LYMPHOTOXIN, TUMOR-NECROSIS-FACTOR AND INTERLEUKIN-6 GENE TRANSCRIPTSARE PRESENT IN HODGKIN AND REED-STERNBERG CELLS OF MOST HODGKINS-DISEASE CASES

Tissue specimens from 26 cases of Hodgkin's disease (HD) and six HD-de rived cell lines were analysed for tumour necrosis factor (TNF), lymph otoxin (LT). and interleukin (IL)-6 RNA transcripts by in situ hybridi zation, in some cases subsequent to immunohistology for CD30 antigen. LT and TNF transcripts were found in tumour cells of all cases; IL-6 g ene transcripts were detectable in 19/23 cases. Presence of RNA specif ic for these cytokines was not correlated with any of the following pa rameters: sex, symptoms and histotype, as well as immunophenotype and association of the tumour cells with Epstein-Barr virus. Rather, the p resence of LT, TNF and IL-6 transcripts appeared to characterize Hodgk in and Reed-Sternberg cells in general, supporting concepts which sugg est that HD represents a malignancy of cytokine secreting activated ce lls, and that many of the features distinguishing HD from other malign ant lymphomas may ultimately be due to expression of cytokines. LT and TNF RNA transcripts were also found in five HD-derived cell lines, wh ereas supernatants of these cell lines contained high levels of LT, bu t low or undetectable levels of TNF activity. This suggests that, alth ough not detectable at the level of RNA transcripts, differences betwe en HD cases may exist on the level of cytokine gene transcript process ing, translation and polypeptide secretion.