PNNL

Abstract

Understanding the molecular mechanisms that modulate macrophage radioresistance is necessary for the development of effective radiation therapies, as tumor-associated macrophages promote both angiogenesis and matrix remodeling that, in turn, enhance metastasis. In this respect, we have identified a dose-dependent increase in the abundance of the calcium regulatory protein calmodulin (CaM) in RAW 264.7 macrophages upon irradiation. CaM overexpression results in increased macrophage survival following radiation exposure, acting to diminish the sensitivity to low-dose exposures. Increases in CaM abundance also result in an increase in the number of phosphorylated histone H2AX protein complexes associated with DNA repair following macrophage irradiation, with no change in the extent of double-stranded DNA damage. In comparison, when NF?B-dependent pathways are inhibited, through the expression of a dominant-negative I?B construct, there is no significant increase in phosphorylated H2AX upon irradiation. These results indicate that the molecular basis for the up-regulation of histone H2AX mediated DNA-repair pathways is not the result of nonspecific NF?B-dependent pathways or a specific threshold of DNA damage. Rather, increases in CaM abundance act to minimize the low-dose hypersensitivity to radiation to enhance macrophage radioresistance through processes that include the upregulation of DNA repair pathways involving histone protein H2AX phosphorylation.