Transcriptional and post-transcriptional control of apolipoprotein E gene expression in differentiating human monocytes.

The present studies examined the mechanisms responsible for the regulation of apolipoprotein (apo) E gene expression during human monocytic differentiation. Levels of apoE mRNA were low in undifferentiated THP1 cells, a human monocytic cell line. Addition of 12-O-tetradecanylphorbol-13-acetate (PMA) induced differentiation of these cells to a macrophage-like phenotype and was associated with increased apoE mRNA abundance in a time-dependent fashion, up to 10-11-fold within 32 h. Results of nuclear run-on transcription assays demonstrated that the apoE gene was transcriptionally active in undifferentiated THP1 cells and that differentiation of monocytes with PMA was associated with a maximal increase of apoE gene transcription rate of only 2-3-fold at 6-12 h. Using actinomycin D as an inhibitor of new transcription, we could demonstrate a more rapid degradation of mature apoE mRNA in undifferentiated compared to differentiated cells, suggesting that the apoE mRNA species was more stable in differentiated THP1 cells. Primer extension assays performed using RNA extracts from undifferentiated and differentiated THP1 cells confirmed the increase of apoE mRNA abundance in the latter but failed to disclose heterogeneity in apoE gene transcription start site between these two phenotypes. These findings indicate that apoE gene expression is controlled at both transcriptional and post-transcriptional loci during human monocyte-macrophage differentiation.