SUMMARY
Human neutrophils, plated on fibronectin‐precoated wells, were found to release large quantities of superoxide anion (O2−) in response to GM‐CSF. O2− production was reduced by prostaglandin ...E2 (PGE2) and the phosphodiesterase type IV (PDE IV) inhibitor RO 20–1724. Both agents are known to increase intracellular cyclic AMP (cAMP) levels by inducing its production (PGE.) or blocking its catabolism (RO 20–1724). When added in combination, PGE2 and RO 20–1724 had a marked synergistic inhibitory effect, which was reproduced by replacing PGE2 with a direct activator of adenylate cyclase, i.e. forskolin (FK). Moreover, the neutrophil response to GM‐CSF was inhibited by a membrane‐permeable analogue of cAMP in a dose‐dependent manner. As GM‐CSF and PGE2 are known to be generated at tissue sites of inflammation, the results suggest the existence of a PGE2‐dependent regulatory pathway potentially capable of controlling the neutrophil response to GM‐CSF, in turn limiting the risk of local oxidative tissue injury. Moreover, owing to its susceptibility to amplification by RO 20–1724, the PGE2‐dependent pathway and in particular PDE‐IV may represent a pharmacological target to reduce the generation of histotoxic oxidants by GM‐CSF‐responding neutrophils.
Human neutrophils incubated with the anti‐HLA‐DR mAb Lym‐1, plus PMA, induced significant cytolysis of B lymphoma cells compared with Lym‐1 and PMA alone. The effect of PMA was independent of the ...ability of the compound to stimulate neutrophil‐respiratory burst. In fact, first, neutrophils from a patient with chronic granulomatous disease were cytolytically effective in spite of their inability to produce oxidants. Second, various kinase inhibitors exerted different effects on the PMA‐stimulated cytolytic system and neutrophil‐oxidative burst. Previous studies have shown the involvement of the FcγRII, CD11b‐CD18 integrins, and CD66b glycoproteins in the Lym‐1 mAb‐dependent cytolysis by GM‐CSF‐stimulated neutrophils. The present PMA‐stimulated system was inhibited by the anti‐FcγRII mAb IV.3, the anti‐CD18 mAb MEM 48, and the anti‐CD11b mAb 2LPM19c but not by the anti‐CD66b mAb 80H3 andN‐acetyl‐d‐glucosamine. Furthermore, the PMA‐ and GM‐CSF‐stimulated cytolysis was insensitive and sensitive to inhibition by pertussis toxin, respectively. Thus, the use of PMA and GM‐CSF as neutrophil stimulants uncovers the existence of distinct mechanisms of Lym‐1 mAb‐mediated cytolysis.
We investigated the in vitro responsiveness of neutrophils adherent to fibronectin (FN) and laminin (LM), toward natural pro-inflammatory and/or phagocyte-activating agents.
Neutrophils from normal ...volunteers were layered on polystyrene wells precoated or not with FN and/or LM and tested for their ability of responding to eleven pro-inflammatory mediators by evaluation of superoxide anion (O2-) production and adherence. Results, expressed as mean +/-1SEM, were evaluated by non-parametric analyses (Mann-Whitney U-test or Kruskal-Wallis non-parametric ANOVA analysis)
Precoating polystyrene wells with LM or FN prevented the plastic-induced neutrophil (O2-) production. Among eleven agents, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF, 3.0+/-0.3 nmoles (O2-)/5 x 10(4) neutrophils/180 min, p < 0.001), granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF, 2.1+/-0.3 nmoles (O2-)/5 x 10(4) neutrophils/180 min, p < 0.05) and formyl-peptides (fMLP, 2.5+/-0.5 nmoles (O2-)/5 x 10(4) neutrophils/180min, p < 0.01) caused massive (O2-) production by neutrophils adherent to FN. None of the mediators was capable of triggering (O2-) production by neutrophils adherent to LM. LM, mixed with FN to coat wells, caused a dose-dependent inhibition of the oxidative burst triggered by TNF (IC50 LM: 0.84+/-0.03 microg, mean+/-1 SEM), GM-CSF (IC50 LM: 0.36+/-0.16micro/g, mean+/-1SEM) and fMLP (IC50 LM: 0.54+/-0.008 microg, mean+/-1 SEM). To the contrary, fMLP (85.5+/-27.7%), TNF (163.1+/-67.5%), and GM-CSF (121.8+/-66.4%) caused a significant augmentation of neutrophil adherence to LM, suggesting that LM-mediated inhibition of neutrophil oxidative metabolism does not depend on the concomitant LM-induced inhibition of neutrophil adherence. Finally, neither solid-phase FN nor LM affected (O2-) production by neutrophils in response to immune complexes.
Extracellular matrix glycoproteins dictate the response of neutrophils to soluble mediators but not to immune complexes. This appears to be a biologically meaningful mechanism to localise the risk of cellular reactions to mediators that are able to diffuse easily from tissue sites of generation and become widely distributed in body fluids during inflammatory diseases.
Human neutrophils, added to fibronectin (FN)-coated polystyrene wells and exposed to tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), were found to exhibit a prolonged production of superoxide anion (O2-) ...after a lag period of approx 30 min. The O2- production, but not the cell adherence to FN, was completely inhibited by two MoAbs against CD18 and by a MoAb against CD11b, suggesting the involvement of CD11b-CD18 integrins in the neutrophil oxidative response. When neutrophils were induced to adhere to FN by incubation for 30 min on FN-coated surfaces and then washed to remove non-adherent cells, FN-anchored cells exhibited a rapid onset of O2- production in response to TNF-alpha. This suggests that FN primes neutrophils for the TNF-alpha-mediated respiratory burst. The O2- production by adherent neutrophils could be inhibited by anti-CD11b and anti-CD18 MoAbs only when the MoAbs were present both during the induction of adherence and during the subsequent exposure of FN-bound cells to TNF-alpha. The incapacity of MoAbs, added to neutrophils during the induction of adherence, to modify the characteristics of the subsequent neutrophil response to TNF-alpha suggests that the FN-mediated cell priming is independent of the interaction of CD11b-CD18 integrins with the FN substrate. The results are consistent with the intervention of three classes of cell receptors in the TNF-alpha-induced oxidative burst of neutrophils plated on FN: (i) neutrophil FN-binding sites, distinct from CD11b-CD18 and responsible for the cell priming; (ii) CD11b-CD18 integrins, absolutely required for permitting the cell triggering; and (iii) TNF-alpha receptors, responsible for switching on a rapid cell response in primed cells. The requirement of multiple classes of receptors for the full expression of the cell function can be envisaged as a natural precautionary measure to control the neutrophil responsiveness to TNF-alpha and, in turn, the TNF-alpha-dependent neutrophil-mediated oxidative injury at sites of inflammation.
A critical evaluation of 3 years' experience using laboratory screening to detect neutrophil dysfunction is described. Neutrophil dysfunctions in patients with recurrent bacterial infections were ...investigated by using the following screening tests: (1) neutrophil chemotaxis towards N-formylmethionyl peptides (FMLP) and the complement fragment C5a; (2) neutrophil production of superoxide anions (O2-) in response to phorbol myristate acetate and opsonized zymosan particles; and (3) examination of May-Grünwald and myeloperoxidase cytochemical staining of peripheral blood smears. These tests were carried out in 100 patients suffering from infections and suspected of having altered neutrophil functional competence. A minority of patients was found to have well defined neutrophil dysfunction syndromes: chronic granulomatous disease (four cases), Chediak-Higashi disease (one case) and myeloperoxidase deficiency (one case). Of the remaining 94 patients, in whom infections localized to airways and/or skin predominated, 53 cases were found to have impaired chemotaxis (41 cases) or partial defects of the O2- production. Defects of chemotaxis toward FMLP and those towards both FLMP and C5a were the most frequent abnormalities. No defect was found in the other 41 patients. Moreover, impaired neutrophil chemotaxis was found in some patients with selective IgA deficiency (five cases) or immotile cilia syndrome (seven cases). The results suggest that (a) additional screening tests are required to ameliorate the efficiency of the diagnostic work-up of the patients suspected to have neutrophil dysfunction; and (b) further evaluation, also at the molecular level, should be considered at least in selected cases of non-classified neutrophil dysfunction in order to clarify diagnosis and plan rational therapeutic strategies.
Human neutrophils, incubated with Cr51-labelled B lymphoblastoid Raji cells in the presence of the anti-target monoclonal antibody (mAb) Lym-1 plus formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (FMLP) or ...tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), were found to induce significant C51 release, i.e. significant cytolysis. The lytic process was inhibited by mAb IV.3, specific for the Fcgamma receptor (FcgammaR) type II. The mAb 3G8, which reacts with FcgammaR type III, was ineffective. Moreover, the lysis was inhibited by the anti-CD18 mAb MEM-48. These data suggest that FMLP/Lym-1 as well as TNF-alpha/Lym-1 cytolytic systems strictly require FcgammaRII and CD18 integrins. As the lysis induced by TNF-alpha/Lym-1 was prevented by pertussis toxin (PT), PT-sensitive G-proteins are likely to intervene in post-FcgammaRII signal transduction. Both the FMLP- and the TNF-alpha-dependent systems were also found to be equally susceptible to inhibition by various inhibitors of kinases (genistein, staurosporin, 1-(5-isoquinolinnylsulphonyl)-2-methylpiperazine and wortmannin). On the contrary, an inhibitor of protein kinase C (bis-indolyl-maleimide, BIM) was effective only in the FMLP/Lym-1 cytolytic system. Therefore, it appears that signals delivered by FMLP or TNF-alpha, BIM-sensitive and insensitive respectively, converge and synergize with those from G-protein-coupled FcgammaRII and, probably, CD18-integrins to promote the expression of the neutrophil cytolytic potential.
In the present work, we studied the role of cell-derived adenosine in both the physiologic regulation and pharmacologic control of the exocytosis of azurophilic granules of neutrophils exposed to ...tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF) and stimulated with some chemoattractants.
Human neutrophils were pre-incubated in the absence or presence of TNF. Thereafter, the appropriate chemoattractant was added to the cells. After incubation, the cell-free supernatant was collected for testing elastase activity and intracellular cAMP levels. Results, expressed as mean +/- 1 SD, were evaluated by unpaired, two-tailed Student's t-test and by analysis of variance followed by Student-Newman-Keuls multiple comparisons test.
Neutrophil incubation with 10 ng/ml TNF or 0.1 micromol/l N-formyl-met-leu-phe (fMLP) failed to release elastase activity (NE) (NE in absence of stimulus: 23.1 +/- 5.7 nmol/h; TNF-induced NE: 26.4 +/- 14.4 nmol/h; fMLP-induced NE: 27.0 +/- 9.9 nmol/h). Neutrophils, pre-exposed to various amounts of TNF, released elastase in response to 0.1 micromol/l fMLP in a dose-dependent manner (NE in presence of 10 ng/ml TNF and 0.1 micromol/l fMLP: 133.7 +/- 24.0 nmoles/h). As compared with fMLP, C5a had lower activity (NE in presence of 10 ng/ml TNF and 0.1 micromol/l C5a: 66.4 +/- 25.1 nmoles/h), whereas interleukin-8, platelet activating factor and leukotriene B4 were ineffective. The secretory response of TNF-primed neutrophils to fMLP was inhibited by adenosine in a dose-dependent manner (IC50 = 5.18 +/- 7.1 micromol/l). The addition of adenosine deaminase (ADA) to TNF-primed neutrophils resulted in increased secretory response to fMLP (NE in absence and presence of 0.25 U/ml ADA: 71.5 +/- 11.0 and 107.3 +/- 18.6 respectively, P = 0.060). Moreover, two inhibitors of phosphodiesterase type IV (RO 20-1724 and nimesulide) reduced the elastase release only in the absence of ADA (RO 20-1724: percent inhibition in absence or presence of ADA = 20.2 +/- 15.0 and 4.4 +/- 5.1 respectively; nimesulide: percent inhibition in absence or presence of ADA = 22.2 +/- 19.6 and 0.8 +/- 3.0 respectively). Similarly, RO 20-1724 and nimesulide increased intracellular cAMP levels only in absence of ADA (RO 20-1724: percent cAMP increment in absence or presence of ADA = 215.4 +/- 97.5 and 47.3 +/- 53.3 respectively; nimesulide: percent cAMP increment in absence or presence of ADA = 177.7 +/- 19.0 and 19.5 +/- 29.3 respectively).
Endogenous adenosine down-regulates the cell secretory response and is instrumental in uncovering the susceptibility of azurophilic granule exocytosis to control by inhibitors of phosphodiesterase type IV.
Neutrophil apoptosis represents a crucial step in the mechanisms governing the resolution of neutrophilic inflammation. Several soluble mediators of inflammation modulate neutrophil survival, ...retarding their apoptosis, whereas neutrophil activation by immune complexes (IC) results in the acceleration of apoptosis. To investigate neutrophil fate at the site of inflammation, we studied the effects of interleukin (IL)‐2, IL‐6, IL‐8, IL‐15, GM‐CSF, and fMLP on spontaneous and IC‐induced neutrophil apoptosis and the mechanisms regulating the survival of these cells. Spontaneous apoptosis was inhibited by GM‐CSF, IL‐6, and IL‐15, but only GM‐CSF overturned IC‐induced apoptosis. No role of oxidants on the modulation of IC‐dependent apoptosis was found. Indeed, fMLP or GM‐CSF augmented the IC‐dependent oxidative response, whereas the other compounds were ineffective. CGD neutrophils showed low levels of spontaneous apoptosis, but when exposed to IC, underwent a sharp increment of the apoptotic rate in a GM‐CSF‐inhibitable manner. Conversely, the expression of the proapoptotic protein Bax in 18‐h aged neutrophils was down‐regulated by GM‐CSF, IL‐6, and IL‐15. Furthermore, IC induced a nearly threefold Bax up‐regulation, which was completely reversed only by GM‐CSF. Accordingly, the spontaneous activity of caspase‐3 was inhibited by GM‐CSF, IL‐6, and IL‐15. Furthermore, IC induced a sharp increment of enzymatic activity, and only GM‐CSF inhibited the IC‐dependent acceleration. Our results show that apoptosis of resting and IC‐activated neutrophils is regulated differently, GM‐CSF being the most potent neutrophil antiapoptotic factor. The results also unveil the existence of an oxidant‐independent, Bax‐ and caspase‐3‐dependent, intracellular pathway regulating neutrophil apoptosis.
SUMMARY
Human neutrophils, added to fibronectin (FN)-coated polystyrene wells and exposed to tumour necrosis factor-alpba (TNF-α, were found to exhibit a prolonged production of superoxide anion (Q2) ...after a lag period of approx 30 min. The O2 production, but not the cell adherence to FN, was completely inhibited by two MoAbs against CD18 and by a MoAb against CD11b, suggesting the involvement of CD11b-CD18 integrins in the neutrophil oxidative response. When neutrophils were induced to adhere to FN by incubation for 30 min on FN-coated surfaces and then washed to remove non-adherent cells, FN-anchored cells exhibited a rapid onset of O2 production in response to TNF-α. This suggests that FN primes neutrophils for the TNF-α-mediated respiratory burst. The O2− production by adherent neutrophils could be inhibited by anti-CD11b and anti-CD18 MoAbs only when the MoAbs were present both during the induction of adherence and during the subsequent exposure of FN-bound cells to TNF-α. The incapacity of MoAbs, added to neutrophils during the induction of adherence, to modify the characteristics of the subsequent neutrophil response to TNF-α suggests that the FN-mediated cell priming is independent of the interaction of CD11b-CD18 integrins with the FN substrate. The results are consistent with the intervention of three classes of cell receptors in the TNF-α-induced oxidative burst of neutrophils plated on FN: (i) neutrophil FN-binding sites, distinct from CD11b-CD18 and responsible for the cell priming; (ii) CD11b-CD18 integrins, absolutely required for permitting the cell triggering; and (iii) TNF-α receptors, responsible for switching on a rapid cell response in primed cells. The requirement of multiple classes of receptors for the full expression of the cell function can be envisaged as a natural precautionary measure to control the neutrophil responsiveness to TNF-α and, in turn, the TNF-α-dependent neutrophil-mediated oxidative injury at sites of inflammation.
Murine monoclonal antibody (MoAb) Lym-1 is an IgG2a able to bind HLA-DR variants on malignant B cells and suitable for serotherapeutic approaches in B-lymphoma patients. We have previously shown that ...Lym-1 can synergize with granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) to trigger neutrophil cytolysis towards Raji cells used as a model of B-lymphoma targets. Here we provide evidence for the intervention of certain neutrophil receptors or surface molecules in this model of cell-mediated lysis. The lysis was completely inhibited by the anti-FcγRII MoAb IV.3 and unaffected by the anti-FcγRIII MoAb 3G8. This suggests that neutrophil cytolysis involves FcγRII without cooperation of this receptor with FcγRIII. Moreover, the lysis was inhibited by an anti-CD18 MoAb (MEM48) and by a MoAb specific for carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA)-like and glycophosphatidyl inositol (GPI)-linked glycoproteins (CD66b). Using an immunofluorescence staining procedure, cross-linking of CD66b induced the redistribution of CD11b on neutrophils with distinct areas of CD11b clustering via a process susceptible of inhibition by D-mannose. This is consistent with the ability of CD11b-CD18 and CD66b to undergo lectin-like physical interactions on the neutrophil surface. Such a type of interaction is presumably instrumental for neutrophil cytolytic activity in that the lysis was inhibited by D-mannose and enhanced by the MoAb VIM-12, which mimics the cooperation between CD11b and GPI-anchored molecules by specifically interacting with CD11b lectin-like sites. Therefore, the present results prove the absolute requirement for FcγRII in neutrophil GM-CSF/Lym-1–mediated cytolysis and, on the other hand, define the crucial role of CD66b and CD11b/CD18 in the expression of the cell lytic potential.