Generation and release of eosinophil chemotactic factor from human polymorphonuclear neutrophils by arachidonic acid.

This study describes the generation and release of an eosinophil chemotactic factor from human polymorphonuclear neutrophils, rat basophilic leukemia cells, and from a lymphocyte monocyte basophil suspension by arachidonic acid (AA). The eosinophil chemotactic factor (ECF) is highly specific for eosinophils and resembles the ECF activity obtained from human polymorphonuclear neutrophils after stimulation with the Ca ionophore or during phagocytosis. In this regard, AA-induced ECF represents a biological activity distinct from oxidized AA and its conversion products. AA may therefore have a dual function: it represents an important mechanism of cell activation; as AA is converted into prostaglandins, it appears likely that they exert a modulatory and a suppressive role on biological functions, such as chemotaxis and phagocytosis.     

Eosinophil chemotactic factor. Release from human polymorphonuclear neutrophils by arachidonic acid.

An eosinophil chemotactic factor (ECF) can be released from human polymorphonuclear neutrophils by arachidonic acid (AA), its methyl ester, but not by other derivatives such as AA ethyl ester and arachidonyl acetate. The ECF is highly specific for eosinophils and does not attract polymorphonuclear neutrophils. A dose-dependent non-cytotoxic ECF release induced by AA can be obtained from human polymorphonuclear neutrophils from a lymphocyte-monocyte-basophil suspension, from rat basophil leukemia cells, but not from human lymphocytes. Kinetic studies demonstrate that ECF release occurs rapidly with an early rise and steep fall-off at later times of secretion. The amount of ECF release is dependent on pH, temperature and medium which is used for stimulation. Gel filtration analysis as well as subcellular fractionation studies suggest that the AA-induced ECF is a biological activity either distinct from AA and its split products or representing a known or unknown conversion product of AA with potent effects on eosinophils at minimal concentrations. AA may therefore represent an important mechanism of cell activation.     

Human dendritic cells are a physiological source of the chemotactic arachidonic acid metabolite 5-oxo-eicosatetraenoic acid

OBJECTIVE: The arachidonic acid metabolite, 5-oxo-eicosatetraenoic acid (5-oxo-ETE), is a potent chemotaxin for neutrophils and eosinophils. The aim of this study was to identify physiological conditions and stimulators of 5-oxo-ETE synthesis, because no such conditions have yet been identified. METHODS: Human neutrophils and monocyte-derived dendritic cells were prepared and 5-oxo-ETE synthesis analyzed using precolumn/reversed-phase HPLC under different conditions and with several physiological and unphysiological stimuli. RESULTS: Incubation of neutrophils with 5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (5-HETE) resulted in the synthesis of about 3.4 nM 5-oxo-ETE per 10(6) cells in 1 ml under optimal conditions. The synthesis was enhanced about 8-fold with the unphysiological stimuli calcium ionophore A23187 and phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA). No significant effect was observed with different physiological activators. Under optimal conditions, human dendritic cells produced about 50 nM 5-oxo-ETE per 10(6) cells in 1 ml. The synthesis could be increased with PMA and A23187 by about 50%. Again, no effect could be observed with physiological agents for dendritic cells such as complement fragment C5a, platelet activating factor, N-formyl peptides and interleukin-5. CONCLUSIONS: These data identified dendritic cells as the only yet known physiological source of relevant amounts of 5-oxo-ETE. This suggests a regulatory function of dendritic cells in the induction of inflammatory neutrophil and eosinophil infiltration caused by 5-oxo-eicosatetraenoic acid.     

Generation of the eosinophil chemotactic factor (ECF) from various cell types by melittin

The peptide melittin, the main constituent of bee venom is a potent stimulus for the generation of an eosinophil chemotactic factor (ECF) from human polymorphonuclear neutrophils, rat mast cells and rat peritoneal cells depleted in mast cells. Optimal EFC induction required a sublytic activation of the cells. With each cell type the kinetics of ECF generation were similar in that after an early rise in activity a steep fall off occurred at later times of incubation suggesting a mechanism of inactivation. The induction of ECF by melittin is increased in the presence of calcium. The polar portion of the melittin molecule (aminoacids 20–26) is responsible for the generation of the chemotactic activity. Other peptides of honey bee venom such as the mast cell degranulating peptide (MCD) or apamine do not initiate ECF release. It appears that melittin leads to ECF induction via the phospholipase A₂-arachidonic acid dependent pathway of cell activation. Our data suggests that the lipid mediator ECF can be obtained from phagocytes and mast cells thus indicating the interdependence of inflammatory reactions.     

Calcium mobilization by arachidonic acid in trypanosomatids

A recent report (Eintracht J, Maathai R, Mellors A, Ruben L. Calcium entry in Trypanosoma brucei is regulated by phospholipase A, and arachidonic acid, Biochem J 1998:336:659-66) provided evidence that calcium entry in Trypanosoma brucei bloodstream trypomastigotes is regulated via a signaling pathway involving phospholipase A2-mediated generation of arachidonic acid and stimulation of a plasma membrane-located calcium channel. Here we show that Ca2+ influx in T. brucei procyclic trypomastigotes, Leishmania donovani promastigotes and T. cruzi amastigotes was also stimulated in a dose-dependent manner (50-400 nM) by the amphiphilic peptide melittin. This effect was blocked by the phospholipase A, inhibitor 3-(4-octadecyl)-benzoylacrylic acid. The unsaturated fatty acid arachidonic acid, in the range of 10-75 microM, induced Ca2+ entry by a mechanism sensitive to LaCl3. However, both melittin and arachidonic acid induced an increase in [Ca2+]i in T. brucei procyclic trypomastigotes incubated in Ca2+-free medium implying Ca2+ mobilization from intracellular stores. This hypothesis was supported by experiments showing that arachidonic acid promoted Ca2+ release from the acidocalcisomes of these cells. The results showing changes in mitochondrial membrane potential, release of acridine orange and Ca2+ from the acidocalcisomes and Ca2+ transport across the plasma membrane suggest that in addition to the possible stimulation of a Ca2+ channel-mediated process, arachidonic acid, in the range of concentrations used here, have other nonspecific effects on the trypanosomatids membranes.     

Generation of chemotactic factor for granulocytes and monocytes from serum by fractions of Brucella abortus.

Several fractions isolated from Brucella abortus were examined for their ability to generate chemotactic factor from normal serum. Phenol phase lipopolysaccharides exhibited activity equivalent to that obtained with E. Coli lipopolysaccharide. A carbohydrate-rich aqueous methanol fraction was inhibitory at high concentrations, but a non-dialysable component of this fraction contained a potent stimulator of chemotactic activity. Protein-rich fractions from both strain 19 and strain 2308 were inactive. Preheating the serum at 56 degrees for 30 min prevented generation of chemotactic activity by the various fractions, suggesting a role for serum complement. No chemotactic activity was produced by Brucella fractions in C5-deficient DBA/2J mouse serum.     

Generation of chemotactic activity in serum by Haemophilus influenzae type b

Studies were performed to characterize chemotactic activity generated by Haemophilus influenzae type b (HiTb) in serum or elaborated independent of serum. Neutrophil aggregometry, Sephadex G-75 gel chromatography, and anti-C5 neutralization studies were used to demonstrate that the complement fragment C5a represented the major chemotactic moiety derived from HiTb-serum interactions. HiTb elaborated minimal chemotactic activity independently. Maximal C5a generation by HiTb as measured by neutrophil response in chemotaxis, shape change, and aggregation assays required specific antibody to the capsular polysaccharide, polyribosyl ribitol phosphate (PRP). Significantly more C5a was generated in pooled normal human serum containing high titers of anti-PRP (determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) than in hypogammaglobulinemic serum. Furthermore, C5a generated in hypogammaglobulinemic serum reconstituted with purified high-titer immunoglobulin G, hyperimmune rabbit serum or heat-inactivated normal human serum was comparable to that generated in normal human serum. Absorption of antibody with PRP versus whole HiTb showed a contribution by non-PRP-directed antibody. As shown with the use of C4-deficient guinea pig serum, C5a generation occurred via the alternative complement pathway in nonimmune serum, and activation of the alternative complement pathway was facilitated by specific anti-PRP. C5a generation in test sera was proportional to its opsonic activity for HiTb as assessed by a luminol-chemiluminescence assay. Overall low levels of C5a activity were observed in 13 pediatric patient serum samples obtained during the acute phase of HiTb meningitis, and no pulmonary symptoms or radiographic abnormalities consistent with a leukocyte aggregation syndrome were observed in these patients.     

Regulation of murine hematopoiesis by arachidonic acid metabolites

Arachidonic acid metabolites have been shown to exert a variety of regulatory effects on cellular activation and proliferation. Recently, a role for these products as regulators of hematopoiesis was suggested and evidence provided that products of the lipoxygenase pathway, specifically leukotrienes, are essential for human myeloid colony formation in vitro. In this report the broader role of these metabolites in hematopoiesis was examined using murine bone marrow stem cell assays for both myeloid and lymphoid cell lines. The effects of lipoxygenase and/or cyclooxygenase pathway inhibitors on stem cell colony formation were evaluated and compared to qualitative and quantitative changes in arachidonic acid metabolism that occurred in similarly treated bone marrow cell cultures. Interruption of the lipoxygenase pathway by esculetin or nordihydroguaiaretic acid resulted in decreased colony formation in both lymphoid and myeloid stem cells. This inhibition of colony growth was partly reversed by the addition of leukotrienes and was particularly evident in B-cell progenitor cultures to which was added LTB4. Inhibition of the cyclooxygenase pathway by indomethacin or ibuprofen had a slight stimulatory effect on myeloid colony formation, while slightly inhibiting the formation of lymphoid colonies. These results support a direct role for lipoxygenase products in myeloid colony formation and lymphoid stem cell proliferation. A more complex role for cyclooxygenase metabolites in the hematopoietic process appears probable.     

Contribution of arachidonic acid cycle enzymes to platelet activation by low-density lipoproteins

The mechanism of platelet activation by low-density lipoproteins (LDL) was studied using inhibitors of arachidonic acid cycle enzymes. Lipoxygenase and cyclooxygenase inhibitors (indomethacin, acetylsalicylic acid, NDGA, and BW755C) inhibited LDL-induced platelet aggregation to a small extent, as was indicated by mere 20% to 30% decreases in the maximal rate of change in light transmission. 4-Bromophenacyl bromide inhibited LDL-induced platelet aggregation in a dose-dependent, manner, almost complete inhibition occurring at concentrations in excess of 20 μM. The results support the conclusion that enzymes to the arachidonic acid cycle do not contribute substantially to platelet activation by LDL. Translated fromByulleten' Eksperimental'noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 120, N ^o 10, pp. 376–379, October, 1995 Presented by Yu. M. Lopukhin, Member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences     

Metabolism of arachidonic acid by pancreatic acini: relation to amylase secretion

Isolated guinea pig pancreatic acini were incubated with exogenous [14C]arachidonic acid (10 microM) at 37 degrees C for 3 min. The lipids were extracted and separated by thin-layer chromatography. Radiolabeled metabolites were identified by comigration with standards: 0.024% of the recovered radioactivity comigrated with prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), 0.016% comigrated with PGF2 alpha, 4.9% was incorporated into triglycerides, 1.8% was incorporated into phospholipids, and 93.2% remained as arachidonic acid. The synthesis of PGE2 and PGF2 alpha was inhibited by indomethacin (ID50, 30 nM). Simultaneous addition of carbachol or caerulein with the [14C]arachidonic acid did not alter the metabolism of the arachidonate. Further studies were done on the role of arachidonate metabolites in the secretion of amylase. Exogenously added PGE2 and PGF2 alpha (0.3-100 nM) did not induce amylase secretion from isolated acini. Incubation of isolated acini with indomethacin (0.1-28 microM) did not inhibit the release of amylase induced by carbachol or caerulein. From these data, we conclude that isolated guinea pig pancreatic acini are capable of converting a small percentage of exogenous arachidonate to PGE2 and PGF2 alpha. However, there is no evidence for a role of these compounds in stimulus-secretion coupling.     

Histamine release from serosal mast cells by intermediate products of arachidonic acid metabolism

In the present paper we report the results of experiments carried out to measure the release of histamine from isolated rat mast cells during the metabolic activation of arachidonic acid. Arachidonic acid (10^–8–10^–4 M) and the terminal products (10^–6 M) of the arachidonic acid pathways were devoid of any significant histamine releasing properties. A substantial amount of histamine was released from rat mast cells by low concentrations of arachidonic acid during incubation with prostanoid generating systems, such as guinea-pig lung microsomes, rat serosal macrophages and polymorphonuclear cells and prostaglandin-H-synthase from calf seminal vesicles. The release of histamine was not accompanied by a leakage of lactate dehydrogenase and was blocked byd-mannitol and by lipoxygenase and cyclo-oxygenase pathway inhibitors. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that free radical derivatives of arachidonic acid, originating from hydroperoxy fatty acids, are generated during catalysis, causing mast cell histamine release.     

Modulation of leukotriene release from human polymorphonuclear leucocytes by PMA and arachidonic acid

Stimulation of human neutrophils (PMN) with Ca ionophore A23187, opsonized zymosan and formyl-L-methionyl-L-leucyl-phenylalanine (FMLP) led to a time- and dose-dependent release of LTB4, 20-OH-LTB4, 20-COOH-LTB4, 6-trans-LTB4, 12-epi-6-trans LTB4 and LTC4, as detected by reverse-phase HPLC. Preincubation of the PMN suspension in the presence of Ca2+ and Mg2+ with phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) did not release leukotrienes by itself, but modulated the subsequent Ca ionophore-induced leukotriene release. The release of LTC4, 20-OH-LTB4 and 20-COOH-LTB4 was significantly decreased. Lesser effects were observed for the release of LTB4 and the non-enzymatic LTB4 isomers. In contrast, opsonized zymosan and FMLP enhanced the release of LTB4 and LTB4-omega-oxidation products from cells pretreated with PMA. With arachidonic acid as prestimulus, the amounts of the LTB4 isomers (6-trans-LTB4 and 12-epi-6-trans-LTB4) were enhanced significantly on subsequent stimulation with Ca ionophore. Prestimulation of lymphocytes, monocytes and basophilic granulocytes (LMB) with PMA had no significant effects on the ionophore-induced release of LTC4 and LTB4. PMN, but not LMB, suspensions prestimulated with PMA convert exogenously added LTC4 to LTB4 isomers and LTC4 sulphoxide. Our data suggest that preincubation of human granulocytes with PMA modified leukotriene release by activation or inhibition of different metabolic pathways for LTC4 and LTB4.     

Prevention of neutrophil chemotactic deactivation by ascorbic acid.

The locomotion of human neutrophils deactivated by pretreatment with appropriate concentration of chemoattractant was investigated in experimental conditions capable of dissociating random from truly directional motility. It was shown that deactivated neutrophils lose true chemotactic responsiveness, being unaffected by the rate of locomotion. Ascorbic acid, when present in appropriate concentrations during the deactivation step, completely prevented the loss of true chemotactic responsiveness by cells--that is, their chemotactic deactivation.     

Asthma caused by occupational exposure to a furan-based binder system

A 50-yr-old mold maker developed severe asthma a few weeks after commencing work with a furan binder. Asthma recurred within hours of subsequent exposure and was confirmed by measurements every 2 hr of peak flow rate. The molds were prepared by mixing sand with a resin (containing furfuryl alcohol, paraformaldehyde, and xylene) and a catalyst (containing sulfuric acid, phosphoric acid, and butyl alcohol). Occupation-type exposure in the laboratory to the resin mixed with catalyst, and to pure furfuryl alcohol mixed with sulfuric acid or butyl alcohol, provoked late asthmatic responses and heightened nonallergic bronchial responsiveness to inhaled histamine. No changes were produced by the same exposures in an asthmatic volunteer with a similar degree of histamine bronchial responsiveness, or in the worker after exposure to resin alone and catalyst alone. Avoidance of exposure was followed by clearing of symptoms and return of histamine bronchial responsiveness towards normal. The findings identify the occurrence of specific bronchial responsiveness to volatile reaction product(s) of furfuryl alcohol following reaction with sulfuric acid or with butyl alcohol. The incidence of this problem needs investigation, especially since furan-based binder systems are replacing traditional methods.