Transcriptional induction of pim-1 protein kinase gene expression by interferon gamma and posttranscriptional effects on costimulation with steel factor

Steel factor (SLF) synergizes with interferon gamma (IFN gamma) to stimulate proliferation of the human factor-dependent cell line MO7e. We examined the effects of IFN gamma and SLF treatment, alone or in combination, on the expression of a 33-kD cytoplasmic protein serine/threonine kinase designated pim-1 whose expression has been closely associated with proliferation induced by related myeloid cytokines. IFN gamma alone, but not SLF, stimulated expression of pim-1 RNA and protein in MO7e cells; compared with IFN gamma alone, costimulation with IFN gamma and SLF resulted in a twofold to threefold increase in pim-1 message and protein expression, correlating with synergistic effects on cell proliferation. Both IFN gamma and IFN gamma/SLF induced pim-1 mRNA in the absence of de novo protein synthesis. Nuclear run-on assays showed that, although IFN gamma alone increased the rate of pim-1 gene transcription, costimulation with IFN gamma and SLF did not further potentiate this effect; however, the stability of pim-1 message was significantly enhanced in the presence of both cytokines. An IFN gamma-responsive element within the 5′ flanking region of the pim-1 gene that could confer IFN gamma responsiveness on a heterologous promoter was identified. This sequence, designated PMGAS, formed a specific complex with Stat (signal transducers and activators of transcription) 1 alpha (the p91 subunit of the transcription factor ISGF3 [interferon-stimulated gene factor 3]) in IFN gamma-treated cell extracts, suggesting that the transcriptional effects of IFN gamma on pim-1 expression may be mediated by Stat 1 alpha.