The immunosuppressant hormone dexamethasone (Dex) interferes with T cell-specific signals activating the enhancer sequences directing interleukin 2 (IL-2) transcription. We report that the Dex-dependent downregulation of 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) and calcium ionophore-induced activity of the IL-2 enhancer are mediated by glucocorticoid receptor (GR) via a process that requires intact NH2- and COOH-terminal and DNA-binding domains. Functional analysis of chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) vectors containing internal deletions of the -317 to +47 bp IL-2 enhancer showed that the GR-responsive elements mapped to regions containing nuclear factor of activated T cells protein (NFAT) (-279 to -263 bp) and AP-1 (-160 to -150 bp) motifs. The AP-1 motif binds TPA and calcium ionophore-induced nuclear factor(s) containing fos protein. TPA and calcium ionophore-induced transcriptional activation of homo-oligomers of the NFAT element were not inhibited by Dex, while AP-1 motif concatemers were not stimulated by TPA and calcium ionophore. When combined, NFAT and AP-1 motifs significantly synergized in directing CAT transcription. Such a synergism was impaired by specific mutations affecting the trans-acting factor binding to either NFAT or AP-1 motifs. In spite of the lack of hormone regulation of isolated cis elements, TPA/calcium ionophore-mediated activation of CAT vectors containing a combination of the NFAT and the AP-1 motifs became suppressible by Dex. Our results show that the IL-2-AP-1 motif confers GR sensitivity to a flanking region containing a NFAT element and suggest that synergistic cooperativity between the NFAT and AP-1 sites allows GR to mediate the Dex inhibition of IL-2 gene transcription. Therefore, a Dex-modulated second level of IL-2 enhancer regulation, based on a combinatorial modular interplay, appears to be present.

The suggested role of Notch1 or its mutants in thymocyte differentiation and T cell tumorigenesis raises the question of how the different members of the Notch family influence distinct steps in T cell development and the role played by Notch ligands in the thymus. We report here that different Notch receptor–ligand partnerships may occur inside the thymus, as we observed differential expression of Notch1, 2 and 3 receptors, their ligands Jagged1 and 2, and downstream intracellular effectors hairy and Enhancer of Split homolog 1 (HES-1) and hairy and Enhancer of Split homolog 5 (HES-5), depending on ontogenetic stage and thymic cell populations. Indeed, while Jagged2 is expressed in both stromal cells and thymocytes, Jagged1 expression is restricted to stromal cells. Moreover, a differential distribution of Notch3, with respect to Notch1, was observed in distinct age-related thymocyte subsets. Finally, Notch3 was preferentially up-regulated in thymocytes, following the induction of their differentiation by interaction with thymic epithelial cells expressing the cognate Jagged1 and 2 ligands, suggesting that, besides Notch1, Notch3 may also be involved in distinct steps of thymocyte development. Our results suggest that the Notch signaling pathway is involved in a complex interplay of T cell developmental stages, as a consequence of the heterogeneity and specific expression of members of the Notch receptor family and their cognate ligands, in distinct thymic cell compartments.

Notch signaling plays a critical role in T‐cell differentiation and leukemogenesis. We previously demonstrated that, while pre‐TCR is required for thymocytes proliferation and leukemogenesis, it is dispensable for thymocyte differentiation in Notch3‐transgenic mice. Notch3‐transgenic premalignant thymocytes and T lymphoma cells overexpress pTα/pre‐TCR and display constitutive activation of NF‐κB, providing survival signals for immature thymocytes. We provide genetic and biochemical evidence that Notch3 triggers multiple NF‐κB activation pathways. A pre‐TCR‐dependent pathway preferentially activates NF‐κB via IKKβ/IKKα/NIK complex, resulting in p50/p65 heterodimer nuclear entry and recruitment onto promoters of Cyclin D1, Bcl2‐A1 and IL7‐receptor‐α genes. In contrast, upon pTα deletion, Notch3 binds IKKα and maintains NF‐κB activation through an alternative pathway, depending on an NIK‐independent IKKα homodimer activity. The consequent NF‐κB2/p100 processing allows nuclear translocation of p52/RelB heterodimers, which only trigger transcription from Bcl2‐A1 and IL7‐receptor‐α genes. Our data suggest that a finely tuned interplay between Notch3 and pre‐TCR pathways converges on regulation of NF‐κB activity, leading to differential NF‐κB subunit dimerization that regulates distinct gene clusters involved in either cell differentiation or proliferation/leukemogenesis.