Kaposi's Sarcoma Cells: Long-Term Culture with Growth Factor from Retrovirus-Infected CD4$^{+}$ T Cells

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 242; no. 4877; pp. 426 - 430
• Main Authors: Nakamura, Shuji, Salahuddin, S. Zaki, Biberfeld, Peter, Ensoli, Barbara, Markham, Phillip D., Wong-Staal, Flossie, Gallo, Robert C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC The American Association for the Advancement of Science 21.10.1988; American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Subjects: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome - immunology; Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome - pathology; AIDS (Disease); AIDS research; AIDS/HIV; Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte - analysis; Biological and medical sciences; Cell culture techniques; Cell Division; Cell growth; Cell lines; Cell Transformation, Viral; Cultured cells; Endothelial cells; Endothelial growth factors; Fibroblast growth factors; Growth factors; Growth Substances - isolation & purification; Growth Substances - physiology; Heparin; HIV; HIV (Viruses); Human T lymphotropic virus 2; Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 - genetics; Human T-lymphotropic virus 2 - genetics; Humans; Immunodeficiencies; Immunodeficiencies. Immunoglobulinopathies; Immunopathology; Kaposi's sarcoma; Kinetics; Medical sciences; Sarcoma, Kaposi - pathology; T lymphocytes; T-Lymphocytes - immunology; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Cell culture; Immunopathology; HIV-1 virus; Retroviridae; AIDS; HIV-2 virus; Infection; Virus; HTLV-II virus; Kaposi sarcoma; Viral disease; T-Lymphocyte; Human immunodeficiency virus; HTLV-I virus; Growth factor
• ISSN: 0036-8075; 1095-9203
• DOI: 10.1126/science.3262925

Studies of the biology and pathogenesis of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) have been hampered by the inability to maintain long-term cultures of KS cells in vitro. In this study AIDS-KS--derived cells with characteristic spindle-like morphology were cultured with a growth factor (or factors) released by CD4$^{+}$ T lymphocytes infected with human T-lymphotropic virus type I or II (HTLV-I or HTLV-II) or with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 or 2 (HIV-1 or HIV-2). Medium conditioned by HTLV-II--infected, transformed lines of T cells (HTLV-II CM) contained large amounts of this growth activity and also supported the temporary growth of normal vascular endothelial cells, but not fibroblasts. Interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor--$\alpha $ stimulated the growth of the KS-derived cells, but the growth was only transient and these factors could be distinguished from that in HTLV-II CM. Other known endothelial cell growth promoting factors, such as acidic and basic fibroblast growth factors and epidermal growth factor, did not support the long-term growth of the AIDS-KS cells. The factor released by CD4$^{+}$ T cells infected with human retroviruses should prove useful in studies of the pathogenesis of KS.