Antigen-induced contraction of human isolated lung preparations passively sensitized with monoclonal IgE: effects of indomethacin.

Human isolated lung preparations were passively sensitized using mouse monoclonal dinitrophenyl (DNP)-specific IgE antibodies. The contractile response to antigen (DNP-bovine serum albumin; DNP-BSA) was approximately 80% of the histamine response (50 microM: 0.20 +/- 0.03 g/mm2) in bronchial muscle preparations. In passively sensitized pulmonary vascular and parenchymal preparations, the contraction to antigen was negligible. Indomethacin (1.7 microM; 30 min) did not alter the contractile response to DNP-BSA (5 micrograms/ml) in bronchial tissues. In passively sensitized bronchial muscle preparations stimulated with DNP-BSA, there was a significant increase (2-fold) in prostanoid production. This production was inhibited by indomethacin. These data suggest that endogenous prostaglandins may not play a role in the regulation of human isolated bronchial muscle contraction to antigen in vitro.

Biosynthesis of paf-acether. Paf-acether but not leukotriene C4 production is impaired in cultured macrophages.

After adherence for 24 or 48 h mouse peritoneal macrophages, upon a zymosan challenge, synthesized 114 +/- 55 and 82 +/- 31 pmol of paf-acether (paf)/mg of protein respectively, as compared with 513 +/- 195 pmol of paf/mg of protein in 2 h-adherent macrophages (means +/- S.D., n = 10). By contrast, 24 h- and 48 h-adherent macrophages exposed to zymosan produced more leukotriene C4 (2.7 +/- 1.1 and 1.4 +/- 0.2 nmol/mg of protein respectively, n = 5) than did 2 h-adherent macrophages (0.5 +/- 0.2 nmol/mg of protein, n = 5). Paf production was not altered when 2 h- and 24 h-adherent cells were cultured and/or stimulated in the presence of 5 microM-indomethacin, 10 microM-nordihydroguaiaretic acid or 100 microM-BW755C as compared with untreated cells. These results indirectly exclude the regulation of paf production by arachidonic acid metabolites. We investigated the efficiency of the enzymic steps which govern paf synthesis. We showed that the anabolic process was not impaired since (1) the amounts of alkylacylglycerophosphocholine and lyso-paf were similar in 2 h-, 24 h- and 48 h-adherent macrophages; (2) adding synthetic lyso-paf or acetyl-CoA to intact cells did not increase paf production in zymosan-stimulated 24 h- and 48 h-adherent macrophages; (3) the basal level of acetyltransferase was comparable in 2 h-, 24 h- and 48 h-adherent macrophages and in all cases was increased by 2-3 times upon zymosan challenge. We also showed that impaired paf production in 24 h- and 48 h-cultured macrophages was not due to the nature of the stimulus used to induce its synthesis.

Antigenic contraction of guinea pig tracheal preparations passively sensitized with monoclonal IgE: pharmacological modulation.

Spirally cut guinea pig tracheal preparations were passively sensitized using a mouse monoclonal IgE antibody against dinitrophenol (DNP). Maximal contraction observed following challenge with DNP-bovine serum albumin (DNP-BSA, 5 micrograms/ml; n = 20) response was approximately 46% of the histamine response (0.52 +/- 0.09 g/mm2; n = 53). Indomethacin (1.7 microM) increased and PGE2 (1 microM) decreased the response to the antigen. FPL 55712 (10 microM), atropine (0.1 microM), L 651392 (5 microM) or tripelennamine (1 microM) always reduced the maximal DNP-BSA response, but not BN 52021 (100 microM). This model may be used for rapid detection of compounds with antiallergic properties on IgE-dependent lung pathological states.

Platelet-activating factor-acether-induced relaxation of guinea pig airway muscle: role of prostaglandin E2 and the epithelium.

A fixed concentration of paf-acether (platelet-activating factor; 4 microM) relaxed isolated guinea pig tracheal preparations which had been contracted with histamine (50 microM), serotonin (1 microM) or leukotriene D4 (0.1 microM). The relaxations were approximately 43, 100 and 57%, respectively. We did not observe any relaxant effect of paf-acether (4 microM) in tissues contracted with acetylcholine (50 microM). Both lyso paf-acether (10 microM) and bovine serum albumin (25 micrograms/ml) were without effect on histamine-contracted preparations. In the presence of indomethacin (1.7 microM; 30 min) or aspirin (0.1 mM; 30 min) the relaxant effect of paf-acether (4 microM) in tissues contracted with histamine was significantly reduced to approximately 10 and 12%, respectively. When paf-acether (4 microM) was added to histamine-contracted tracheal preparations in the presence of noradrenaline (0.1 microM) or prostaglandin E2 (PGE2, 10 nM) the relaxations were 62 and 82%, respectively. Noradrenaline and PGE2 alone had only a slight relaxant effect in these tissues (7 and 14%, respectively). In the presence of indomethacin (1.7 microM) the synergistic effect of paf-acether and PGE2 was still observed. The basal production of PGE2 in isolated guinea pig tracheal preparations was 4.6 +/- 1.4 pg/mg of tissue. In the presence of paf-acether (4 microM) increased levels of this prostanoid were detected (11.2 +/- 2.4 pg/mg of tissue). Isolated guinea pig tracheal preparations when contracted with histamine released PGE2 (17.6 +/- 4.1 pg/mg of tissue). In the presence of histamine and paf-acether there was a significant increase in detectable levels of PGE2 (48.6 +/- 13.2 pg/mg of tissue).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Relaxation of isolated human pulmonary muscle preparations with prostacyclin (PGI2) and its analogs.

The effects of PGI2 and two analogs Iloprost and ZK 96480 were examined on isolated human pulmonary muscle preparations. High concentrations of these agents reduced the basal tone in all types of preparations. In addition, they relaxed tissues which had been maximally contracted with histamine (50 microM). PGI2 was more potent on pulmonary arterial muscle preparations (pD2 value: 6.33, n = 3) than on bronchial muscles. The relaxations induced by PGI2 in bronchial preparations were quite variable, that is, some tissues relaxed while others did not. The analogs also relaxed arterial preparations and the pD2 values were approximately the same (Iloprost: 7.42, n = 4 and ZK 96480: 7.48, n = 4). The isolated human pulmonary vascular preparations were approximately 10-fold more sensitive to the analogs than bronchial muscle preparations. In bronchial tissues we noted that the PGI2 relaxant effect was spontaneously reversed with time, an activity not observed with both analogs. A pretreatment of the bronchial tissues with indomethacin (1.7 microM) did not reduce the variations observed with PGI2 nor modify the transient relaxation observed with this agent. These data demonstrate that vascular tissues from the human lung are considerably more sensitive to these relaxant agonists than bronchial preparations.

Effects of various pharmacological agents on isolated human bronchial and pulmonary arterial and venous muscle preparations contracted by leukotriene D4.

The response of isolated human bronchial muscle preparations to leukotriene D4 (LTD4, 0.1 microM; 0.22 +/- 0.03 g/mm2) was similar to that of histamine (50 microM; 0.21 +/- 0.02 g/mm2). Isolated pulmonary venous preparations also contracted to these same concentrations of both agonists (LTD4, 0.32 +/- 0.19 g/mm2; and histamine, 0.36 +/- 0.07 g/mm2). However, pulmonary arterial preparations responded to histamine (50 microM, 0.59 +/- 0.10 g/mm2) but exhibited a reduced response to LTD4 (0.3 microM, 0.06 +/- 0.01 g/mm2). Bronchial and pulmonary venous muscle preparations from the human lung had the same sensitivities to LTD4 (pD2 values: bronchus, 7.95 +/- 0.08 and vein, 7.76 +/- 0.07). When bronchial or pulmonary venous muscle preparations were incubated for 30 min with either diltiazem (10 microM), indomethacin (1.7 microM) or L-cysteine (3 microM), the LTD4 cumulative concentration-effect curves following these drug treatments were similar to controls. However, FPL-55712 (10 microM) significantly shifted the LTD4 concentration-effect curves produced in bronchial preparations to the right. In isolated pulmonary arterial preparations none of these drug treatments enhanced the LTD4 response. These results show that isolated human pulmonary arterial preparations are less responsive to LTD4 than bronchial or venous preparations. In addition, the data obtained subsequent to the various drug treatments indirectly suggest that the LTD4 contraction is not modified by a calcium channel blocker or by inhibition of the endogenous products of the cyclooxygenase pathway.

Histamine contraction of isolated human airway muscle preparations: role of prostaglandins.

Histamine concentration-effect curves were obtained using either an individual or cumulative dosing method. The maximal response to histamine in bronchial preparations using the individual dosing protocol was 0.25 +/- 0.03 g/mm2 and similar results were obtained using the cumulative method (0.24 +/- 0.03 g/mm2). The sensitivity (pD2 value) of isolated human bronchial muscle preparations was comparable for both the individual and cumulative methods (5.71 and 5.16, respectively). Prostaglandin (PG) E2 and PGF2 alpha contracted isolated human bronchial muscle preparations and the pD2 values were 5.64 and 5.59, respectively. PGE2 did not relax bronchial muscle preparations contracted with histamine (50 microM). At high concentrations prostacyclin (3 microM) relaxed histamine-contracted bronchial tissues but this effect was quite variable. Indomethacin (1.7 microM) did not affect basal tone in bronchial tissues. Isolated human bronchial preparations which were contracted maximally with histamine always released measurable quantities of PGs. In some experiments the rat stomach strip was used to detect the presence of these substances before and subsequent to the indomethacin (1.7 microM) treatment. The use of radioimmunoassay for PGE2 and PGF2 alpha confirmed these bioassay results. In a large number of experiments (18 preparations from 9 individual lung samples) the baseline production of PGs was PGE2, 22.9 +/- 2.8 pg/mg of tissue and PGF2 alpha, 11.9 +/- 2.5 pg/mg of tissue. Subsequent to histamine stimulation the quantities of PGs released were PGE2, 72.4 +/- 7.6 pg/mg of tissue and PGF2 alpha, 40.9 +/- 7.3 pg/mg of tissue.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Biosynthesis of paf-acether: VIII: Impairment of paf-acether production in activated macrophages does not depend upon acetyltransferase activity.

Activated peritoneal macrophages (M phi) from mice injected with Bacilli Calmette-Guérin, trehalose dimycolate, a defined immunostimulant derived from Mycobacterium tuberculosis, or streptococci C74 (St), synthesized two to three times less paf-acether (1-O-alkyl-2-acetyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine) in response to a zymosan challenge than did (0.7 +/- 0.2 nmol/mg protein) resident-M phi (R-M phi). To assess at which step the paf-acether biosynthetic pathway was impaired, the content in phospholipid paf-acether precursors was evaluated. The alkyl-acyl-glycerophosphocholine content was comparable in R-M phi (50.4 +/- 18.6 nmol/mg protein) and activated-M phi (40.0 +/- 6.5 to 63.9 +/- 7.7 nmol/mg protein), as well as the lyso paf-acether content (0.85 +/- 0.18 nmol/mg protein for R-M phi vs 0.63 +/- 0.16 to 1.23 +/- 0.21 nmol/mg protein for activated macrophages). The nonlimiting rate of the phospholipid substrate was strengthened by experiments showing that incubation of the various populations with lyso paf-acether did not yield increased amounts of paf-acether. Similarly, incubation of R-M phi or St-M phi with sodium acetate increased paf-acether production to the same extent in both populations, ruling out the acetate substrate deficiency as the cause of the impaired production. The level of acetyltransferase activity, the enzyme that transfers an acetate moiety of acetyl coenzyme A (acetyl-CoA) onto lyso paf-acether, was very low in thioglycolate (TG)-elicited M phi but high in R-M phi and activated ones. In all cases, it was increased by two to three times upon zymosan challenge. This suggested that increased paf-acether catabolism and not impaired anabolism could be responsible for the marked reduced formation noted in activated macrophages. The addition of acetyl-CoA (200 microM) to the various macrophage monolayers restored paf-acether formation by activated cells to R-M phi values but with delayed kinetics as compared with paf-acether formation induced by zymosan. The enhancing effect of acetyl-CoA on paf-acether production was inhibited upon oleyl-CoA addition, suggesting that acetyl-CoA may increase paf-acether production by preventing the reacylation of lyso paf-acether resulting from paf-acether degradation. In conclusion, the paf-acether output in some inflammatory macrophages may be regulated by the level of acetyltransferase activity, because it is observed in TG-M phi. However, we present the first evidence for another mechanism of regulation, most probably related to the deacylation/reacylation of paf-acether precursors and metabolites.