Regulation of tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-1 beta induced adhesion molecule expression in human vascular smooth muscle cells by cAMP

This study investigates the hypothesis that the elevation of intracellular cAMP may affect cytokine-induced expression of adhesion molecules on human vascular smooth muscle cells. In cultured human smooth muscle cells from coronary arteries and saphenous veins, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) induced the expression of intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM-1), whereas interferon-gamma (INF-gamma) selectively stimulated the expression of ICAM-1. Adenylyl cyclase was stimulated either by the stable prostacyclin mimetic cicaprost or by forskolin. Adhesion molecules were detected by a cell surface enzyme immunoassay and the respective mRNA by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (rt-PCR). Cicaprost as well as forskolin significantly inhibited TNF-alpha- and IL-1 beta-induced cell surface expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1. Semiquantitative rt-PCR measurements showed a marked decrease of TNF-alpha- and IL-1 beta-induced mRNA levels of both adhesion molecules after preincubation with cicaprost. The stability of TNF-alpha-induced ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 expression at mRNA and protein level was not altered by cicaprost. The IFN-gamma-induced increase of cell surface expression of ICAM-1 and the respective mRNA levels, however, were not significantly altered by elevation of intracellular cAMP. Basal and stimulated cAMP levels, measured by radioimmunoassay, did not differ in TNF-alpha- and IFN gamma-treated cells. The present results demonstrate that the expression of adhesion molecules on human smooth muscle cells induced by cytokines is differentially modulated by activation of adenylyl cyclase.