[CANCER RESEARCH 53, 3343-3348. July 15, 1993]
Differential Expression of Cell Adhesion Molecules CD54/CDlla and CD58/CD2 by
Human Melanoma Cells and Functional Role in Their Interaction with Cytotoxic
Cells1
Maresa Altomonte, Annunciata Gloghini, Giulio Bertela, Aldo Gasparollo, Antonino Carbone, Soldano Ferrone, and
Michele Maio2
Advanced Immunotherapeutics Unit and Division of Experimental Oncology 2 [M. A., A. Ca., M. M.], Pathology [A. GÃOE, A. C.], Surgical Oncology I [G. B.J, and Medical
Oncology 1 ¡A.Ga.¡,C. R. O., Aviano, Italy 33081, and Department of Microbiology and Immunology. New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York 10595 [S. F.J
ABSTRACT
Immunohistochemical staining with monoclonal antibodies showed a
differential distribution of intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1/
CD54) and lymphocyte function-associated antigen 3 (LFA-3/CD58) and
their respective counterreceptors lymphocyte function-associated antigens
1 (LFA-1/CDlla) and 2 (LFÀ-2/CD2) on ten melanoma cell lines and in 46
surgically removed metastatic melanoma lesions. CDlla and CD2 were
not detected on melanoma cells while CD54 and CD58 were coexpressed
on the majority of the melanoma cell populations investigated. CD54
showed a higher degree of intra- and intertumor heterogeneity than CD58.
•¿y-Interferon and/or tumor necrosis factor a upregulated the expression of
CD54 by melanoma cells, but neither modulated that of CD58 nor induced
that of CDlla and CD2. Anti-CD54 and anti-CD58 monoclonal antibodies
partially inhibited the lysis of melanoma cells by allogeneic natural killer
cells, lymphokine-activated killer cells and, to a greater extent, by autol-
ogous tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes. Soluble CD54 (cCD54) purified
from serum of patients with melanoma inhibited the lysis of melanoma
cells FO-1 by natural killer cells in a dose-dependent fashion. These results
suggest that membrane-bound CD54 and CD58 and cCD54 play a role in
host-tumor interactions in patients with malignant melanoma and may
account for the relationship between CD54 expression in primary lesions
and the clinical course of disease.
INTRODUCTION
Several cell membrane proteins that mediate homotypic and het-
erotypic cell-to-cell adhesive phenomena have been assigned to the
large family of CAM3 (1). Among CAM, ICAM-1/CD54 with its
counterreceptor LFA-1/CDlla and LFA-3/CD58 with its counter-
receptor LFA-2/CD2 are of note for their role in cell-cell interactions
required to generate an immune response (2). Furthermore, the het-
erotypic interaction of CD54/CDlla and CD58/CD2 molecules
strengthens the lysis of target cells by MHC antigen-restricted CTL
(3, 4), and the two ligand-receptor interacting pairs can act synergis-
tically in this phenomenon (5). In contrast, conflicting data have been
reported on the role of these CAM in the NK and LAK cell-mediated
lysis of various types of target cells (6-12).
The potential involvement of CAM in the interaction of melanoma
cells with the host's immune system and the previously described
Received 12/30/92; accepted 5/6/93.
The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page
charges. This article must therefore be hereby marked advertisement in accordance with
18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.
1 This work was supported by the Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro and
by USPHS Grant CA39559 awarded by the National Cancer Institute.
2 To whom requests for reprints should be addressed, at Advanced Immunotherapeutics
Unit, C. R. O., Aviano, Italy 33081.
3 The abbreviations used are: CAM, cell adhesion molecules; APAAP, alkaline
phosphatase-antialkaline phosphatase; CTL, cytotoxic T-lymphocytes; DTAF, di-
chlorotriazynylaminofluorescein; ELISA, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; PCS,
fetal calf serum; ICAM-1, intercellular adhesion molecule 1; IFN, interferon; IgG,
immunoglobulin G; IIP, indirect immunofluorescence; IL, interleukin; LAK, lymphokine-
activated killer; LFA, lymphocyte function-associated antigen; mAb, monoclonal anti
body; MACAM, melanoma-associated cell adhesion molecules; MHC, major histocom-
patibility complex; NK, natural killer; PBMC, peripheral blood mononuclear cells; PBS,
phosphate-buffered saline; rIFN, recombinant interferon; rIL, recombinant interleukin;
rTNF, recombinant tumor necrosis factor; TIL, tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes; TNF,
tumor necrosis factor.
association of the clinical course of the disease with CD54 expression
in primary melanoma lesions (13-15) and with the levels of soluble
CD54 (cCD54) in the serum of patients with malignant melanoma
(16, 17) have stimulated interest in the characterization of the expres
sion of CAM in melanoma cells and of their modulation by cytokines.
Therefore, in the present study, we have investigated the expression of
CD54 and CD58 and their counterreceptors CDlla and CD2 on a
panel of melanoma cell lines and in a large series of surgically re
moved metastatic melanoma lesions. In addition, we have analyzed
the role of membrane-bound CD54 and CD58 in the lysis of mela
noma cells by allogeneic and autologous cytotoxic cells. Lastly, we
have evaluated the role of soluble CD54, purified from the serum of
patients with melanoma, in the lysis of melanoma cells by NK cells.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Cells. The human melanoma cell lines A375, Colo 38, FO-1, Me Wo and its
highly metastatic variant MeM 50-10, SK-MEL-19, SK-MEL-33, SK-MEL-
93, 3S5, and 70-W were grown in RPMI Medium 1640 (Flow Laboratories,
Inc., McLean, VA) supplemented with 10% heat-inactivated PCS (Flow) and 2
mm L-glutamine.
PMBC were separated from heparinized blood of healthy volunteers by
Ficoll-Hypaque (Pharmacia Fine Chemicals AB, Uppsala, Sweden) density
gradient centrifugation (400 X g for 30 min) and used either as a source of NK
cells or for LAK cell generation. LAK cells were generated by culturing PBMC
in the continuous presence of IL-2 (1000 units/ml); half of the medium was
changed every 48 h with an equal volume of fresh medium containing IL-2.
Melanoma Lesions and Sera. Metastatic melanoma lesions were obtained
from 43 patients with no history of chemotherapy or immunotherapy who had
been admitted for surgery at the National Cancer Institute of Aviano, Italy.
Tissues were processed within 30 min following surgical removal. Each spec
imen was divided into three parts under sterile conditions. One third was fixed
in Bouin's solution, embedded in paraffin, and processed for routine histopa-
thology. One third was snap frozen in liquid nitrogen and stored at -80°C for
immunohistochemical analysis. The remaining tissue was used to isolate TIL
and melanoma cells as previously described and with minor modifications
(18). For the generation of primary cultures of melanoma cells and for TIL
isolation, cells (5 X 105/ml) obtained by mechanical mincing and enzymatic
digestion of tumor specimens were seeded in T25 tissue culture flasks in RPMI
Medium 1640 supplemented with 10% PCS, 10% AB-type human serum, 1%
nonessential amino acids (Flow), and 2 min t-glutamine. Following a 24-h
incubation at 37°Cin a 5% CO2-humidified atmosphere, culture supernatant
was harvested and spun at 400 x g for 10 min. Nonadherent cells were
recovered and used as effector cells in the cytotoxicity assay with autologous
melanoma cells.
Sera were collected from patients with melanoma and frozen at -20°C until
use.
Monoclonal Antibodies and Conventional Antisera. The anti-CD54
mAbs RR1/1 and CL203.4, the anti-CDlla mAb TS1/22, the anti-CD58 mAb
TS2/9, the anti-CD2 mAb TS2/18, and the anti-HLA Class I mAb W6/32 were
developed as described elsewhere (19-22). mAbs were purified from ascitic
fluid by sequential precipitation with caprylic acid and ammonium sulfate (23).
The purity of mAb preparations was monitored by sodium dodecyl sulfate-
polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (24) under reducing and nonreducing con
ditions.
3343
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