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Vol.39 No.2 contents | Japanese/English |
- Original Article -
Effects of Clarithromycin on Expression of Cytokine mRNA in Spleen Cells of Mice Bearing Lewis Lung Carcinoma Cells
Katsuhiro Ueda, Keiichi Mikasa, Kaoru Hamada, Masahiro Sakamoto, Mitsuru Konishi, Kouichi Maeda, Toshimasa Majima, Eiji Kita* and Nobuhiro NaritaThe Second Department of Internal Medicine, Nara Medical University, *Department of Bacteriology, Nara Medical University
Studies have showen that 14-membered ring macrolides have various actions, in addition to antibacterial effects, in the long-term treatment of chronic lower respiratory tract infections. We reported that long-term treatment using clarithromycin (CAM), a 14-membered ring macrolide, was beneficial for patients with unresectable non small-cell lung cancer. In this study, we investigated the effects of CAM treatment on the expressions of cytokine mRNA in spleen cells of Lewis lung carcinoma cells in mice. Lewis lung carcinoma cells were injected into female C57BL/6 mice. Oral administration of CAM at a dose of 10 mg/kg was given once a day. Mice were divided to four groups according to whether tumor was injected or not, or whether mice were treated by CAM or not. Spleen cells were examined by RT-PCR after 14 days treatment. In the case of non-tumor bearing mice, there was no difference in expression of cytokine mRNA between mice treated or not treated with CAM. However, in the case of tumor-bearing mice, expressions of IL-4, IL-12p40, IFN-γ mRNA increased and those of IL-6 mRNA decreased in CAM-treated mice compared to mice not treated with CAM. These results suggest that CAM might regulate the cytokine network in the tumor-bearing state.
key words: Clarithromycin, Cytokine, Lung cancer, Animal model, Reverse transcriptase-assisted polymerase chain reaction
Received: December 7, 1998
Accepted: February 4, 1999
JJLC 39 (2): 117-124, 1999
