Growth-related changes in specific mRNAs upon lectin activation of human lymphocytes.

A cDNA library in lambda gt10 was constructed from the cytoplasmic poly(A) +RNA of human peripheral blood lymphocytes after 72 hr of phytohemagglutinin stimulation, with the aim of assessing selective gene expression as a result of lymphocyte activation. Thirteen recombinants were isolated by the use of an enriched probe and differential screening. These clones were categorized into two groups with respect to their hybridization to mRNA. In the first group three recombinants were isolated, which hybridized to single discrete mRNAs in the size range 0.7-1.7 kb. The mRNAs corresponding to these clones were present at elevated levels in activated lymphocytes, but the kinetics of increase differed. The 0.7-kb mRNA coded for by clone p1L1 increased two-fold at 6 hr and remained elevated over 72 hr, as did beta-actin mRNA. The 1.7-kb mRNA coded for by clone p9L2 increased two- to three-fold after 6 hr and was maximally expressed after 24 hr exposure to phytohemagglutinin, coincident with the onset of DNA replication, and maintained this level up to 72 hr. The 1.0-kb mRNA coded by p10L2F which was rare in resting cells increased 25- to 30-fold after 6 hr, prior to overall transcriptional increases and reached peak levels after 72 hr when a substantial proportion of the cells were in the S and G2 + M phases of the cell cycle. This clone was undetectable or very rare in the leukemic T-lymphoblast cell line CCRF-CEM. The second group of clones, consisting of the remaining 10 recombinants, did not hybridize to discrete bands, but to a smear on RNA blots.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)