HUMAN T-LYMPHOCYTES EXPRESS A MEMBER OF THE MATRIX METALLOPROTEINASE GENE FAMILY

Objective. T lymphocytes are known to interact with cellular and struc tural components of the extracellular matrix. We investigated whether T lymphocytes could also contribute to matrix breakdown by expression of a matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) gene. Methods, Complementary DNA ( cDNA) was synthesized from messenger RNA extracted from cultured perip heral blood T lymphocytes after exposure to phorbol myristate acetate and calcium ionophore A23187 and amplified by the polymerase chain rea ction with primers derived from two conserved domains in MMP genes. Re sults. An amplification product of 402 base-pairs was generated and cl oned; sequence analysis revealed identity to human stromelysin-2 cDNA. Using the amplified stromelysin-2 cDNA as a probe for Northern analys es, we detected a 1.8-kilobase transcript in stimulated T lymphocytes. Conclusion. T lymphocytes are a potential source of stromelysin-2 tra nscripts and may have a role in the degradation of extracellular matri x constituents.