载脂蛋白E-基因敲除鼠VLDL和IDL在动脉硬化中的作用

探讨载脂蛋白Ｅ（ａｐｏＥ）－基因敲除鼠极低密度脂蛋白（ＶＬＤＬ）和中间密度脂蛋白（ＩＤＬ）组分（ａｐｏＥｋｏ－ＶＬＤＬ／ＩＤＬ）致动脉硬化作用．采用超离法从ａｐｏＥ－基因敲除鼠血浆中分离ＶＬＤＬ和ＩＤＬ组分,与鼠腹腔巨噬细胞共育,观察ａｐｏＥｋｏ－ＶＬＤＬ／ＩＤＬ与巨噬细胞的相互作用．ＡｐｏＥｋｏ－ＶＬＤＬ／ＩＤＬ导致细胞胆固醇酯含量显著增加．其诱导的细胞［３Ｈ］胆固醇油酸脂量高达１５．１ｎｍｏｌ／ｍｇ细胞蛋白,是天然低密度脂蛋白的８．４倍．形态学观察显示,经ａｐｏＥｋｏ－ＶＬＤＬ／ＩＤＬ处理的巨噬细胞与苏丹黑Ｂ呈阳性染色．细胞结合实验表明,１２５Ｉ－ａｐｏＥｋｏ－ＶＬＤＬ／ＩＤＬ与巨噬细胞的总结合可被非标记配基取代８０％以上,特异结合呈一饱和图形．同时细胞缔合和细胞内降解实验也显示相似结果．非修饰的ａｐｏＥｋｏ－ＶＬＤＬ／ＩＤＬ可通过一特异而不依赖于ａｐｏＥ的途径导致巨噬细胞胆固醇酯的显著蓄积     

Chronic polyarthritis caused by mammalian DNA that escapes from degradation in macrophages

A large amount of chromosomal DNA is degraded during programmed cell death and definitive erythropoiesis. DNase II is an enzyme that digests the chromosomal DNA of apoptotic cells and nuclei expelled from erythroid precursor cells after macrophages have engulfed them. Here we show that DNase II-/-IFN-IR-/- mice and mice with an induced deletion of the DNase II gene develop a chronic polyarthritis resembling human rheumatoid arthritis. A set of cytokine genes was strongly activated in the affected joints of these mice, and their serum contained high levels of anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody, rheumatoid factor and matrix metalloproteinase-3. Early in the pathogenesis, expression of the gene encoding tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha was upregulated in the bone marrow, and administration of anti-TNF-alpha antibody prevented the development of arthritis. These results indicate that if macrophages cannot degrade mammalian DNA from erythroid precursors and apoptotic cells, they produce TNF-alpha, which activates synovial cells to produce various cytokines, leading to the development of chronic polyarthritis.