Expression of interleukin-6 and interleukin-6 receptor in Hodgkin's disease

Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a multipotent lymphokine that can mediate differentiation of B cells into Ig-secreting cells, stimulate the growth of plasmacytomas, hybridomas, and T cells, and induce acute-phase proteins in liver cells. It has been suggested that IL-6 is involved in the pathogenesis of several diseases by autocrine or paracrine pathways. To examine whether IL-6 is possibly involved in the pathophysiology of Hodgkin's disease (HD), we analyzed the expression of IL-6 and IL-6 receptor mRNA and protein in cell lines and primary specimens from patients with HD. IL-6-specific transcripts were detected in three of six HD-derived cell lines by Northern blot analysis. In the culture supernatants of four HD-derived cell lines, IL-6 was detected by radioimmunoassay. Biologic activity of IL-6 was confirmed by proliferation of an IL-6-dependent cell line. In situ hybridization experiments showed IL-6-specific transcripts in Hodgkin (H) and Reed-Sternberg (RS) cells in primary tissues of two patients. In addition, mRNAs specific for the IL-6 receptor were detected in five HD-derived cell lines. Immunostaining experiments showed expression of IL-6 receptor molecules on H and RS cells in 8 of 16 cases with HD. Thus, our data suggest that IL-6 might be involved in the pathophysiology of HD.