Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Wake Forest University Medical Center, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Correspondence: Steven Mizel, Dept. of Microbiology and Immunology, Wake Forest University Medical Center, Winston-Salem, NC 27157. E-mail: smizel{at}wfubmc.edu
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Key Words: THP-1 MG132 lactacystin precursor interleukin-1ß degradation
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IL-1ß is synthesized as a 33-kDa precursor protein (pIL-1ß) that is cleaved intracellularly by IL-1ß converting enzyme (ICE) to yield the 17-kDa mature form (mIL-1ß) [4 , 5 ]. Monocytes have the capacity to secrete both pIL-1ß and mIL-1ß, however, mIL-1ß is the biologically active form [6 , 7 ]. Precursor but not mIL-1ß is found in cellular lysates, therefore it is likely that processing and secretion are intimately coordinated events [8 ].
A feature of IL-1ß regulation that is of particular interest is its capacity to be exported from the cell in the absence of a classic, hydrophobic signal sequence. Export of IL-1ß proceeds via a novel pathway that bypasses the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus [9 , 10 ]. Although little is known about this export mechanism, it has been demonstrated that, compared to proteins secreted by the conventional, signal sequence-directed pathway, release of IL-1ß is a relatively slow process. The precursor protein accumulates in the cytosol before release [9 , 10 ] and significant quantities of IL-1ß are not detectable in monocyte supernatants until approximately 2 h after synthesis [8 ]. In contrast, proteins secreted by the conventional pathway appear in supernatants within minutes after synthesis [11 ].
Proteins that reside in the cytosol for any length of time after synthesis are potential targets for proteolysis. The proteasome, an ATP-dependent multicatalytic protease complex, is responsible for degrading the majority of normal and damaged cytosolic proteins, as well as foreign proteins for immune recognition [12 ]. However, under certain circumstances other proteases, including the calcium-activated calpains and lysosomal proteases, can also degrade cytosolic proteins [13 , 14 ]. Given the unusual features of IL-1ß export, an important issue in the regulation of IL-1ß production is the intracellular stability of the precursor protein. We demonstrate here that cytosolic pIL-1ß is degraded fairly rapidly by the proteasome and that blocking the proteolytic activity of the proteasome enhances release of IL-1ß by activated monocytes.
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Cell culture
The human monocytic cell line, THP-1, obtained from the American
Type Culture Collection, was maintained at a density of 2.5 x
105/mL to 1 x 106/mL in RPMI 1640 medium
containing 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS) and 50 µg/mL gentamicin
sulfate (complete RPMI).
Isolation of human peripheral blood monocytes
Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy donors were
purified by density gradient centrifugation and cultured as described
previously [16
]. Briefly, 5 x 106 to
1 x 107/well mononuclear cells per well were cultured
in 24-well dishes for 2 h in serum-free RPMI 1640, after which
nonadherent cells were removed by washing with phosphate-buffered
saline (PBS). Adherent cells were cultured for 1618 h in complete
RPMI before assay.
Pulse/chase analysis, THP-1 cells
For assays, 5 x 106 log-phase THP-1 cells per
sample were centrifuged and pellets were resuspended in 1.5 mL of
methionine- and cysteine-free RPMI 1640 (ICN Pharmaceuticals, Irvine,
CA) containing 5% dialyzed FBS (labeling medium). Cells were cultured
in six-well dishes for 1 h in the presence of 100 pg/mL
Escherichia coli LPS (Sigma Chemical) after which 250
µCi/mL Tran35S-Label (ICN) was added for an additional
hour. Labeled cells were centrifuged and cell pellets were immediately
lysed with 0.5 mL ice-cold immunoprecipitation buffer (150 mM NaCl,
0.4% Nonidet P-40, 50 mM Tris, pH 8.0, 10 mM EDTA) containing
Calbiochem Protease Inhibitor Cocktail Set 1, or were chased with RPMI
1640 containing 5% FBS and 5 mM methionine (chase medium). After the
indicated chase periods, cells were centrifuged at 4°C, supernatants
were collected and concentrated to approximately 0.5 mL using
Centricon-10 microconcentrators (Amicon, Danvers, MA), and cell pellets
were lysed as described above. Lysates were cleared of particulate
material by centrifugation at 4°C before immunoprecipitation.
Pulse/chase analysis, primary human monocytes
For assays, adherent cells were washed once with PBS and 0.25
mL/well labeling medium containing 100 pg/mL LPS was added. Cells were
cultured for 1 h and labeled for an additional hour as described
for THP-1 cells. After the labeling period, cells were washed once with
PBS and lysed with ice-cold immunoprecipitation buffer or chased with
0.25 mL/well chase medium. After the indicated chase periods,
supernatants were collected and gently cleared of detached cells by
centrifugation at 260 g, and monolayers were lysed and
cleared of particulate material as described above.
Immunoprecipitation
IL-1ß was immunoprecipitated from THP-1 or monocyte lysates
and supernatants using polyclonal anti-IL-1ß antibody as described
previously [17
]. Immunoprecipitates were resolved by
sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE)
and the gels were processed for autoradiography as described previously
[17
]. In addition, dried gels were scanned and pIL-1ß
bands were quantitated using an Ambis radioanalytic imaging system.
Results are expressed as the % IL-1ß remaining after the chase
period, relative to the time 0 (no chase) control.
Experiments were performed at least three times, and in each case, a
representative gel is shown.
Assay for IL-1ß release by primary human monocytes
Monocytes were prepared and cultured as described for
immunoprecipitations but were activated to synthesize IL-1ß for
3 h with 1 µg/mL LPS. This was followed by an additional
incubation in medium containing LPS with or without
clasto-lactacystin-ß lactone. Culture supernatants were
harvested after 5 h and gently cleared of detached cells by
centrifugation. The amount of pIL-1ß and mIL-1ß in the samples was
determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA; R & D Systems,
Minneapolis, MN). As determined by the manufacturer, the pIL-1ß ELISA
is specific for pIL-1ß and does not cross-react with mIL-1ß. The
mIL-1ß ELISA cross-reacts at a level of approximately 13% with
pIL-1ß. ELISAs were run in parallel on each sample, and values
reported for mIL-1ß have been corrected by subtracting 13% of the
total pIL-1ß value detected for each sample.
Assay for lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity
Supernatants were collected after the indicated chase periods
from monocyte cultures that were treated exactly as described for
pulse/chase analysis except the 35S-methionine label was
omitted. LDH activity released into supernatants was measured using the
Promega CytoTox 96 Non-Radioactive Cytotoxicity Assay Kit (Madison, WI)
according to the manufacturers instructions. Percent cytotoxicity was
calculated as follows: [(experimental release - spontaneous
release)/(maximum release - spontaneous release)] x 100.
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Figure 1. Pulse/chase analysis of pIL-1ß in THP-1 cells. (A) IL-1ß was
immunoprecipitated from 35S-methionine-labeled THP-1 cell
lysates immediately after the labeling period (time 0) or
after chasing with cold methionine for 1, 2, 3, or 5 h. pIL-1ß
bands were quantitated using an Ambis radioanalytic imaging system and
results are expressed as the percent pIL-1ß remaining after the
chase, relative to the time 0 control (% control). (B)
IL-1ß was immunoprecipitated from 35S-methionine-labeled
THP-1 lysates and supernatants immediately after the labeling period
(time 0) or after chasing for 2.5 or 5 h. Percent
control values are indicated as in panel A. Molecular weight markers
are shown in the first lane. The arrow indicates the 33-kDa pIL-1ß
band.
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Figure 2. Stabilization of pIL-1ß in THP-1 cells by MG132. Pulse/chase analysis
was performed as described in Figure 1
, except that in some samples
MG132 was included during the chase period at a final concentration of
50 µM. IL-1ß was immunoprecipitated from THP-1 cell lysates and
supernatants at the indicated time points.
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Figure 3. Pulse/chase analysis of pIL-1ß in primary human monocytes. IL-1ß
was immunoprecipitated from 35S-methionine-labeled monocyte
lysates (A) and supernatants (B) immediately after the labeling period
(time 0) or after chasing with cold methionine for 2, 3, or
5 h. pIL-1ß bands were quantitated, and results are expressed as
described in Figure 1
.
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Figure 4. MG132 induces release of pIL-1ß and LDH from primary human monocytes.
Pulse/chase analysis was performed as described in Figure 3
, except
that in some samples, the tripeptide aldehyde MG132 was included during
the chase period at a final concentration of 50 µM. pIL-1ß was
immunoprecipitated from monocyte lysates and supernatants at the
indicated time points. In parallel, LDH activity was measured in
supernatants using the Promega Cytotox96 kit, and results are expressed
as percent cytotoxity, calculated as described in Materials and
Methods.
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Figure 5. The proteasome degrades pIL-1ß in primary human monocytes.
Pulse/chase analysis was performed as described in Figure 3
, except
that in some samples, clasto-lactacystin ß-lactone was
included at the indicated concentrations during the 2.5-h chase period.
IL-1ß was immunoprecipitated from monocyte lysates and supernatants
at the indicated time points.
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View this table: [in a new window] |
Table 1. IL-1ß Release in Clasto-Lactacystin
ß-Lactone-Treated Monocytes
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and IL-6 that have an amino-terminal
signal sequence, and are exported via the conventional secretory
pathway within minutes after synthesis [8
,
26
]. Using pulse/chase analysis and a series of
cell-permeable protease inhibitors, we have shown that one consequence
of this property is that the IL-1ß precursor protein is subject to
degradation by the proteasome, the major cytosolic protease, with an
intracellular half-life of approximately 2.5 h. That the
proteasome is responsible for the degradation of intracellular pIL-1ß
is consistent with immunostaining studies that have localized pIL-1ß
to the cytoplasm of activated monocytes [9
,
10
]. A previous study designed to address the kinetics of IL-1 release reported a similar turnover rate for pIL-1ß in monocytes [8 ]. However, in that study, monocytes were activated with a 100-fold higher concentration of LPS than was used in this study and the intracellular half-life of pIL-1ß was a function of processing and release as well as degradation. To focus on the impact of protein stability on the regulation of IL-1ß production, we have used a low concentration of LPS to promote synthesis of pIL-1ß, but not processing and secretion [27 ]. This approach allowed us to accurately determine the rate as well as the mechanism of degradation of precursor protein restricted to the cytosol. Increasing the activating dose of LPS from 100 pg/mL to 1 µg/mL did not change the intracellular half-life of pIL-1ß as measured by pulse/chase analysis over 2.5 h (data not shown), but it did induce processing of pIL-1ß and release of both forms of IL-1ß into supernatants (Table 1) [27 ]. Clasto-lactacystin ß-lactone, a specific inhibitor of the proteasome, stabilized intracellular pIL-1ß levels approximately twofold and enhanced IL-1ß release approximately twofold without a concomitant increase in LDH release. Therefore, enhancement of IL-1ß release by lactacystin is, unlike MG132, not related to a cytotoxic effect. These data indicate that susceptibility of pIL-1ß to proteasome-mediated degradation is functionally relevant.
The susceptibility of a given cytosolic protein to degradation is a function of multiple factors, including primary sequence, posttranslational modification and folded structure of the protein, and subcellular location [28 ]. Reported half-lives of normal cytoplasmic proteins range from less than 30 min, as exemplified by ornithine decarboxylase, to greater than 200 h, as exemplified by phosphoglycerate kinase [29 , 30 ]. In this context, the 2.5-h intracellular half-life of pIL-1ß is relatively short. The relative instability of cytosolic pIL-1ß has important implications for IL-1ß regulation, especially in light of a study which demonstrated that significant quantities of IL-1ß are not released from LPS-activated monocytes until approximately 2 h after synthesis of the precursor protein [8 ]. Our results expand on that observation by showing that the relatively slow IL-1ß release mechanism exposes pIL-1ß to proteasome-mediated digestion in the cytosol. The rate of pIL-1ß degradation is therefore a critical factor that dictates availability of pIL-1ß for processing and release by activated monocytes. Because the half-life of pIL-1ß and the delay in release are similar, the data collectively suggest that a delicate balance of two pathways, degradation versus processing and release, controls the amount of IL-1ß released by activated monocytes.
Proteasome inhibitors have been reported to exert cytotoxic effects on various cell types [23 24 25 ]. We have found that for monocytes, the severity of this effect is donor-dependent as well as inhibitor-dependent. MG132 induced release of IL-1ß as well as LDH by primary monocytes, whereas lactacystin induced release of IL-1ß but not LDH. Unlike primary monocytes, we did not observe MG132-induced cytotoxicity with THP-1 cells, at least by the criteria of pIL-1ß and LDH release. This variable toxicity might be explained simply by concentration effects and/or may be due to different levels of in vivo priming among donors; that is, more than one signal may be required to sensitize monocytes to proteasome inhibitor-mediated toxicity. Variability among monocyte donors was clearly reflected in the small but significant differences observed for pIL-1ß half-life (see Results). Because we were able to demonstrate effects of MG132 in THP-1 cells and lactacystin in primary monocytes in the absence of cytotoxicity, these observations were not central to our conclusions, and we did not investigate them further.
IL-1ß is a potentially toxic cytokine, and as such its production and activity are regulated at many levels, including transcription, message stability, translation, and the production of a receptor antagonist [reviewed in 1, 31]. In particular, transcription of the IL-1ß gene in response to LPS is rapid and vigorous, but begins to decline within several hours of stimulation [31 ]. The opportunity to synthesize high levels of IL-1ß is therefore relatively transient. The results of this study indicate another limiting step in IL-1ß production, imposed by proteasome-mediated degradation of the inactive IL-1ß precursor. This represents an additional and previously unrecognized regulatory mechanism that may serve two purposes: first to restrict intracellular levels of pIL-1ß until the monocyte receives an appropriate activation signal, and second, to limit the amount of biologically active IL-1ß secreted upon monocyte activation.
Received October 22, 1999; revised February 28, 2000; accepted February 29, 2000.
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