Modulation by interferon-gamma of zinc-alpha 2-glycoprotein gene expression in human epithelial cell lines
Brysk, M.M.; Lei, G.; Selvanayagam, P.; Brysk, H.; Tyring, S.K.; Arany, I.
Anticancer Research 17(5a): 3387-3391
1997
ISSN/ISBN: 0250-7005 PMID: 9413177 Document Number: 476180
Zinc-alpha 2-glycoprotein has been detected in most body fluids, and its antibody labels the corresponding glandular epithelia. We have also detected it in human stratified epithelia (epidermis and buccal mucosa). In this study, the mRNA levels of zinc-alpha 2-glycoprotein were found to be about twice as high in epithelial cells of mucosal origin (whether normal primaries or neoplastic cell lines) as in epidermoid cells (normal epidermal primary cultures, an immortalized but non-tumorigenic epidermal cell line, and neoplastic vulvar and cervical cell lines). Interferon-gamma strongly upregulated gene expression, but substantially less in mucosal than epidermoid cells. To compare responses as a clue to the function of zinc-alpha 2-glycoprotein, we ran parallel experiments with three markers of distinct properties, all known to be induced by interferon-gamma. There was the least resemblance for involucrin, a qualitative similarity for HLA-DR, and a rather better match for 2'-5' oligoadenylate synthetase.