title: Antiproliferative effects of retinoic acid/interferon in cervical carcinoma cell lines: cooperative growth suppression of IRF-1 and p53.
abstract: Retinoids and interferons have been implicated in the growth regulation of cervical cancer cells. However, the molecular mechanisms are not fully defined. To analyze detailed mechanisms, HPV-positive (HeLa, CaSki), HPV-negative (C33A, HT-3) and non-cervical Cos-1 cell lines were treated with I microM all-trans-retinoic acid (RA) and/or 10 ng/ml interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma). The growth of RA-treated HeLa cells was less effectively suppressed than that of IFN-gamma-treated ones. A combination of RA and IFN-gamma leads to an additive antiproliferative effect on the cell growth. CaSki cell growth was also inhibited by IFN-gamma but was little stimulated by RA treatment, and the IFN effect was attenuated when IFN-gamma was combined with RA. HPV-negative C33A and HT-3 cells, which are defective in p53 and Rb, and Cos- 1 cells were weakly or not responsive to all combined treatments. The molecular mechanism underlying the differential effects of RA/IFN on HeLa and C33A cells was investigated. Combined RA/IFN-gamma treatment caused a marked increase in the level of IFN regulatory factor-1 (IRF-1) in HeLa, whereas no induction of IRF-1 was observed in C33A, consistent with the findings that IFN signaling is functional in HeLa but is defective in C33A cells. The increase of p53 in HeLa cells might account for the down-regulation of HPV-18 E6 gene expression by RA/IFN-gamma. Furthermore, RA/IFN-gamma treatment resulted in the concurrent induction of p21WAF1 CDK inhibitor and dephosphorylation of Rb protein. Transient co-expression of IRF-1 and p53 led to the cooperative activation of the p21WAF1 promoter. Our results indicate that 2 transcription factors, increased in response to RA/IFN-gamma, cooperate functionally to regulate the cell cycle through the activation of a common p21WAF1 gene in HeLa cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Sejong University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Um
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: E S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: S E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Namkoong
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Park
mesh_terms: D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002455:Cell Division; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000187:drug effects; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000187:drug effects*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D050856:Interferon Regulatory Factor-1; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010750:Phosphoproteins / Q000187:drug effects*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013997:Time Factors; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000187:drug effects*; D014212:Tretinoin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / Q000187:drug effects*; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*
chemical_list: D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; C494257:IRF1 protein, human; D050856:Interferon Regulatory Factor-1; D010750:Phosphoproteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53; D014212:Tretinoin; D007371:Interferon-gamma