Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0036421 (PSS)
 10,989 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Prolyl 4-hydroxylase (PH) is an enzyme that catalyzes an essential step in procollagen synthesis. PH production, as measured by the new ELISA method, was significantly higher in fibroblast cultures from patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc; N = 7) than in cultures from healthy controls (NC; N = 5) (p less than 0.01). Transforming growth factor-beta and tumor necrosis factor-alpha significantly increased PH production, but recombinant interferon-gamma had a significant negative effect on PH production. Since the production of PH is relevant to collagen synthesis by fibroblasts of patients with SSc, regulation of PH production may have therapeutic value.
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PMID:Cytokine regulation of prolyl 4-hydroxylase production in skin fibroblast cultures from patients with systemic sclerosis: contribution to collagen synthesis and fibrosis. 132 34

Scleroderma is a disease characterized by proliferative vascular lesions in which monocytes/macrophages may play a key role. Monocytes were isolated from 14 scleroderma patients and 11 normal controls and cultured with or without lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (5 micrograms/ml). Monocyte-conditioned medium was assayed in the rat corneal bioassay for angiogenesis. Conditioned medium from normal monocytes was nonangiogenic, as was conditioned medium from scleroderma monocytes. While conditioned medium from LPS-activated normal monocytes was potently angiogenic in 11/13 corneas, conditioned medium from LPS-activated scleroderma monocytes was angiogenic in only 3/14 corneas. Levels of the angiogenic cytokine tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) were measured in conditioned medium from scleroderma and normal monocytes. TNF-alpha levels were not significantly different in patient and control groups and thus do not account for the decreased angiogenic activity exhibited by scleroderma monocytes. As monocytes require activation to produce angiogenic activity, we determined the cell surface binding of monoclonal antibodies to activation-related (HLA-DR, 3D8, and 8D7) and other (Leu-M5) markers on monocytes by radioimmunoassay. Monocytes were cultured alone, with LPS (5 micrograms/ml), or with interferon-gamma (IFN) (200 units/ml). The usual increase in binding of anti-HLA-DR on stimulation of scleroderma monocytes with IFN was slightly less than that of controls. IFN-stimulated monocytes bound less anti-8D7 than controls. Anti-3D8 and anti-Leu-M5 binding was comparable in both groups. These results suggest that scleroderma monocytes do not produce normal levels of angiogenic activity with LPS stimulation, have some altered markers of activation on their cell surfaces, and may thus contribute to the aberrant vascular proliferation found in this disease.
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PMID:Decreased monocyte-mediated angiogenesis in scleroderma. 137 28

Serum levels of various cytokines, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin 1-beta (IL1-beta), and interleukin 2 (IL2), and of soluble IL2 receptors (sIL2R) were determined in 30 patients with definite systemic sclerosis (SSc). Spontaneous and lipopolysaccharide-or mitogen-induced production of the cytokines, TNF-alpha, IL1-beta, and IFN-gamma, by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNC) of these SSc patients was measured by immunoassays. The patients were divided into three groups: 12 with limited cutaneous disease (lcSSc), 7 with diffuse cutaneous disease (dcSSc) < 3 years duration, and 11 with dcSSc > 3 years duration. None were treated with cytotoxic drugs or biologic response modifiers. Sera of patients with SSc had elevated sIL2R levels, and only low levels of IL2 (1-2 U/ml) were detected in 10/29 sera tested. Spontaneous production of TNF-alpha and IL1-beta by PBMNC of patients with SSc (829 pg/ml +/- 215 SEM and 728 pg/ml +/- 186, respectively) was significantly higher than that by normal PBMNC obtained from 30 volunteers (25 +/- 10 and 34 +/- 6 pg/ml, respectively) and tested at the same time as patients' PBMNC. The largest increases in spontaneous release of TNF-alpha or IL1-beta were seen in patients with early dcSSc. No significant difference in spontaneous IFN-gamma production by patient or control PBMNC was detected. On the other hand, the mean level of mitogen-induced IFN-gamma production by PBMNC was significantly depressed in patients with SSc (103 U/ml +/- 18 vs 255 +/- 33 U/ml in controls). In vitro-induced production of TNF-alpha or IL1-beta by patients' PBMNC was comparable to that of normal PBMNC. These data indicate that in vivo-activated PBMNC of patients with SSc spontaneously secrete excessive amounts of fibrogenic cytokines, which are involved in modulation of connective tissue synthesis.
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PMID:Cytokine production and serum levels in systemic sclerosis. 145 30

Extracorporeal photopheresis (ExP) has been shown to be an efficacious and well-tolerated therapy in the treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) and systemic sclerosis. However, the precise mechanisms of its action have not been defined. Because of a correlation between the development of fever in the early phase of treatment of CTCL and subsequent anti-tumor responses, we examined the production of the proinflammatory, pyrogenic cytokines tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF), IL-6, IL-1 alpha, and IL-1 beta before and after ExP. Monocytes were purified from peripheral blood specimens of normal volunteers (n = 4) or from peripheral blood specimens of CTCL (n = 6) or systemic sclerosis (n = 3) patients that were obtained immediately prior to ExP and also directly from the photopheresis unit after ExP, just prior to reinfusion into the patient. Monocytes were then cultured under various conditions for 16 h, after which the culture supernatants were collected and assayed for specific cytokine production. ExP induced a significant increase in the production of TNF (p less than 0.008) and IL-6 (p less than 0.05) as compared to non-ExP-treated cells, whereas no significant differences were observed in IL-1 alpha (p less than 0.5) and IL-1 beta (p less than 0.2) production following ExP. Exposure of monocyte cultures to IFN-gamma (100 U/mL) either before or after ExP further enhanced TNF production by 4 to 28 times. In contrast, incubation with IFN-alpha (100 U/mL) had no significant effect on TNF production. Addition of TNF (500 U/ml) to monocyte cultures obtained prior to ExP resulted in a slight but insignificant increase in TNF production in 2 of 10 cases. However, when monocytes obtained prior to ExP were incubated with 8-methoxypsoralen (8-MOP, 100 ng/ml), exposed to ultraviolet light A (UVA, 2J/cm2), washed, and then incubated with TNF, a significant increase (p less than 0.01) in TNF production was observed in 8 of 10 cases, suggesting that the combination of 8-MOP and UVA may sensitize cells to TNF. Based on studies of endotoxin (LPS)-stimulated production of TNF by monocytes, levels of endotoxin in culture reagents or photopheresis equipment could not account for the increased production of TNF following treatment by ExP. Increased TNF production as a result of ExP may have important implications for treating both CTCL and systemic sclerosis because, in the case of CTCL, it could mediate numerous anti-tumor effects, whereas, in the case of systemic sclerosis, it could suppress collagen synthesis and induce collagenase production.
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PMID:Extracorporeal photochemotherapy induces the production of tumor necrosis factor-alpha by monocytes: implications for the treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma and systemic sclerosis. 156 19

To investigate the role of immune mechanisms in scleroderma (systemic sclerosis, SSc), we measured the levels of selected cytokines and soluble immune markers in patient sera. Forty-two patients and 14 matched healthy controls are the subject of this report. In the SSc group, tumor necrosis factor (TNF) was found in 8/42 (29 +/- 539 pg/ml, mean level +/- SD) and lymphotoxin in 36/42 (1:409-1:200, serum dilution). Interleukin beta (IL-1 beta) was observed in 23/42 (44 +/- 29, U/ml). IL-2 was identified in 36/42 patients with a mean level of 286 +/- 406 U/ml, soluble interleukin-2 receptor in 42/42 (1055 +/- 393, U/ml), soluble CD4 antigen in 27/42 (1:10-1:320, serum dilution), and CD8 in 42/42 (470 +/- 134, U/ml). TNF, lymphotoxin, IL-1 beta, Il-2, and CD4 were not detected in the control group. IL-2 receptor levels in control subjects were 520 +/- 171 U/ml, significantly lower than those of scleroderma (P less than 0.001), and CD8 levels (582 +/- 140) were significantly higher than in scleroderma (P less than 0.05). The data suggest an ongoing activation of immune cells, particularly the CD4+ subset in SSc and indicate a potential role for the released mediator TNF, IL-1 beta, and lymphotoxin in the disease process.
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PMID:Soluble immunologic products in scleroderma sera. 189 5

Systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) is a generalized disease of the interstitial connective tissue of several organs characterized by vascular and microvascular injury and fibroblast activation leading to fibrosis. Cell culture models have been instructive in attempts to study the pathogenesis of this disorder. The scleroderma fibroblast in vitro demonstrates persistent, excessive extracellular matrix production, as well as an autocrine abnormality in cell growth regulation with persistent expression of the proto-oncogene c-myc. Since it has not yet been possible to culture scleroderma endothelial cells, human umbilical endothelial cells have been studied with regard to potential informational molecules (peptide regulatory factors, cytokines, growth factors) which selectively injure or alter the function of the endothelium. Transforming growth factor beta and tumor necrosis factor are two of these molecules which are currently under study.
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PMID:The pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis. 269 Nov 49

In this study an amphotropic retrovirus has been used to efficiently transduce normal human (NF) and scleroderma (systemic sclerosis; SSc) dermal fibroblasts (SScF) with a sequence encoding a temperature-sensitive mutant of the SV40 large T antigen (tsA58-U19). From the primary outgrowths of skin explants, cultures were generated whose growth was stringently temperature-dependent. When grown at a low, permissive temperature (35 degrees C), both normal and SSc-transduced cells continuously divided with similar doubling times, whereas at a high, nonpermissive temperature (39.5 degrees C), division of both the NF and SScF cells was rapidly arrested. These cells have been passaged more than 50 times, have the typical morphological appearance of fibroblasts, and have retained an anchorage-dependent phenotype. The transduced normal cells (tsT-NF) synthesized the matrix molecules collagen and fibronectin and expressed phenotypic antigens characteristic of their nontransduced counterparts, including MHC Class I, VLA beta 1 (CD29), Hermes 1 (CD44), VLA-4 alpha (CD49d), ICAM-1 (CD54) and LFA-3 (CD58) and the cell surface ectoenzymes neutral endopeptidase (CD10), aminopeptidase N (CD13), and dipeptidyl peptidase IV (CD26). Analysis of the transduced SSc fibroblasts (tsT-SScF) showed that these cells exhibited certain major features of the SSc pathology, notably the abnormally high synthesis of type I collagen, increased expression of ICAM-1, and depressed levels of CD26. Moreover, these phenotypic characteristics were retained even after prolonged culture in vitro. The tsT-SScF cells also retained their responsiveness to cytokines, since interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) both produced a marked increase in ICAM-1 expression. Our findings show that infection of SScF with the SV40 tsT antigen extends the life span of these cells and does not ablate their abnormal phenotypic and functional characteristics.
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PMID:Scleroderma-derived human fibroblasts retain abnormal phenotypic and functional characteristics following retroviral transduction with the SV40 tsT antigen. 755 50

Our objective was to study the regulation of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) expression by cytokines on cultured fibroblasts obtained from systemic sclerosis and normal skin. ICAM-1 expression on dermal fibroblasts obtained from diffuse systemic sclerosis patients with early disease (< or = 2 years) and normal dermal fibroblasts incubated with and without cytokines was measured by radioimmunoassay and flow cytometry. Systemic sclerosis dermal fibroblasts expressed lower basal levels of ICAM-1 than did normal dermal fibroblasts. Both the normal and systemic sclerosis dermal fibroblasts increased their cell surface expression of ICAM-1 in response to interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) in a dose-dependent fashion. Systemic sclerosis dermal fibroblasts appeared to be hyperresponsive to IL-1 beta, TNF-alpha, and IFN-gamma. ICAM-1 expression in response to cytokine stimulation increased to a greater degree on systemic sclerosis compared to normal dermal fibroblasts. The enhanced ICAM-1 expression may play a role in the retention of leukocytes involved in systemic sclerosis skin lesions.
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PMID:In vitro cytokine modulation of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 expression on systemic sclerosis dermal fibroblasts. 794 15

Recent studies have demonstrated that tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) selectively decreases production of collagens I and III, the major types of collagen in the dermis, and increases production of collagenase in cultured dermal fibroblasts. The effects of TNF-alpha on collagens I, III and VI, fibronectin and collagenase gene expression by fibroblasts derived from normal individuals and patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) were studied. SSc is characterized by excessive accumulation of collagen in the skin and in certain organs. TNF-alpha inhibited collagen production and mRNA levels of collagens I and III and of fibronectin, and stimulated collagenase activity and collagenase mRNA levels in SSs fibroblasts. Levels of mRNA for alpha 1 (VI) and alpha 3 (VI) collagen and for beta-actin were unaltered in SSc fibroblasts incubated with TNF-alpha. Similar results were observed for mRNA levels in normal fibroblasts incubated with TNF-alpha. These results suggest that TNF-alpha could be expected to be beneficial in the treatment of SSc. In addition, our results indicated that collagen-VI expression is regulated independently from expression of collagens I and III, and expression of fibronectin and collagens I and III are regulated in parallel in fibroblasts treated with TNF-alpha.
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PMID:Effects of tumor necrosis factor-alpha on connective tissue metabolism in normal and scleroderma fibroblast cultures. 846 80

A review of the literature concerning the effects of traditional antirheumatic drugs on cytokines and the cytokine and anticytokine approaches already used in the therapy of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is presented. Many antirheumatic drugs are capable of cytokine modulation in vitro. Corticosteroids inhibit the transcription of a broad spectrum of genes including those encoding monocyte, T cell-derived cytokines and several hemopoietic growth factors, whereas drugs such as cyclosporin A and D-penicillamine interfere with T cell activation more specifically by suppressing interleukin 2 (IL-2) production. The in vivo effects of drug therapy on cytokines in RA patients are less well established. Gold compounds reduce circulating IL-6 levels and the expression of monocyte-derived cytokines, such as IL-1, tumor necrosis factor (TNF), and IL-6, in the rheumatoid synovium. Decreases in circulating IL-6, soluble IL-2 (sIL-2R), and TNF receptors and in synovial fluid IL-1 levels have been reported with methotrexate. Reductions in circulating IL-6 and sIL-2R concentrations have also been observed with cyclosporin and corticosteroids, whereas azathioprine reduces IL-6 but not sIL-2R. Studies on sulfasalazine are conflicting and the in vivo effects of D-penicillamine and antimalarials have not been studied yet. Interferon gamma therapy is not effective in RA but may prove a useful antifibrotic for systemic sclerosis. Colony stimulating factors improve the granulocytopenia associated with Felty's syndrome or drug toxicities but can induce arthritis flares and should be reserved to treat infectious complications. Promising results are being obtained with selective antagonism of TNF and IL-1 in RA, and combinations of anticytokine strategies with traditional antirheumatic drugs have been already envisaged. These should preferably be based in a broader knowledge of the effects of antirheumatic agents on the cytokine network.
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PMID:Effects of antirheumatic agents on cytokines. 883 13


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