Pancreatic Acinar Cells Submitted to Stress Activate TNF-alpha Gene Expression

VACCARO MARIA INES; ROPOLO ALEJANDRO; GRASSO DANIEL; CALVO EZEQUIEL L; FERRERIA MARCELA; IOVANNA JUAN L; LANOSA GUSTAVO

BIOCHEMICAL AND BIOPHYSICAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS

Academic Press

Lugar: London; Año: 2000 vol. 268 p. 485 - 490

0006-291X

ABSTRACT To elucidate whether pancreatic acinar cell submitted to stress is able to express TNF-a, we studied TNF-a mRNA expression by Northern blot and in situ hybridization in healthy pancreas, in tissue from caerulein-induced pancreatitis and after lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment. In specimens from normal pancreas, TNF-a mRNA expression, judged by both Northern blot and in situ hybridization, was negative, whereas a strong but transient expression was observed in acinar cells from caerulein pancreatitis and LPS treatment. TNF-a mRNA appeared as rapidly as 30 min after treatment, and was maximal 6 h after. At this time, there was mild infiltration consisting mostly of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNL) and no signal of TNF-a transcript was found in their cytoplasm. Our results strongly indicate that pancreatic acinar cell is the source of TNF-a early in the course of acute pancreatitis and LPS treatment, and suggest that the expression of this cytokine is a part of a general response of the acinar cell to aggression.