A20 gene expression is regulated by TNF, Vitamin D and androgen in prostate cancer cells.

A20 is a TNF-inducible primary response gene and its product, a zinc finger protein, has antiapoptotic function in several cancer cells. We studied A20 gene expression in the Vitamin D- and TNF-sensitive LNCaP cell line and in the Vitamin D- and TNF-resistant PC-3 cell line. The results of the quantitative real-time RT-PCR analyses demonstrated that the basal level of A20 mRNA production in PC-3 cells was considerably higher than in LNCaP cells that is associated with the resistance of PC-3 cells. TNF induced A20 gene expression in both cell lines, but with different effect. A20 mRNA expression was down-regulated by 10nM calcitriol within 3-9h after treatment and up-regulated by androgen reaching maximal values by 6h after stimulation in LNCaP cells. We conclude that A20 may be involved in the regulation of cell proliferation by TNF, Vitamin D, and androgen in prostate cancer.