane, [i-PrSiO(OH)]4 (all-trans-, cis-cis-trans-, cis-trans-cis-, and all-cis-1), is presented. The starting compounds, all-trans-, cis-cis-trans-, cis-trans-cis-, and all-cis-1,3,5,7-tetraaryl-1,3,5,7-tetraisopropylcyclotetrasiloxanes, were prepared by the hydrolysis of the corresponding arylisopropyldichlorosilanes, i-PrArSiCl2 (Ar = Ph, p-tolyl), and subsequent separation of isomers. A combination of dephenylchlorination of tetraarylcyclotetrasiloxanes and the following hydrolysis proved to be an efficient method for the stereospecific transformation of aryl-substituted cyclotetrasiloxanes into (i-PrSiO(OH))4. For example, treatment of cis-trans-cis-1,3,5,7-tetraphenyl-1,3,5,7-tetraisopropylcyclotetrasilane with HCl and AlCl3, followed by hydrolysis in the presence of pyridine, resulted in the exclusive formation of cis-trans-cis-1 in 92% yield. The structures of cis-cis-trans-1, cis-trans-cis-1, and all-cis-1 were determined by X-ray crystallography. All isomers were found to construct unique packing structures by intermolecular hydrogen bonding; cis-trans-cis-1 composed an infinite antiladder structure, and cis-cis-trans-1 formed a sheetlike structure.

The lck promoter-driven expression of the Wilms tumor gene WT1 blocks intrathymic differentiation of T-lineage cells.

In the thymi of WT1-transgenic (Tg) mice with the 17AA+/KTS- spliced form of the Wilms tumor gene WT1 driven by the lck promoter, the frequencies of CD4-CD8- double-negative (DN) thymocytes were significantly increased relative to those in normal littermates. Of the 4 subsets of CD4-CD8- DN thymocytes, the DN1 (CD44+CD25-) subset increased in both frequency and absolute cell number, whereas the DN2 (CD44+CD25+) and DN3 (CD44-CD25+) subsets decreased, indicating the blocking of thymocyte differentiation from the DN1 to the DN2 subsets. Furthermore, CD4-CD8+ T-cell receptor (TCR) -gammadelta T-cells increased in both frequency and absolute cell number in the spleen and peripheral blood of the WT1-Tg mice relative to those of normal littermates. The CD8 molecules of these CD4-CD8+ TCRgammadelta T-cells were CD8alphabeta, suggesting that they originated from the thymus. These results are the first direct evidence demonstrating that the WT1 gene is involved in the development and differentiation of T-lineage cells.