Exposure of neutrophils to a range of cytokines augments their response to subsequent agonist-induced activation of the respiratory burst. We have examined the effects of several of these factors, both singly and in combination, on the priming of f-met-leu-phe (FMLP) and complement C5a-stimulated neutrophil H2O2 production, using a whole blood flow cytometric assay designed to minimize artefact...

The roles of the protein tyrosine kinases Pyk2 (also called RAFTK or CAK beta) and Syk in the process of functional activation of human myeloid cells were examined. During granulocytic differentiation of HL-60 cells with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), the amounts of Pyk2 and beta2 integrin increased, whereas the amount of Syk was abundant before differentiation and did not change during differentia...

N-Formylmethionylleucylphenylalanine (fMLP) induces chemotaxis in leukocytes, the response being mediated by peptide binding to a receptor on the plasma membrane. In tumor cells, this peptide has been reported to induce cellular swelling and chemotaxis in vitro and to enhance the localization of circulating tumor cells in vivo. In the Boyden chamber, we evaluated the migratory responses of Walk...

Stimulation of polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) by phorbol esters or formyl peptides (fMLP) generates large quantities of superoxide anion, the so-called respiratory burst (RB), a phenomenon associated with intense phosphorylation of a 47-kD protein (p47 phox). Staurosporine, a potent protein kinase C (PKC) antagonist, inhibits both responses when PMN are stimulated by phorbol myristate acet...

Jan Samuelsson, MD, PhD, Department of Medicine, Section for Hematology, Karolinska Institute at Stockholm Söder Hospital, S-118 83 Stockholm (Sweden) We read with interest the report by Piva et al. [1] describing an impaired function of the NADPH oxidase, assessed as the reduction of nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) after stimulation with phorbol myristate acetate (PMA), in patients with various st...

BACKGROUND Severe pancreatitis is often complicated by shock and acute lung failure. Little is known about the pathophysiologic impact of the 16.6-kD lectine, named pancreatitis-associated protein (PAP), which is expressed during pancreatitis and which reduces mortality in a rat model with severe pancreatitis. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of PAP on the pulmona...

N-Formylmethionylleucylphenylalanine (fMLP) induces chemotaxis in leukocytes, the response being mediated by peptide binding to a receptor on the plasma membrane. In tumor cells, this peptide has been reported to induce cellular swelling and chemotaxis in vitro and to enhance the localization of circulating tumor cells in vivo. In the Boyden chamber, we evaluated the migratory responses of Walk...

Activation of neutrophils induces generation of reactive oxygen species and release of granule enzymes, which not only participate in the bactericidal mechanisms of these cells, but also in possible tissue damage. We studied the effect of carvedilol (CARV) [0.1-100 micromol/l], an antihypertensive and cardiovascular drug with antioxidative properties, on superoxide generation (SO) and myelopero...

To understand chronic neutrophil attraction into cystic fibrosis airways, both global chemotactic activity and individual chemotactic factors were studied in bronchial secretions. Bronchial secretions of 8 cystic fibrosis patients, collected on the first day of admission for antibiotic treatment, showed a high chemotactic index (19.4 +/- 5.7, n = 8). Fractionation by gel filtration of bronchial...

The stimulation of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) by chemoattractants triggers a rapid rise in cytosolic free calcium concentration(s) ([Ca2+]i), which quickly returns to base line, suggesting a role for calcium removal in the homeostasis of activated PMNs. To investigate cytosolic calcium homeostasis, PMNs were treated with a fluoroprobe and ionomycin to induce a sustained elevation of [C...