Evaluation of Growth Hormone’s Effects on the Activation of Monocyte Cell Line THP-1 and U937

Abstract

Growth hormone (GH) is a peptide hormone secreted by the pituitary gland and stimulates cell proliferation and division to promote tissue growth. In addition, the development of the immune system and the regulation of the immune response have been reported. Along with the research results related to the inflammatory control function, a correlation between the severe symptoms of COVID-19 in the elderly and a decrease in the secretion of growth hormone has recently been suggested. Therefore, this research team studied the effect of growth hormone on the proliferation and inflammatory cytokine secretion of monocyte cell lines THP-1 and U937. As a result, it was confirmed that the proliferation of THP-1 and the secretion of TNF-α and IL-1β induced by LPS were decreased by growth hormone. On the other hand, the proliferation of U937 cell line was increased by growth hormone treatment, whereas the secretion of TNF-α and IL-1β was hardly affected. In the future, the analysis of the GH receptors expressed by the two cell lines and the study of the molecular mechanism of GH action are required. In addition, it is considered that the cell stimulation technique using Poly(I:C) needs to be established more accurately.