Monocyte Tumor Necrosis Factor-α–Converting Enzyme Catalytic Activity and Substrate Shedding in Sepsis and Noninfectious Systemic Inflammation*

OBJECTIVES To determine the effect of severe sepsis on monocyte tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme baseline and inducible activity profiles. DESIGN Observational clinical study. SETTING Mixed surgical/medical teaching hospital ICU. PATIENTS Sixteen patients with severe sepsis, 15 healthy volunteers, and eight critically ill patients with noninfectious systemic inflammatory response syndrome. INTERVENTIONS None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Monocyte expression of human leukocyte antigen-D-related peptide, sol-tumor necrosis factor production, tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme expression and catalytic activity, tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 and 2 expression, and shedding at 48-hour intervals from day 0 to day 4, as well as p38-mitogen activated protein kinase expression. Compared with healthy volunteers, both sepsis and systemic inflammatory response syndrome patients' monocytes expressed reduced levels of human leukocyte antigen-D-related peptide and released less sol-tumor necrosis factor on in vitro lipopolysaccharide stimulation, consistent with the term monocyte deactivation. However, patients with sepsis had substantially elevated levels of basal tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme activity that were refractory to lipopolysaccharide stimulation and this was accompanied by similar changes in p38-mitogen activated protein kinase signaling. In patients with systemic inflammatory response syndrome, monocyte basal tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme, and its induction by lipopolysaccharide, appeared similar to healthy controls. Changes in basal tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme activity at day 0 for sepsis patients correlated with Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score and the attenuated tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme response to lipopolysaccharide was associated with increased mortality. Similar changes in monocyte tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme activity could be induced in healthy volunteer monocytes using an in vitro two-hit inflammation model. Patients with sepsis also displayed reduced shedding of monocyte tumor necrosis factor receptors upon stimulation with lipopolysaccharide. CONCLUSIONS Monocyte tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme catalytic activity appeared altered by sepsis and may result in reduced shedding of tumor necrosis factor receptors. Changes seemed specific to sepsis and correlated with illness severity. A better understanding of how tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme function is altered during sepsis will enhance our understanding of sepsis pathophysiology, which will help in the assessment of patient inflammatory status and ultimately may provide new strategies to treat sepsis.