Transcriptional and Functional Plasticity Induced by Chronic Insulin Exposure in a Mast Cell-Like Basophilic Leukemia Cell Model

The levels of insulin in the extracellular milieu may modify the phenotype of mast cell-like cells in vitro.

We used a basophilic leukemic cell line with mucosal mast cell-like features as a model system. We tested the hypothesis that chronic insulin exposure initiates a transcriptional program that biases these model mast cells towards a lipogenic state with accompanying loss of secretory granule biogenesis. Transcriptional arrays were used to map gene expression patterns. Biochemical, immunocytochemical and mediator release assays were used to evaluate organelle numbers and functional responses.

Secretory granules (SG) and lipid bodies (LB) are the primary organelles that mediate functional responses in mast cells. SG contains histamine and matrix-active proteases, while LB are reservoirs of arachidonic acid and its metabolites, precursors for rapid synthesis of eicosanoids such as LTC4. Both of these compartments can be dynamically or ontologically regulated, with metabolic and immunological stimuli altering lipid body content and granule numbers responding to contextual signals from tissue. We previously described that chronic in vitro or in vivo hyperinsulinemia expands the LB compartment with a concomitant loss of SG capacity, suggesting that this ratio is dynamically regulated. The objective of the current study is to determine if chronic insulin exposure initiates a transcriptional program that biases model mast cells towards a lipogenic state with accompanying loss of secretory granule biogenesis.

In a mucosal mast cell model, the rat basophilic leukemia line RBL2H3, mast cell granularity and SG numbers are inversely correlated with LB numbers. Chronic insulin exposure appears to modulate gene networks involved in both lipid body biogenesis and secretory granule formation. Western blot analysis confirms upregulation of protein levels for LB proteins, and decreases in proteins that are markers for SG cargo. Conclusions: The levels of insulin in the extracellular milieu may modify the phenotype of mast cell-like cells in vitro.