Effects of Betulinic Acid on Proliferation and Apoptosis in Jurkat Cells and Its In Vitro Mechanism

The anti-cancer effects of betulinic acid （BA） on Jurkat cells and its in vitro mechanism were examined by using MTT assay. Apoptosis was detected by using Hoechst33258 staining and annexin-Ⅴ/PI double-labeled cytometry. The effects of betulinic acid on the cell cycle of Jurkat cells were studied by propidium iodide method. RT-PCR and Western blotting were used to analyze the changes of cyclin D3, bcl-xl mRNA and protein levels in Jurkat cells after treatment with betulinic acid. Our results showed the proliferation of Jurkat cells was decreased in betulinic acid-treated group with a 24-h IC50 value being 70.00 μmol/L. Betulinic acid induced apoptosis of Jurkat cells in a time-and dose-dependent manner. The number of Jurkat cells treated with betulinic acid showed an increase in G0/G1 phase and decrease in S phase. After treatment with 0, 20, 60, 100 μmol/L betulinic acid for 24 h, the number of Jurkat cells was increased from （31.00±1.25）% to （58.84±0.32）% in G0/G1 phase, whereas it was decreased from （61.45±1.04）% to （35.82±1.95）% in S phase. PBMCs were less sensitive to the cytotoxicity of betulinic acid than Jurkat cells. The expressions of cyclin D3, bcl-xl mRNA and protein were decreased sharply in Jurkat cells treated with betulinic acid. It is concluded that betulinic acid is able to inhibit the proliferation of Jurkat cells by regulating the cell cycle, arrest cells at G0/G1 phase and induce the cell apoptosis. The anti-tumor effects of betulinic acid are related to the down-regulated expression of cyclin D3 and bcl-xl.

Induction of Apoptosis by Recombinant Soluble Human TRAIL in Jurkat Cells

Objective To investigate the therapeutic potential of tumor necrosis factor （TNF）-related apoptosis-inducing ligand （TRAIL）, a member of the TNF superfamily, and to analyze TRAIL-induced apoptosis in Jurkat cells. Methods Expression of TRAIL receptors （DR4 and DR5） was detected by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction （RT-PCR）. Cytotoxic effects were determined by colony formation assay and a cell counting kit. The effects of recombinant TRAIL on apoptosis of Jurkat cells were determined by DNA fragmentation （DNA ladder） and PI staining. Changes in mitochondrial membrane potential were detected with JC-1 fluorescence. Results TRAIL inhibited the proliferation and induced intemucleosomal DNA fragmentation （characteristic of apoptosis） and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential. Conclusion Recombinant soluble TRAIL can be used as a therapy for cancer.

Role of the Ca^2＋-Calcineurin-Nuclear Factor of Activated T cell Pathway in Mitofusin-2-Mediated Immune Function of Jurkat Cells

Background：Mitofusin-2 （MFN2）,a well-known mitochondrial fusion protein,has been shown to participate in innate immunity,but its role in mediating adaptive immunity remains poorly characterized.In this study,we explored the potential role of MFN2 in mediating the immune function of T lymphocytes.Methods：We manipulated MFN2 gone expression in Jurkat cells via lentiviral transduction of MFN2 small interfering RNA （siRNA） or full-length MFN2.After transduction,the immune response and its underlying mechanism were determined in Jurkat cells.One-way analysis of variance and Student＇s t-test were performed to determine the statistical significance between the groups.Results：Overexpression of MFN2 enhanced the immune response of T lymphocytes by upregulating Ca2＋ （359.280 ± 10.130 vs.266.940 ± 10.170,P =0.000）,calcineurin （0.513 ± 0.014 vs.0.403 ± 0.020 nmol/L,P =0.024）,and nuclear factor of activated T cells （NFATs） activation （1.040 ± 0.086 vs.0.700 ± 0.115,P =0.005）,whereas depletion of MFN2 impaired the immune function ofT lymphocytes by downregulating Ca2＋ （141.140 ± 14.670 vs.267.060 ± 9.230,P =0.000）,calcineurin （0.054 ± 0.030 nmol/L vs.0.404 ± 0.063 nmol/L,P =0.000）,and NFAT activation （0.500 ± 0.025 vs.0.720 ± 0.061,P =0.012）.Furthermore,upregulated calcineurin partially reversed the negative effects ofMFN2 siRNA on T cell-mediated immunity evidenced by elevations in T cell proliferation （1.120 ± 0.048 vs.0.580 ± 0.078,P =0.040）,interleukin-2 （IL-2） production （473.300 ± 24.100 vs.175.330 ± 12.900 pg/ml,P =0.000）,and the interferon-γ/IL-4 ratio （3.080 ± 0.156 vs.0.953 ± 0.093,P =0.000）.Meanwhile,calcineurin activity inhibitor depleted the positive effects of overexpressed MFN2 on T cells function.Conclusions：Our findings suggest that MFN2 may regulate T cell immune functions primarily through the Ca2＋-calcineurin-NFAT pathway.MFN2 may represent a potential therapeutic target for T cell immune dysfunction-related diseases.

Systemic Nuclear Proteomics Researches on Change of Jurkat T Lymphocyte Cells Under Radiation

Radiation causes severe constraint on numerous pathological functions of cells, such as cell growth, nuclear genetic material expression and cell functions. In this study, we performed proteomic profiling of a nuclear fraction of Jurkat T lymphocyte cells under radiation along different time course by means of 2DE and MALDI TOF-MS. We found 24 protein spots whose expression had changed after radiation, including relevant proteins, genetic material proteins, metabolism proteins, molecular chaperon and nuclear membrane proteins. Based on the above it is concluded that the combination of fluorescence labeled 2D-PAGE and MALDI-TOF MS is more precisely and effectively to elucidate the protein changes in Jurkat T lymphocyte cells after irradiation.

Down-regulation of β-catenin Nuclear Localization by Aspirin Correlates with Growth Inhibition of Jurkat Cell Line

In this study, we examined the effects of aspirin on the growth rates, subcellar distribution of β-catenin protein, the expression of β-catenin/TCF signaling pathway target gene cyclinD1 mRNA, and cell cycle of Jurkat cell line （Human T-acute lymphoblastic leukemia）. Our results showed that the treatment with aspirin inhibited the growth of Jurkat cell line. Jurkat cells treated with 3 mmol/L of aspirin could significantly decrease nuclear localization of β-catenin, and at 5 mmol/L of aspirin, the nuclear localization of β-catenin was undetectable. QRT-PCR showed that the target gene cyclinDl mRNA expression was gradually decreased with the dosage of aspirin. Aspirin induced G0/G1 cell cycle arrest in Jurkat cells. We are led to conclude that aspirin acts through β-catenin-independent mechanisms. The effects of aspirin include down-regulation of β-catenin nuclear localization and G0/G1 cell cycle arrest, which might serve as a means of growth inhibition in aspirin-treated human Jurkat cell line.