title: Eosinophils from patients with blood eosinophilia express transforming growth factor beta 1.
abstract: The infiltration of eosinophils into tissues during pathologic responses is often associated with extracellular matrix alterations such as fibrosis. Transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-beta 1) is a well-characterized multifunctional cytokine known to exert potent effects on the extracellular matrix. In this report, we showed the production of TGF-beta 1 by human eosinophils from patients with blood eosinophilia. Northern blot analysis using RNA isolated from eosinophils purified from a patient with the idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES) detected the 2.5-kb TGF-beta 1 transcript. In situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry of leukocytes from two patients with HES and two patients with blood eosinophilia localized TGF-beta 1 messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein to eosinophils. No other cell type contained TGF-beta 1 mRNA by in situ hybridization, whereas other leukocytes contained detectable TGF-beta 1 protein by immunohistochemistry. Eosinophils from four normal donors contained little or no detectable TGF-beta 1 protein by immunohistochemistry, whereas eosinophils from two of these four normal donors labeled weakly for TGF-beta 1 mRNA by in situ hybridization. These results show that eosinophils in the peripheral blood of patients with blood eosinophilia can express TGF-beta 1, but that eosinophils in the blood of normal donors contained little or no TGF-beta 1.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Medicine and Oral Pathology, Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Boston, MA 02115.
authors.forename: D T
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Elovic
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matossian
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nagura
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: McBride
authors.forename: M Y
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Chou
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Gordon
authors.forename: T H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Rand
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Galli
authors.forename: P F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Weller
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002469:Cell Separation; D004802:Eosinophilia / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics; D004804:Eosinophils / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D012313:RNA / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics; D012016:Reference Values; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D012313:RNA