Pemphigus foliaceus-like, immunologically negative dermatosis in a patient with T cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

A 56-year-old black man developed a pemphigus foliaceus-like bullous eruption as the initial presentation of chronic T cell lymphocytic leukemia. Histologic examination disclosed superficial acantholysis consistent with pemphigus foliaceus and an infiltrate of atypical lymphoid cells in the papillary dermis. Repeated direct and indirect immunofluorescence studies yielded negative results. Acantholysis could be reproduced in vitro by incubation of normal human skin with the patient's serum and plasma but not with blister fluid. In the following months, the course of the bullous eruption paralleled that of the leukemia.

Localization of histaminase to the specific granule of the human neutrophil.

The release of histaminase, a diamine oxidase of the human neutrophil, is initiated by soluble secretagogues. Histaminase is simultaneously inactivated by the reactive oxygen intermediates generated by the respiratory burst. Thus, quantitative assessment of histaminase release relative to other granule markers is best achieved in the presence of superoxide dismutase and catalase. Human neutrophils activated with secretagogues preferential for the specific granule, such as calcium ionophore A23187 in a limited concentration, phorbol myristate acetate (PMA), formyl-methionyl-leucylphenylalanine (fMLP), and concanavalin A, release vitamin B12-binding protein, lysozyme, and histaminase but not beta glucuronidase. PMA activation in the presence of cytochalasin B augments the release of lysozyme and initiates the release of beta glucuronidase through recruitment of the azurophilic granule but has no incremental effect on the release of vitamin B12-binding protein and histaminase observed with PMA alone. Subcellular fractionation of resting neutrophils by sucrose density gradient centrifugation to separate specific granules from two classes of azurophilic granules selectively distributes vitamin B12-binding protein and histaminase to the specific granule fractions.

Immunologically induced generation of tetraene and pentaene leukotrienes in the peritoneal cavities of menhaden-fed rats.

The generation of sulfidopeptide leukotrienes and leukotriene B (LTB) in response to an IgG-mediated immune complex reaction in the peritoneal cavities of rats fed either a menhaden oil-supplemented diet or a beef tallow-supplemented diet for 9 to 10 wk was determined with the combined techniques of radioimmunoassay (RIA) and reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography. Rats on the fish fat diet (FFD) incorporated eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) into pulmonary and splenic tissues with an EPA:arachidonic acid ratio of approximately 2:1, whereas rats on the beef fat diet (BFD) showed no detectable EPA. The estimated total quantities of immunoreactive sulfidopeptide leukotrienes generated by each group of rats were similar, ranging from 70 to 99 ng/ rat in the FFD groups and 65 to 109 ng/rat in the BFD groups; for rats on the FFD this total included the pentaene products LTC5, LTD5, and LTE5 in quantities ranging from 24 to 39 ng/rat. The total quantities of immunoreactive LTB generated in the two groups of rats were similar, being 6 to 29 ng LTB4/rat for the BFD groups and the sum of LTB4 and LTB5 of 8 to 36 ng/rat for the FFD groups. There was a two- to seven-fold preferential generation of immunoreactive LTB5 over LTB4 in the FFD rats. LTC5 was equipotent with LTC4 in contracting guinea pig pulmonary parenchymal strips and ileal tissues. In contrast, LTB5 was 1/30 to 1/60 as potent and did not reach the same maximum as LTB4 in eliciting neutrophil chemotaxis. The finding that FFD favors the immunologic generation of LTB5, which has attenuated biologic activity when compared to LTB4, suggests that EPA-enriched tissues may produce less pro-inflammatory activity than tissues that are EPA-poor.

Immunologic and ionophore-induced generation of leukotriene B4 from mouse bone marrow-derived mast cells.

Mouse bone marrow-derived mast cells differentiated in vitro and sensitized with monoclonal IgE respond to antigen-initiated activation-secretion with the generation of leukotriene B4 (LTB4), a highly potent chemotactic factor. The antigen-initiated net percent release of the secretory granule marker beta-hexosaminidase and the generation of immunoreactive LTB4 and of immunoreactive leukotriene C4 (LTC4) were not diminished by washing the cells before challenge, indicating that interaction of the antigen occurred with the IgE fixed on cell membranes and was not due to phagocytosis of immune complexes formed in the fluid phase. The parallel dose-response relationship for the antigen-induced release of the performed mediator and the generation of both leukotrienes along with the superimposable time courses of their extracellular appearance indicate the origin of these mediators from a common cell type with IgE receptors. Resolution by reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) of the leukotrienes released from unsensitized cells by ionophore A23187 and from sensitized cells by the specific antigen revealed that the generation of LTB4 was accompanied by the production of the two diastereoisomers of 6-trans-LTB4, which were not immunoreactive. The immunoreactive LTB4 eluted from RP-HPLC at the same retention time as synthetic LTB4 was present in similar nanogram quantities when measured by either radioimmunoassay or integrated absorbance at 269 nm and exhibited a chemotactic activity for human neutrophils on a weight basis comparable to that of synthetic LTB4. The overall recoveries after RP-HPLC of immunoreactive LTB4 released from ionophore A23187-activated, bone marrow-derived mast cells and of added tritiated synthetic LTB4 in separate experiments with ionophore-activated cells were comparable and greater than 78%. The maximum generation of LTB4 by ionophore A23187-activated cells of 7.9 +/- 2.5 ng/10(6) cells (mean +/- SD), occurring at 40 min, was greater than the maximum generation of 4.5 +/- 0.8 ng/10(6) cells, with immunologic stimulation occurring 5 min after antigen challenge of sensitized cells. The initial rate of LTB4 generation after perturbation of the IgE-Fc receptors, however, exceeded that following ionophore A23187 stimulation and may represent one important variable in establishing a significant chemotactic gradient.