The role of 2-mercaptoethanol in the stimulation of spleen cell cultures: increased uptake of cystine into the TCA-soluble pool.
A sensitive system for the study of the mechanism of action 2-mercaptoethanol in stimulating of mouse spleen cell cultures is described. In this system the triggering of stimulation of cells by a mitogen or antigen was dependent on the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME) in the medium. To obtain a similar stimulatory effect, 2-ME could be replaced by L-cystine or L-cysteine in the presence or absence of a mitogen. In the presence of a mitogen and below the saturation level, cystine was more effective than cysteine. By increasing in this system, the cystine concentration, to the double of that of the basal medium, a strong stimulation of cells was produced. Conversely, in the absence of mitogen, cysteine was significantly more effective than cystine. Addition of 2-ME led to an increased entry of [14C]L-cystine into the TCA-soluble pool of cells while the thiol had no influence on the uptake of a mixture of different amino acids. We conclude that in this system the role of 2-ME is to enable the utilization of otherwise ineffectively low concentrations of cystine by enhancing the entry of this amino acid into the amino acid pool of the cells.
D000818:Animals; D000941:Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D002453:Cell Cycle; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003545:Cysteine / Q000494:pharmacology; D003553:Cystine / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D008623:Mercaptoethanol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins / Q000494:pharmacology; D013154:Spleen / Q000378:metabolism*; D014238:Trichloroacetic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*
D000941:Antigens; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins; D003553:Cystine; D014238:Trichloroacetic Acid; D008623:Mercaptoethanol; D003545:Cysteine