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T R Ulich

Publications and source records attributed to T R Ulich.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Activated pulmonary vascular neutrophils as early mediators of endotoxin-induced lung inflammation.

Pulmonary vascular sequestration of leukocytes has been reported to increase in some models of lung injury, including that induced by gram-negative bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Neutrophils recruited to the lung likely participate in LPS-induced lung inflammation and associated injury, but the functional activities of these pulmonary vascular neutrophils have not been directly assessed. In the current study, cells were recovered by pulmonary vascular lavage (PVL) of isolated rat lungs, harvested 2 h after intravenous infusion of LPS (3 mg/kg) or saline in intact rats, at which time LPS-induced neutrophil recruitment to the lung could be appreciated histologically but not by airway lavage. Relative concentrations of leukocytes recovered from the pulmonary vasculature by PVL were compared with those present in circulating blood, normalizing for lavage dilution on the basis of erythrocyte counts. Excess neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, and eosinophils were recovered from the pulmonary vasculature of controls, and LPS infusion increased recovery of neutrophils (most prominently), lymphocytes, and monocytes. Compared with cells recovered from controls, PVL neutrophils from LPS-infused animals were primed for increased zymosan-stimulated superoxide generation, determined by ferricytochrome C reduction, and were more adherent to nylon wool columns. Northern blots of extracted RNA demonstrated that LPS infusion also upregulated interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) mRNA expression in PVL leukocyte samples, but not BAL or circulating blood samples. Ficoll-hypaque separation demonstrated that the LPS-induced IL-1 beta signal in PVL leukocytes was derived primarily from polymorphonuclear rather than mononuclear leukocytes. In conclusion, all circulating leukocyte populations are sequestered in rat lungs, and LPS increases pulmonary vascular sequestration of leukocytes, recruiting most prominently an activated pool of neutrophils that are more adherent, primed for increased oxygen radical production, and expressing increased IL-1 beta message. These findings suggest a more prominent role than previously appreciated for sequestered neutrophils in sepsis-induced lung inflammation.

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Hematologic effects of stem cell factor alone and in combination with G-CSF and GM-CSF in vivo and in vitro in rodents.

The intravenous injection of rrSCF causes neutrophilia and lymphocytosis as well as the appearance of immature myeloid cells and occasional blast cells in the circulation. The marrow shows a left-shifted myeloid and erythroid hyperplasia as evidenced by increases in numbers of morphologically recognizable early myeloid and erythroid precursors. A decrease in the number of mature marrow neutrophils is noted, suggesting that the release of marrow neutrophils contributes to the peripheral neutrophilia. After 2 weeks of daily injections of rrSCF, the marrow demonstrates a remarkable mast cell hyperplasia accompanied by erythroid and lymphoid hypoplasia. rrSCF causes mast cells to appear in the circulation and causes a systemic increase in embryonic connective tissue-type mast cells. In vitro long-term culture of mouse marrow cells with rrSCF results in an outgrowth of mast cells. The coinjection of rrSCF and G-CSF for 1 week causes a synergistic increase in mature marrow neutrophils accompanied by a striking decrease in erythroid and lymphoid marrow elements. Spleens demonstrate increased granulopoiesis as well as erythropoiesis as compared to the spleens of rats treated with single growth factors. Splenic extramedullary erythropoiesis may act to compensate for the decrease in marrow erythropoiesis. The coinjection of rrSCF and G-CSF causes an increase in marrow mast cells at the end of 1 week, but the increase is much less than in rats treated with rrSCF alone. The combination of rrSCF and G-CSF causes a synergistic peripheral neutrophilia. In vivo daily administration of SCF plus GM-CSF results in a synergistic increase in marrow neutrophils, but not the striking synergistic increase in circulating neutrophils that is observed after SCF plus G-CSF. Colony-forming assays reveal a synergistic increase in CFU-GMs in the marrow, but not in peripheral blood, after coincubation with SCF plus GM-CSF as opposed to GM-CSF alone, demonstrating anatomic compartmentalization between a more primitive marrow CFU-GM subset and a more mature peripheral blood CFU-GM subset.

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Intratracheal administration of endotoxin and cytokines. IV. The soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor type I inhibits acute inflammation.

Endotoxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS) administered intratracheally to rats causes pulmonary tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF) and interleukin-1 (IL-1) production and results in acute broncho-alveolar neutrophilic inflammation. In the present study, the recombinant human TNF soluble receptor type I (sTNFrI) co-injected intratracheally with LPS is shown to inhibit significantly (P < 0.0001) the number of neutrophils in bronchoalveolar lavage specimens at 6 hours as compared to intratracheal injection of LPS alone. The sTNFrI was at least as effective as the recombinant human IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra) as an inhibitor of acute inflammation. Inhibition of LPS-induced acute inflammation by the combination of sTNFrI and IL-1ra was not significantly more than the inhibition afforded by sTNFrI alone. Intratracheal co-injection of sTNFrI with LPS unexpectedly increased TNF levels in BAL specimens, perhaps by changing the normal catabolism of TNF. On the other hand, co-injection of sTNFrI and LPS decreased IL-6 levels in BAL fluid, most likely by interfering with the induction of IL-6 by TNF. The sTNFrI may prove to be an important pharmacological down-regulator of acute inflammation.

Acute Disease↗

Endotoxin-induced cytokine gene expression in vivo. IV. Expression of interleukin-1 alpha/beta and interleukin-1 receptor antagonist mRNA during endotoxemia and during endotoxin-initiated local acute inflammation.

After the intravenous (IV) injection of endotoxin, (lipopolysaccharide [LPS]), in the rat, interleukin-1 alpha/beta (IL-1 alpha/beta) mRNA expression peaks at 1 hour in whole organ RNA preparations of the lung, liver, spleen, and bowel. Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra) mRNA peaks at 2 to 4 hours, consistent with the hypothesis that IL-1ra acts as an endogenous negative feedback mechanism to downregulate the proinflammatory effects of IL-1. After the intratracheal (IT) injection of LPS, however, IL-1 and IL-1ra mRNA levels in whole lung peak at 6 hours, concurrent with the maximum influx of neutrophils (PMNs) into the bronchoalveolar space. To address the cellular source of IL-1 and IL-1ra mRNA in the lung during acute pneumonitis, mRNA levels were studied in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) macrophages incubated with LPS in vitro for 6 hours as compared with BAL cells (95% PMNs) obtained 6 hours after IT injection of LPS. A much greater expression of IL-1 and IL-1ra mRNA was observed in PMN-rich BAL cells obtained after IT injection of LPS, suggesting that PMNs contribute substantially to IL-1 and IL-1ra mRNA expression. Fractionation of alveolar macrophage-enriched and PMN-enriched subpopulations from the BAL cells obtained at 6 hours after IT injection of LPS confirmed that neutrophils are a source of IL-1 and IL-1ra mRNA. The difference in the kinetics of IL-1 and IL-1ra mRNA expression in whole lung RNA preparations after IV and IT injections of LPS is due to the contribution of PMNs that appear in the lung in large numbers after IT injection. Finally, human peripheral blood PMNs were found to express IL-1ra mRNA and protein after in vitro incubation with LPS. PMNs may contribute to the up- and downregulation of their own accumulation by expressing both IL-1 and IL-1ra.

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Endotoxin, interleukin-1, and tumor necrosis factor cause neutrophil-dependent microvascular leakage in postcapillary venules.

Acute inflammation is characterized mainly by the egress of neutrophils from postcapillary venules and by increased vascular permeability leading to the formation of edema. The microvascular site of increased vascular permeability in local acute inflammatory lesions was investigated after the injection of endotoxin (LPS), interleukin-1 (IL-1), and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) into the dermis overlying the cremasteric and rectus abdominis muscles of rats. LPS caused leakage of colloidal carbon peaking at 3 to 4 hours at the level of the postcapillary venules and capillary leak was variably observed at later time points. IL-1 and TNF also caused postcapillary venular leakage. IL-1 was as potent as LPS and more so than TNF. The microvascular leak caused by LPS, IL-1, and TNF was accompanied by the tissue accumulation of neutrophils, and was neutrophil-dependent because LPS, IL-1, and TNF did not cause vascular labelling in neutropenic rats.

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Stem cell factor in combination with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (CSF) or granulocyte-macrophage CSF synergistically increases granulopoiesis in vivo.

Recombinant rat stem cell factor (rrSCF) and recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) coinjected for 1 week in rats cause a synergistic increase in mature marrow neutrophils accompanied by a striking decrease in erythroid and lymphoid marrow elements. The spleens of the same rats show increased granulopoiesis as well as increased erythropoiesis as compared with the spleens of rats treated with either growth factor alone. Splenic extramedullary erythropoiesis may act to compensate for the decrease in marrow erythropoiesis. The coinjection of rrSCF and G-CSF causes an increase in marrow mast cells at the end of 1 week, but the increase is much less than in rrSCF-alone-treated rats. The combination of rrSCF and G-CSF increases the rate of release of marrow neutrophils into the circulation and causes a dramatic synergistic peripheral neutrophilia, beginning especially after 4 days of treatment. Colony-forming assays of all experimental groups showed a synergistic increase in colony-forming unit granulocyte-macrophage (CFU-GM) in the marrow, but not in peripheral blood, after coincubation with SCF plus granulocyte-macrophage CSF (GM-CSF) as opposed to GM-CSF alone, showing anatomic compartmentalization between a more primitive marrow CFU-GM subset and a more mature peripheral blood CFU-GM subset. In vivo daily administration of SCF plus GM-CSF results in a synergistic increase in marrow neutrophils, but not the striking synergistic increase in circulating neutrophils that is observed with SCF plus G-CSF.

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Hematologic effects of stem cell factor in vivo and in vitro in rodents.

Recombinant rat stem cell factor (rrSCF) administered to rats as a single intravenous injection causes a dose-dependent neutrophilia and lymphocytosis as well as the appearance of immature myeloid cells and occasional blast cells in the circulation. Neutrophilia begins at 2 hours, peaks at 4 to 6 hours, and subsides between 12 and 24 hours. Lymphocytosis occurs at 0.5 hours and has subsided by 2 hours. rrSCF-induced neutrophilia and lymphocytosis are abrogated by boiling, demonstrating that endotoxin-contamination of the rrSCF preparation is not responsible for the observed hematologic effects. The bone marrow at 6 hours after injection of rrSCF shows a left-shifted myeloid and erythroid hyperplasia as evidenced by significant increases in the absolute numbers of morphologically recognizable early myeloid and erythroid precursors. A concurrent decrease in the absolute numbers of mature marrow neutrophils is noted, suggesting that the release of marrow neutrophils contributes to the peripheral neutrophilia. After 2 weeks of daily injections of rrSCF, bone marrow smears demonstrate a remarkable mast cell hyperplasia accompanied by a decrease in total marrow cellularity and by a striking erythroid and lymphoid hypoplasia. rrSCF also causes mast cells to appear in the circulation and causes a systemic increase in embryonic connective tissue-type, but not mucosal-type, mast cells. In vitro long-term culture of lineage-depleted mouse bone marrow cells with rrSCF results in an almost pure outgrowth of mast cells.

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Endotoxin-induced cytokine gene expression in vivo. III. IL-6 mRNA and serum protein expression and the in vivo hematologic effects of IL-6.

Endotoxin (LPS) at sublethal doses injected i.v. into rats was found to induce IL-6 mRNA expression peaking at 1 to 2 h in whole organ RNA preparations of the spleen, liver, lung, bowel, and kidney. IL-6 serum protein levels also peaked at 2 h. TNF and IL-1, generally considered to be among the most rapidly released cytokines, also induced IL-6 expression. IL-6 in turn inhibited TNF and IL-1 expression, suggesting that IL-6 may be part of a negative feedback mechanism in the cytokine cascade. Dexamethasone down-regulated and Corynebacterium parvum up-regulated IL-6 expression, although the possibility cannot be excluded that these immunomodulating factors may in part have exerted their effects indirectly via the up- and down-regulation of TNF and IL-1. IL-6 injected i.v. at a pathophysiologically relevant dose caused a peripheral neutrophilia and mild myeloproliferative effect in the bone marrow.

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The intratracheal administration of endotoxin and cytokines. III. The interleukin-1 (IL-1) receptor antagonist inhibits endotoxin- and IL-1-induced acute inflammation.

Endotoxin, a lipopolysaccharide (LPS) component of gram-negative bacteria, induces alveolar macrophages to express interleukin-1 (IL-1). Lipopolysaccharide and IL-1 both cause severe acute neutrophilic inflammation in the lung after intratracheal injection, suggesting that LPS-induced IL-1 expression contributes to the pathogenesis of LPS-induced acute inflammation. In the present study, the role of IL-1 in LPS-induced acute pneumonia was investigated by quantitating the acute inflammation occurring at 6 hours after the intratracheal injection of LPS as compared to the same timepoint after the intratracheal coinjection of LPS and IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra). The IL-1ra was found to inhibit LPS-induced acute inflammation (P greater than 0.0001) as measured by the number of neutrophils recovered in bronchoalveolar lavage. The LPS-induced emigration of neutrophils was inhibited by as much as 45%. Recombinant IL-1 beta-induced neutrophil emigration into the lung was inhibited by 95% when IL-1ra was coinjected intratracheally with IL-1 beta. Coinjection of recombinant IL-1 beta and LPS increased the neutrophilic exodus as compared to the intratracheal injection of either agent alone. Intratracheal injection of LPS induces a progressive increase in IL-1ra mRNA expression in whole-lung RNA preparations, suggesting that endogenous IL-1ra may play an important role as a negative feedback mechanism to downregulate LPS initiated IL-1-mediated acute inflammation. In conclusion IL-1ra inhibits both LPS- and IL-1-induced neutrophilic inflammation and may therefore prove clinically useful as an anti-inflammatory agent for the therapy of either septic or aseptic IL-1-mediated acute inflammation.

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The hematopoietic and mature blood cells of the rat: their morphology and the kinetics of circulating leukocytes in control rats.

Although the morphology of the hematopoietic and circulating blood cells of the rat differs slightly from that of human blood cells, the basophil is the only human blood cell for which the rat does not have a readily recognizable counterpart. The morphological classification of the rat's marrow and peripheral blood cells as based on our experience is described with reference to the differing observations of previous investigators and with comparison to the human hematopoietic system. Examination of the bone marrow and peripheral blood demonstrated that control rats injected i.v. with 1% normal rat serum in sterile saline exhibit a moderate transient lymphopenia as the only significant hematologic fluctuation induced by the stresses of injection, general anesthesia, and tail bleeding. Morphologic quantitation of marrow and peripheral blood cells complements the insights obtained by the culture of marrow cells. An appreciation of the morphology of the rat's blood cells and of the reproducible and quantitative nature of marrow and peripheral blood smear examinations may lead to more in vivo investigations of hematopoiesis and leukocyte trafficking.

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The erythropoietic effects of interleukin 6 and erythropoietin in vivo.

The purpose of this investigation was to compare the erythropoietic effects of recombinant interleukin 6 (IL-6) and recombinant erythropoietin (EPO) on the marrow and peripheral blood in vivo. IL-6 administered to rats as a single i.v. injection induces a selective erythroid hyperplasia of the marrow's late normoblasts at 12 and 24 h with a return to preinjection numbers of normoblasts at 48 and 72 h. The hyperplasia of late normoblasts in the marrow is accompanied by a left-shifted peripheral reticulocytosis. Daily injection of IL-6 does not induce any effects on the erythroid population of the marrow or circulation beyond those of a single injection. After daily administration of IL-6 for 4 or 7 days, the erythroid differential in the marrow and the peripheral reticulocyte count are equal to negative control values, indicating a rapid tachyphylaxis to the erythropoietic effect of IL-6. In contrast to IL-6, EPO administered as a single i.v. injection induces a panerythroid marrow hyperplasia with sequential peak increases in pronormoblasts and early normoblasts at 24 h, intermediate normoblasts at 24-48 h, and late normoblasts at 72 h. The peripheral reticulocyte count mirrors the development of erythroid precursors in the marrow by demonstrating an increasing left-shifted reticulocytosis between 24 and 72 h. Daily injection of EPO for 7 days induces a striking erythroid hyperplasia and a myeloid hypoplasia in the marrow. In summary, IL-6 in vivo is a differentiation factor that rapidly induces tolerance to its own effect, whereas EPO in vivo affects all stages of erythropoiesis and sustains erythropoiesis indefinitely. IL-6 may be one of the non-EPO factors in pokeweed mitogen spleen cell-conditioned medium that has been reported by previous investigators to enhance erythropoiesis, although many of those factors were thought to act upon an earlier stage of erythropoiesis. IL-6 is unlikely to exert an indirect erythropoietic effect in vivo via the induction of EPO because the sera of IL-6-treated rats did not contain elevated levels of EPO and because the effects of exogenously administered IL-6 and EPO are so different.

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Intratracheal injection of endotoxin and cytokines. II. Interleukin-6 and transforming growth factor beta inhibit acute inflammation.

The nature of the endogenous mediators that down-regulate and curtail the exodus of neutrophils into local acute inflammatory sites is unknown. In the present report, interleukin-6 (IL-6) and transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta), members of a family of macrophage-derived proteins known as cytokines, are shown to inhibit significantly the acute neutrophilic exodus caused by an intratracheal injection of endotoxin (LPS), a proinflammatory component of the cell walls of gram-negative bacteria. Transforming growth factor beta (10 micrograms) and IL-6 (10 micrograms) coinjected intratracheally with LPS (10 micrograms) each inhibited the number of neutrophils in 6-hour bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) specimens by approximately 50%. The intratracheal coinjection of IL-6, TGF beta, and LPS inhibited the LPS-induced neutrophilic inflammatory exodus by nearly 75%. Interleukin-6 also is shown to be endogenously upregulated within the lung after intratracheal challenge with endotoxin, providing evidence that IL-6 may represent an endogenous negative feedback mechanism to inhibit endotoxin-initiated cytokine-mediated acute inflammation. Interleukin-6 and TGF beta both strongly inhibited the quantity of TNF-alpha recovered in the BAL fluid of LPS-challenged rats, suggesting that downregulation of LPS-induced TNF-alpha production within the lung represents one mechanism whereby IL-6 and TGF beta exert an antiinflammatory action. Interleukin-6 and TGF beta represent novel pharmacologic and, probably, endogenous inhibitors of acute inflammation.

Acute Disease↗

The intratracheal administration of endotoxin and cytokines. I. Characterization of LPS-induced IL-1 and TNF mRNA expression and the LPS-, IL-1-, and TNF-induced inflammatory infiltrate.

Endotoxin (LPS), one of the major proinflammatory constituents of the cell walls of gram-negative bacteria, induces alveolar macrophages to express interleukin-1 (IL-1) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) messenger RNA (mRNA), peaking at 1 hour in vitro. Intratracheal injection of LPS induces IL-1 and TNF mRNA expression in vivo in whole-lung RNA preparations. Interleukin-1 mRNA is not constitutively detected. In the case of TNF, however, a constitutively-expressed hybridization band is noted at 1.6 kb, whereas the LPS-induced hybridization band is noted at approximately 1.95 kb. Intratracheal injection of LPS induces an intra-alveolar inflammatory reaction composed of a neutrophilic exudate, peaking at 6 to 12 hours, a monocytic exudate peaking at 24 hours, and a lymphocytic exudate peaking at 48 hours, as quantitated by bronchoalveolar lavage. Intratracheal injection of IL-1 recapitulates the kinetics and relative magnitudes of the acute neutrophilic and chronic monocytic and lymphocytic inflammatory sequence. Intratracheal injection of TNF also induces an acute intraalveolar neutrophilic exudate, but TNF is much less potent of an inflammatory stimulus than IL-1. The effects of recombinant IL-1 and TNF are not due to LPS contamination, as shown by abrogation of the cytokines' inflammatory activity by boiling. In conclusion, LPS induces IL-1 and TNF mRNA expression in vitro in alveolar macrophages and in vivo in pulmonary tissue, and intratracheal injection of IL-1 and TNF recapitulates the LPS-induced pulmonary inflammatory sequence, strongly supporting the hypothesis that these cytokines play an important in vivo role in the pathogenesis of gram-negative bacterial pneumonia.

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Functional, biochemical, and histopathologic consequences of high-dose interleukin-2 administration in rats.

A variety of side effects have been reported with the use of interleukin-2 alone or in combination with lymphokine-activated killer cells in patients with disseminated neoplasms. The present study was undertaken to determine the effects of high-dose interleukin-2 administration in normal rats. Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with intravenous recombinant interleukin-2 (900,000 IU/kg/day) for 9 consecutive days. Animals were placed in individual metabolic cages, and arterial blood pressure, food intake, body weight, and urine output were monitored. On day 10, animals were killed by exsanguination, various tissues were harvested, and a variety of hematologic and chemical assays were performed. The results were compared with those of placebo-injected normal control and pair-fed groups. The interleukin-2-treated group exhibited anorexia, weight loss, hypotension, anemia, leukocytosis, lymphocytosis, eosinophilia, hypercalcemia, azotemia, and a marked urinary concentration defect. Histologic examination of various tissues revealed widespread infiltration with mono-nuclear cells and eosinophils in most organs, especially in the lungs and liver of interleukin-2-treated animals. Other abnormalities included severe panlobular hepatitis, hepatocellular necrosis, and thymic involution. Renal involvement was mild and consisted of focal interstitial infiltration by mononuclear cells. According to these observations, administration of high-dose interleukin-2 in normal rats results in a score of significant functional, biochemical, and histologic abnormalities.

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In vivo hematologic effects of recombinant human macrophage colony-stimulating factor.

Macrophage colony-stimulating factor (recombinant human M-CSF) given as a single intravenous injection to Lewis rats induces a dose-dependent peripheral monocytosis, neutrophilia, and lymphopenia. The monocytosis peaks at 28 to 32 hours with a seven- to eightfold increase in the number of circulating monocytes and promonocytes. The peripheral monocytosis is accompanied by a slight increase in marrow blasts, promonocytes, and monocytes. A monocytopenia reaching a nadir at 15 minutes precedes the monocytosis, suggesting that M-CSF activates circulating monocytes and causes intravascular margination. The M-CSF-induced neutrophilia and lymphopenia are relatively mild in magnitude, are observed between 2 and 16 hours after injection, and are no longer evident at later time-points. The monocytosis was at least partially inhibited by dexamethasone. M-CSF-induced monocytosis most likely reflects a direct effect of M-CSF on marrow monocyte precursor proliferation, maturation, and release, whereas the neutrophilia and lymphopenia may reflect indirect effects mediated by the known ability of M-CSF to cause the release of other cytokines.

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Acute and subacute hematologic effects of multi-colony stimulating factor in combination with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in vivo.

Multi-colony stimulating factor (Multi-CSF, interleukin-3, IL-3) and granulocyte-CSF (G-CSF) administered concurrently as an intravenous (IV) injection induce a peripheral neutrophilia that is approximately additive in comparison with the neutrophilia induced by IL-3 and G-CSF individually. The bone marrow (BM) at 12 hours is depleted of mature neutrophils and shows a left-shifted myeloid hyperplasia, consistent with the neutrophil-releasing and myeloproliferative activities of both IL-3 and G-CSF individually. The BM at 24 hours shows a replenished reserve of mature neutrophils and a synergistic left-shifted myeloid hyperplasia as compared with IL-3 and G-CSF alone. Daily IV injections of IL-3 plus G-CSF for 1 week also induce an approximately additive daily peripheral neutrophilia. The BM after a week's administration of IL-3 plus G-CSF shows a generalized myeloid hyperplasia with a synergistic increase in mature neutrophils as compared with IL-3 or G-CSF alone. Daily injection of IL-3 plus G-CSF induced a significant decrease in erythroid, lymphoid, and eosinophilic marrow precursors, possibly owing to a myelophthisic effect of the myeloid hyperplasia and despite the fact that IL-3 alone induced a significant erythroid hyperplasia.

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Cytokine- and calcium ionophore A23187-mediated arachidonic acid metabolism in neutrophils.

Arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism is implicated as an intracellular and/or intercellular second messenger system for the transmission of cytokine-initiated signals that affect neutrophils and mediate systemic toxicity. The purpose of the present study is to ascertain if cytokines that are known to affect neutrophil function in vivo and in vitro directly stimulate neutrophil AA metabolism in vitro. The recombinant human cytokines multi-colony stimulating factor, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), interleukin 1, tumor necrosis factor (TNF), and interleukin 6 and the calcium ionophore A23187 were incubated with purified 14C-AA radiolabeled human peripheral blood neutrophils and the effects were assayed by one- and two-dimensional thin layer lipid chromatography. None of the cytokines appeared to induce the release of cell-incorporated AA or to increase the level of radiolabeled phosphatidic acid. TNF induces severe systemic toxicity that is inhibited by cyclooxygenase inhibitors, which suggests a role for AA metabolites in the pathophysiologic effects of TNF; we have confirmed that TNF and endotoxin act synergistically to induce indomethacin-inhibitable fatal shock in rats. However, when in 3H-AA radiolabeled human neutrophils were incubated with TNF in kinetic, cold-chase, and TNF preincubation experiments, TNF was not found to increase AA metabolism, although changes in the intracellular neutral lipid content were noted. GM-CSF, which has been reported by previous investigators to directly induce the release of AA, did not release neutrophil-associated 3H-AA. In conclusion, the direct release of AA from membrane-associated phospholipids does not appear to be a major second messenger pathway for cytokine-initiated activation of neutrophils.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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