TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, and hepatocyte growth factor cooperate in stimulating specific acute phase plasma protein genes in rat hepatoma cells.

In rat hepatoma H-35 cells, TNF-alpha, like IL-1 beta, stimulates the synthesis and secretion of type 1 acute phase plasma proteins, including alpha 1-acid glycoprotein (AGP), complement component 3 (C3), hemopexin, and haptoglobin. TNF and IL-1 in combination act additively to synergistically on the expression of AGP and C3 but not on hemopexin and haptoglobin. The cytokine stimulation of AGP and C3 genes is further enhanced by hepatocyte growth factor. The effect of TNF is mediated by the type I TNF receptor as judged from the TNF-like effect elicited by the agonist antibodies to type I but not type II TNF receptor. The data suggest that, although TNF and IL-1 share considerable overlap in their signal transduction mechanism, cytokine-specific signal pathways exist that affect a subset of acute phase plasma protein genes. A potential regulatory role is attributed to the transcription factors C/EBP beta and NF-kB based on studies on transiently transfected H-35 cells.