Cytokine gene expression in erythroid cells.

Erythroid nuclear cells have been shown to exert regulatory effects on immunopoiesis. We have reported that some of these influences might be mediated via soluble factors secreted by nuclear erythroid cells. In this report we describe our estimate of the cytokine gene expression in cells isolated from individual erythroid colonies by Reverse transcription-Polymerase chain reaction. We found in erythroid cells, originated from the bone marrow precursors obtained from phenylhydrazine-treated mouse, the expression of the following cytokine genes: IL-1 alpha and IL-1 beta, IL-4, IL-6, GM-CSF, gamma-IFN and TGF-beta. In contrast, the erythroid cells derived from newborn mouse spleen precursor cells expressed IL-1 alpha, IL-1 beta, IL-4, IL-6 and GM-CSF mRNAs but not gamma-IFN and TGF-beta mRNAs. No detectable levels of IL-2, IL-3 and IL-5 mRNAs were expressed in nuclear erythroid cells. These data provide evidence of the expression of mRNAs coding in the set of immunoregulatory cytokines in immature erythroid progenitor cells in mouse.