Abstract
Senescent mice exhibit decreased numbers of pre-B cells in the bone marrow. Herein, we show that the molecules, λ5 and VpreB, which comprise the surrogate light chain component of the pre-B cell receptor, are reduced in pro-B/early pre-B cells derived in vitro from the bone marrow of 18-27 months old BALB/c mice after stimulation with IL-7. Both λ5 and VpreB expression were decreased at the mRNA level as indicated by semi-quantitative RT-PCR; this suggests that the reduced surrogate light chains seen in senescent B cell precursors result from dysfunctional transcriptional regulation. The transcription of surrogate light chains is regulated, in part, by E2A (E47) gene products. Levels of E2A proteins, including E47, were decreased in senescent B cell precursors by up to 90%. Reduced E2A (E47) expression and subsequent reduced transcription of the surrogate light chain components λ5 and VpreB may, in part, explain the diminished production of B lineage cells observed in senescence. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 45-59 |
Number of pages | 15 |
Journal | Mechanisms of Ageing and Development |
Volume | 118 |
Issue number | 1-2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Sep 1 2000 |
Keywords
- B lymphopoiesis
- E2A
- Surrogate light chains
- Transcription factors
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Aging
- Biochemistry
- Developmental Biology
- Developmental Neuroscience