Human aging alters the first phase of the molecular response to stress in T-cells.
This study examines how age affects the first phase of the heat shock response in human T-cells. To understand how age alters transcriptional regulation of the heat shock genes, a cross-sectional study was conducted utilizing human T-cells enriched from peripheral blood lymphocytes of healthy young (20-40 years old) and old (>70 years old) donors. Nuclear run-on analysis revealed a 66% reduction in hsp70 transcription rates in old compared to young nuclei harvested from T-cells exposed to a brief 42 degrees C heat shock. To determine if one or more protein transactivators of the proximal and distal promoter regions of the hsp70 gene were affected by age, gel shift analysis was performed. Both HSF1 and SP1 DNA-binding were reduced with age but no reduction was noted in CCAAT-DNA binding. Western blot analysis indicated that HSF1 but not HSF2 protein levels were reduced in aged donor samples. These data suggest that human T-cell senescence involves a multi-factorial mechanism that diminishes an important transcriptional response to thermal stress. The results are discussed relative to recent studies that support a multi-factorial mechanism for age-dependent attenuation of the heat shock transcription factor.
Jurivich
Donald A
DA
Department of Medicine, Section of Geriatric Medicine (m/c 717), University of Illinois at Chicago & Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, 840 S. Wood St Chicago, IL 60612, USA. jurivich@uic.edu
Choo
Meng
M
Welk
Joseph
J
Qiu
Lin
L
Han
Kai
K
Zhou
Ximing
X
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D015153:Blotting, Western / Q000379:methods; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004247:DNA / Q000378:metabolism; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D024202:Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assay; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D000076249:Heat Shock Transcription Factors; D006360:Heat-Shock Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D011485:Protein Binding; D013312:Stress, Physiological / Q000276:immunology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics
D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; C000619706:HSF1 protein, human; D000076249:Heat Shock Transcription Factors; D006360:Heat-Shock Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D004247:DNA