title: Chronic expression of murine flt3 ligand in mice results in increased circulating white blood cell levels and abnormal cellular infiltrates associated with splenic fibrosis.
abstract: The effect of chronic expression of flt3 ligand (FL) on in vivo hematopoiesis was studied. Retroviral vector-mediated gene transfer was used in a mouse model of bone marrow transplantation to enforce expression of mouse FL cDNA in hematopoietic tissues. As early as 2 weeks posttransplantation, peripheral blood white blood cell counts in FL-overexpressing recipients were significantly elevated compared with controls. With the exception of eosinophils, all nucleated cell lineages studied were similarly affected in these animals. Experimental animals also exhibited severe anemia and progressive loss of marrow-derived erythropoiesis. All of the FL-overexpressing animals, but none of the controls, died between 10 and 13 weeks posttransplantation. Upon histological examination, severe splenomegaly was noted, with progressive fibrosis and infiltration by abnormal lymphoreticular cells. Abnormal cell infiltration also occurred in other organ systems, including bone marrow and liver. In situ immunocytochemistry on liver sections showed that the cellular infiltrate was CD3+/NLDC145+/CD11c+, but B220- and F4/80-, suggestive of a mixed infiltrate of dendritic cells and activated T lymphocytes. Infiltration of splenic blood vessel perivascular spaces resulted in vascular compression and eventual occlusion, leading to splenic necrosis consistent with infarction. These results show that FL can affect both myeloid and lymphoid cell lineages in vivo and further demonstrate the potential toxicity of in vivo treatment with FL.
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental Hematology, Amgen, Inc, Thousand Oaks, CA 93012-1789, USA.
authors.forename: T S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Juan
authors.forename: I K
authors.initials: IK
authors.lastname: McNiece
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Van
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lacey
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hartley
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: McElroy
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Argento
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: X Q
authors.initials: XQ
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: F A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Fletcher
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001772:Blood Cell Count; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000235:genetics; D019070:Cell Lineage; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000235:genetics; D005355:Fibrosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D015870:Gene Expression; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D013154:Spleen / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; C084881:flt3 ligand protein