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Selective Inhibition of Natural Killer but not Natural Cytotoxic Activity in a Cloned Cell Line by Delta‐9‐Tetrahydrocannabinol
Author(s) -
Wang Min,
Richards Allen L.,
Friedman Herman,
Djeu Julie Y.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
journal of leukocyte biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.819
H-Index - 191
eISSN - 1938-3673
pISSN - 0741-5400
DOI - 10.1002/jlb.50.2.192
Subject(s) - cytotoxic t cell , biology , natural killer cell , effector , lymphokine activated killer cell , delta 9 tetrahydrocannabinol , tumor necrosis factor alpha , cytotoxicity , population , cell culture , interleukin 2 , immunology , in vitro , pharmacology , cytokine , microbiology and biotechnology , interleukin 12 , cannabinoid , biochemistry , receptor , medicine , genetics , environmental health
Natural killer (NK) and natural cytotoxic (NC) activities are spontaneously generated against certain tumors in vitro and their contribution to tumor immunity is being extensively investigated. We report here that the interleukin‐2 (IL‐2)–dependent murine cell line, NKB61A2, which we recently found to express both NK and NC functions, can be modulated selectively by 9 δ‐tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). THC, a major psychoactive metabolite of marijuana, could significantly inhibit NK activity without altering NC activity in NKB61A2 cells. Inhibition of NK function occurred at a post‐binding stage because effector/target conjugation was unaffected by THC. With regard to NC function, neither the cytotoxic activity of the cells nor release of tumor necrosis factor was interrupted by THC. Therefore, THC may provide a useful tool for dissociating the mechanism of NK and NC activities within a single population of cells.