MCP-1 receptor binding affinity is up-regulated by pre-stimulation with MCP-1 in an actin polymerization-dependent manner.

Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) induces monocyte chemotaxis via interaction with the MCP-1 receptor CCR2. We found that MCP-1 binding to monocytic THP-1 cells was increased by pre-treatment with MCP-1. The amount of CCR2 mRNA and the cell-surface expression of CCR2 were not affected by MCP-1 stimuli. In contrast, the MCP-1-treated THP-1 cells showed a sixfold increase in MCP-1 binding affinity compared with untreated cells. MCP-1 binding to CCR2B-transfected HEK-293 cells was also enhanced by pre-treatment with MCP-1, and MCP-1 binding affinity increased by sixfold. In both cell lines, the enhancement of MCP-1 binding by stimulation with MCP-1 was blocked by cytochalasin D, an inhibitor of actin polymerization. This effect of pre-treatment with MCP-1 is insensitive to pertussis toxin and partially blocked by U73122, an inhibitor of phospholipase C. These results demonstrate that the MCP-1 receptor binding affinity is up-regulated by MCP-1 stimuli in an actin polymerization-dependent manner.