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Normal breast epithelial cells produce interleukins 6 and 8 together with tumor‐necrosis factor: Defective il6 expression in mammary carcinoma
Author(s) -
Basolo Fulvio,
Conaldi Pier Giulio,
Fiore Lisa,
Calvo Simonetta,
Toniolo Antonio
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
international journal of cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.475
H-Index - 234
eISSN - 1097-0215
pISSN - 0020-7136
DOI - 10.1002/ijc.2910550609
Subject(s) - interleukin 8 , tumor necrosis factor alpha , mammary gland , cytokine , interleukin 6 , biology , cancer research , interleukin , oncogene , pathogenesis , medicine , endocrinology , immunology , cancer , breast cancer , cell cycle
Virtually pure primary cultures of normal mammary epithelial cells (MEC) obtained from healthy women were shown to release interleukin 6 and 8 (IL6, IL8) and to produce a non‐secreted form of tumor‐necrosis factor (TNF). No interferon (IFN), whether α, β or γ, or ILI‐α or ‐β could be detected. Analysis of cellular RNA confirmed these findings and showed that MEC also express IL6 receptor and TNF‐α‐related mRNAs. Epithelial cells were selectively stained by antibodies to IL6, IL8 and TNF‐α both in primary cultures and in the normal mammary gland. Samples of human milk contained sizable amounts of IL6, IL8 and IFN‐γ; yet the liquid phase was consistently negative for other cytokines ( i.e. , TNF‐α, IFN‐α/‐β, ILI‐α/‐β). Expression of IL6 (but not of IL8 and TNF‐α) was abolished in ductal infiltrating carcinomas and greatly reduced in cultures of oncogene‐transfected mammary cells, suggesting that alterations of IL6 expression are associated with pathogenesis in breast cancer.