Expression of Tcf-1 mRNA and surface TCR-CD3 complexes are reduced during apoptosis of T cells

When a T cell hybridoma, 707.7, was treated with a Ca²⁺ ionophore (A23187), apoptotic cell death was induced. Interestingly, we observed that the expression of Tcf-1, a T cell-specific transcription factor, mRNA was reduced by 5-fold in the A23187-treated apoptotic cells compared to an ethanol-treated control. The hybridoma cells, however, did not display such a reduced expression of Tcf-1 mRNA upon treatment with buthionine sulfoxide, which is known to induce a necrosis-like cell death. When another T cell hybridoma, KMIs-8.3.5, was treated with A23187 and phorbol myristate acetate, which leads to activation-induced apoptosis, Tcf-1 expression was again greatly reduced. However, a mutant line (KCIT1-8.5) derived from KMIs-8.3.5, which produces IL-2 upon activation and is resistant to apoptosis, did not show such reduction in Tcf-1 expression. We also showed that the reduced expression level of CD3_ε mRNA and surface TCR-CD3 complex in apoptotic T cells is caused by the reduced expression of Tcf-1. When 70.7 cells were transfected with a plasmid DNA pSVtcf-1, in which Tcf-1 gene expression is driven by the SV40 promoter, such reduction of the Tcf-1 mRNA and the surface expression of the TCR-CD3 complex were not observed upon apoptosis induction. Our results suggest that the reduced expression of Tcf-1 is specific for the apoptotic, but not for the activating, process of T cells and is also responsible for the reduced surface expression of the TCR-CD3 in apoptotic T cells.