Production of interleukin-1 alpha and a parathyroid hormone-like factor by a squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus (EC-GI) derived from a patient with hypercalcemia.

To determine the pathogenesis of humoral hypercalcemia associated with esophageal carcinoma in a 65-yr-old patient, clonal cell lines (EC-GI) were established from the tumor. The EC-GI cells produced bone-resorbing activity which eluted from a Sephadex G-75 column in a broad peak, with an apparent mol wt of 10,000-50,000. In addition to PTH-like factor(s), the EC-GI cells produced a factor with thymocyte proliferation-stimulating activity which had an apparent mol wt of 15,000-20,000. This interleukin-1 (IL-1)-like factor(s) with acidic pI (4.8 and 5.2) exactly coeluted with the bone-resorbing activity upon DEAE-Sepharose ion exchange chromatography. Both bone-resorbing and thymocyte proliferation-stimulating activities were completely inhibited by anti-IL-1 alpha antiserum, but not by anti-IL-1 beta antiserum. Northern blot hybridization studies revealed that EC-GI cells produced exclusively mRNA for IL-1 alpha. Furthermore, fractions containing IL-1-like activity and PTH-like activity synergistically stimulated bone resorption in vitro, and transplantation of EC-GI cells into nude mice caused hypercalcemia in vivo. These findings suggest that IL-1 alpha and PTH-like factor produced by this squamous cell carcinoma synergistically stimulate bone resorption and are related to humoral hypercalcemia in tumor-bearing nude mice and in the patient.