title: Tumour necrosis factor-alpha upregulates transferrin receptors in K 562 cells.
abstract: The effects of tumour necrosis factor-alpha on transferrin receptor expression in a human chronic myelocytic leukaemia cell line, K 562 cells, were studied. Cytofluorometry studies showed that the numbers of transferrin receptors in exponentially growing K 562 cells were increased when the cells were incubated with tumour necrosis factor-alpha for 24 h. The induction of transferrin receptors by tumour necrosis factor-alpha may be mediated by a mechanism that is independent of growth since cell growth in treated cultures did not differ from that in the controls. The DNA contents of K 562 cells treated with tumour necrosis factor-alpha showed that after 24 h there were less cells in the G1 and S phases and more cells in the G2/M phase than in the control group. The phase of upregulation of transferrin receptors induced by tumour necrosis factor-alpha may be dependent on the cell cycle. This new evidence that tumour necrosis factor-alpha upregulates transferrin receptors suggests a cancer-anaemia cascade in which the cancer burden state activates macrophage release of tumour necrosis factor-alpha as a result of transferrin receptor expression.
authors.affiliation: First Department of Surgery, Okayama University Medical School, Japan.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nezu
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Iwagaki
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Aoki
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Orita
mesh_terms: D002453:Cell Cycle / Q000187:drug effects; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006801:Humans; D011990:Receptors, Transferrin / Q000187:drug effects*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015854:Up-Regulation
chemical_list: D011990:Receptors, Transferrin; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha