3.1. Materials
Mouse monoclonal anti-human CD73, CD90, CD105, CD45, CD34, CD13, CD33, HLA-DR, CD117, CD133, CD11b, CD11c, Ki-67 (all from Dako, Denmark), CD14 (Beckman Coulter, USA), CD86 (Abcam, USA), and CD163 (R&D Systems, UK), Annexin V-FITC apoptosis detection kit and Acridine Orange (Merck, Darmstadt, Germany) were used for flow cytometric measurements. Cell culture materials were DMEM, RPMI, IMDM, L-glutamine, Penicillin-Streptomycin, FBS (all from Gibco, USA), Ficoll-Hypaque Lymphodex (Inno-Train, Germany), and trypan blue (Sigma-Aldrich, USA). For molecular analyses, Taq DNA Polymerase 2x Master Mix RED and Real Q Plus Master Mix Green (Ampliqon Copenhagen, Denmark), the High Capacity cDNA Reverse Transcription Kit (Thermo Fisher Scientific, USA), TRIzol LS (Thermo Fisher Scientific, USA), and primer and stem-loop Oligonucleotides (Metabion, Germany) were used. We used Rotor-Gene 6000 cyclers for RTq-PCR and Attune Flow Cytometer for analyzing the CD markers.
3.2. Patients, Isolation of MSCs and Macrophages, and Cell Lines
MSCs and human macrophages were isolated from bone marrow and apheresis samples of 6 subjects with normal hematopoiesis, respectively. Informed consent was obtained from every participant. Bone marrow samples were taken from patients with non-hematologic disorders, who underwent BM aspiration for evaluation of metastasis. Apheresis samples were collected from donors of allogeneic HSCs transplantation. Subjects were referred to Taleghani Hospital (Tehran, Iran).
For isolation of MSCs, BM mononuclear cells were separated, using ficoll histopaque and cultured at a density of 1 × 106 cells per mL in Iscove’s modified Dulbecco’s medium (IMDM) media supplemented with 10% heat-inactivated FBS, 2 mmol/L L-glutamine (Gibco BRL) and 1% penicillin and streptomycin. After 1 week, suspended cells were removed and the adherent ones were cultured with fresh media to reach a 90% confluency. The confluent cells were detached, using a 0.5% trypsin (w/w) and 0.1% EDTA (w/w) solution, replated in a T75 flask, and used for experiments after 3 to 5 expansion passages to ensure depletion of monocytes/macrophages and to avoid replicative senescence due to prolonged culture conditions. MSCs were assessed by flow cytometry for the expression of the MSCs markers CD73, CD90, CD105, and CD133 and the absence of the hematopoietic cells markers CD45, CD34, and CD14.
For differentiation of monocyte-derived macrophages, apheresis isolated PBMCs were plated at a density of 4 × 106 cells per mL in RPMI with 10% FBS, 2 mmol/L L-glutamine (Gibco BRL), and 1% penicillin and streptomycin. After 24 hours, floating cells were washed away and attached cells were further cultured in RPMI with 10% FBS (Bioclear) in 5% CO2, 95% humidity at 37°C. These cells were used for experiments after 4 days. One T25 flask of differentiated macrophages was trypsinized and detached by scraper and, then, analyzed for expression of CD14, CD11b, CD11c, CD86, and CD163 in comparison with their respective isotype controls.
We used the osteosarcoma-derived MG-63 cell line as a model of human immature osteoblast cells. The MG-63 cells share characteristics with primary osteoblasts, such as the expression of most integrin subunits, a similar organization of internal cellular structures, and adhesion to physicochemically modified surfaces. Thus, they represent a very suitable cell model for bone research (
25). The MG-63 cells were cultured in DMEM, supplemented with 10% FBS and 1% antibiotic.
For investigation of the crosstalk between different bone marrow and stromal cells with leukemic cells, we used an APL-derived cell line (NB4, positive for PML-RARA, bcr1 transcript) and human CML derived K562 cells (positive for BCR-ABL, p210 transcript).
3.3. 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium Assay
After 10 days of co-culture of NB4 and K562 cell lines with stromal cells, 5 × 103 leukemic cells were harvested, seeded in 96 well plates, and treated with different concentrations of panobinostat (10, 20, 40, 60, and 80 nM) for 24 h and 48 h. Then, the media was removed from each plate, cells were incubated with MTT ((4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium) solution (thiazolyl blue tetrazolium bromide Sigma, Aldrich), and finally, after dissolving the MTT crystals, the optical density (OD) was measured by the ELISA reader (Biotech ELX800, USA) at a wavelength of 570 nm. The OD of co-cultured cells was compared with monoculture cells for evaluating the effect of stromal cells on drug resistance of the leukemic cells.
3.4. AnnexinV/PI Staining
The OD values of the MTT assay could be reduced by the growth inhibitory effects of drugs, induction of apoptosis, and finally reduction of the metabolic activity of cells due to a reduction in mitochondria count or function. To determine the apoptotic effect of panobinostat on NB4 and K562 cells in monoculture and co-culture with stromal cells, briefly, cells were treated with the concentration of drug causing IC50 in monoculture evaluating with MTT assay. Next, the apoptotic effect was measured by Annexin V-FITC/PI apoptosis detection kit following the instructions of the manufacturer (bioscience Annexin V Apoptosis Detection Kit).
3.5. G0 Subphase Analysis
Under certain circumstances in contact with endosteal niches, cells can enter the G0 subphase, where the cells are neither dividing (unreplicated chromosomes) nor committed for proliferation (the lowest Ki-67 index). To define the effect of stromal cells on G0 subpopulations of NB4 and K562 cell lines, the cells were stained with fluorescent DNA dye (PI) and Ki-67 antibodies. After treating the cells with the same concentration of panobinostat used for the Annexin V-FITC/PI assay, pellet cells were formed in 10 mL PBS by centrifuging 5 min at 200 × g. cells were resuspended in 0.5 mL PBS and fixed using 4.5 mL pre-chilled 70% ethanol while vortexing. After 2 h incubation at -20°C, the ethanol was removed and pellet cells rinse with 5 mL FACS buffer and finally stained with Ki-67-FITC antibody and PI and the result was assessed by flow cytometry at a low flow rate. Cells with the lowest Ki-67 expression and DNA content were considered G0. The sub-G1 subset was ignored in analyses to only evaluate the cell cycle status of viable cells.
3.6. RNA Analysis, cDNA Synthesis, and RT- qPCR Assay
To determine the effect of co-culture on mRNA expression of genes that could induce the G
0 phase including cell cycle regulators p27 and p21, hypoxia-responsive HIF-1α, cell signaling pathway TGF-β, autophagy initiator Beclin-, and growth factor Gas6, the total RNA of the cell lines was extracted by TRizol™ Reagent (Qiagen) and the cDNA was synthesized following manufacturer's instructions (Thermo Scientific). The concentration and purity of extracted RNAs were evaluated by Nano-drop (Thermo Scientific, USA). The relative expression of bcr1 and p210 was measured in NB4 and K562 cell lines, respectively. 1 µg of RNA was used for cDNA synthesis. ABL gene expression, as the control gene, was analyzed on synthesized cDNA. The real-time PCR assay was carried out, using SYBR™ Green Real-time PCR Master Mixes (Amplicon, Denmark). Primers used in this study were designed by Gene Runner version 3.05 (Hastings Software, Inc.) and the specificity of sequences was analyzed, using BLAST in GenBank data (
Table 1). The fold change of each gene in co-cultured cells compared with monoculture ones was calculated based on the 2
-ΔΔCT relative expression formula.
3.7. Statistical Analysis
Experimental data were expressed by mean ± standard deviation (SD) of 3 independent experiments. A one-way ANOVA was performed for multivariate data that were measured at the same time and paired t-test for bivariate data. For evaluation of the effects of interventions during different times, repeated measure ANOVA was performed. A probability value was defined significant when *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01. The flow cytometry results were analyzed by the FlowJo software (v.7.6.1).