We have used Ramos germinal center (GC)-derived Burkitt's lymphoma (BL) cells as a model system to compare some of the early signaling events of TNF-alpha and CD40L on the NF-kappaB and c-Jun amino-terminal kinase (JNK) pathways.
Therefore, we investigated TNF alpha gene expression and protein secretion in a human monocytic cell line, THP-1, and a Burkitt's lymphoma B-cell line, Namalwa, in response to hepatitis B virus (HBV).
In order to investigate whether this phenotypic trait of the tumor cells can be modulated by agents known to enhance HLA class I antigen expression, pairs of LCL and BL lines were cultured in the presence of recombinant human interferon (IFN)-gamma and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha.