1. Effects of Thalidomide on the Stimulation of NF-κB Activity and TNF-α Production by Lipopolysaccharide in a Human Colonic Epithelial Cell Line.
- Author
-
You Sun Kim, Joo Sung Kim, Hyun Chae Jung, and In Sung Song
- Abstract
The immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects of thalidomide are associated with inhibition of TNF-α levels. However, the mechanism by which thalidomide reduces TNF-α production remains elusive. NF-κB is known to play a central role in regulating inflammatory responses in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We tested whether thalidomide acts through inhibiting NF-κB activity. HT-29 cells were stimulated with LPS (1 ug/ml) alone, or after pretreatment with thalidomide (100 pg/ml), and NF-κB activity was determined by gel mobility shift assays. RT-PCR was used to measure expression of the proinflammatory cytokine genes TNF-α, IL-ip and IL-8. The level of TNF-α mRNA was also analyzed by real-time quantitative RT-PCR, and TNF-α protein was measured by ELISA. Thalidomide pretreatment did not affect NF-κB activity in HT-29 cells stimulated with LPS but production of TNF-α was depressed. Thalidomide was found to accelerate the degradation of TNF-α mRNA, but had little effect on IL-1β or IL-8. These observations suggest that the immunomodulatory effect of thalidomide in colonic epithelial cells is associated with inhibition of TNF-α. However, it does not act by inhibiting NF-κB but rather by inducing degradation of TNF-α mRNA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2004
- Full Text
- View/download PDF