Indole ring oxidation by activated leukocytes prevents the production of hypochlorous acid

Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) released by activated leukocytes has been implicated in the tissue damage that characterizes chronic inflammatory diseases. In this investigation, 14 indole derivatives, including metabolites such as melatonin, tryptophan and indole-3-acetic acid, were screened for their ability to inhibit the generation of this endogenous oxidant by stimulated leukocytes. The release of HOCl was measured by the production of taurine-chloramine when the leukocytes (2 x 10(6) cells/mL) were incubated at 37°C in 10 mM phosphate-buffered saline, pH 7.4, for 30 min with 5 mM taurine and stimulated with 100 nM phorbol-12-myristate acetate. Irrespective of the group substituted in the indole ring, all the compounds tested including indole, 2-methylindole, 3-methylindole, 2,3-dimethylindole, 2,5-dimethylindole, 2-phenylindole, 5-methoxyindole, 6-methoxyindole, 5-methoxy-2-methylindole, melatonin, tryptophan, indole-3-acetic acid, 5-methoxy-2-methyl-3-indole-acetic acid, and indomethacin (10 æM) inhibited the chlorinating activity of myeloperoxidase (MPO) in the 23-72 percent range. The compounds 3-methylindole and indole-3-acetic acid were chosen as representative of indole derivatives in a dose-response study using purified MPO. The IC50 obtained were 0.10 ± 0.03 and 5.0 ± 1.0 æM (N = 13), respectively. These compounds did not affect the peroxidation activity of MPO or the production of superoxide anion by stimulated leukocytes. By following the spectral change of MPO during the enzyme turnover, the inhibition of HOCl production can be explained on the basis of the accumulation of the redox form compound-II (MPO-II), which is an inactive chlorinating species. These results show that indole derivatives are effective and selective inhibitors of MPO-chlorinating activity.

Effect of therapeutic plasma concentrations of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on the production of reactive oxygen species by activated rat neutrophils

The release of reactive oxygen specie (ROS) by activated neutrophil is involved in both the antimicrobial and deleterious effects in chronic inflammation. The objective of the present investigation was to determine the effect of therapeutic plasma concentrations of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) on the production of ROS by stimulated rat neutrophils. Diclofenac (3.6 µM), indomethacin (12 µM), naproxen (160 µM), piroxicam (13 µM), and tenoxicam (30 µM) were incubated at 37°C in PBS (10 mM), pH 7.4, for 30 min with rat neutrophils (1 x 10(6) cells/ml) stimulated by phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (100 nM). The ROS production was measured by luminol and lucigenin-dependent chemiluminescence. Except for naproxen, NSAIDs reduced ROS production: 58 ± 2 percent diclofenac, 90 ± 2 percent indomethacin, 33 ± 3 percent piroxicam, and 45 ± 6 percent tenoxicam (N = 6). For the lucigenin assay, naproxen, piroxicam and tenoxicam were ineffective. For indomethacin the inhibition was 52 ± 5 percent and diclofenac showed amplification in the light emission of 181 ± 60 percent (N = 6). Using the myeloperoxidase (MPO)/H2O2/luminol system, the effects of NSAIDs on MPO activity were also screened. We found that NSAIDs inhibited both the peroxidation and chlorinating activity of MPO as follows: diclofenac (36 ± 10, 45 ± 3 percent), indomethacin (97 ± 2, 100 ± 1 percent), naproxen (56 ± 8, 76 ± 3 percent), piroxicam (77 ± 5, 99 ± 1 percent), and tenoxicam (90 ± 2, 100 ± 1 percent), respectively (N = 3). These results show that therapeutic levels of NSAIDs are able to suppress the oxygen-dependent antimicrobial or oxidative functions of neutrophils by inhibiting the generation of hypochlorous acid.

Effect of cyclophosphamide on the binding of 99mTcO4 and 99mTc-MDP to blood cells and plasma proteins

Since the introduction of technetium-99m (99mTc) and its rapid acceptance as a tool in nuclear medicine, very little information is available about is biological action as 99mTc-radiopharmaceuticals. We have determined if cyclophosphamide, an alkylating agent, used in oncology as a chemotherapeutic drug, modifies the binding of 99mTCO-4 and 99mTc-MDP (99mTc-metylenediphosphonic acid) to blood cells and to plasma proteins. The radiopharmaceuticals were injected intravenously (iv) into SW-55 mice (male and female, weight 25 g) and samples of plasma and blood cells were separated. Cyclophosphamide (50 µg) was injected iv 1 h before the radipharmaceuticals. Samples of plasma and blood cells were also precipitated with 5 per cent trichloroacetic acid and soluble and insoluble fractions were isolated. The following results were obtained: 1) cyclophosphamide did not alter (0.25 to 8h) percent radioactivity of 99m TcO04 in plasma or blood cells but increased the binding of 99m Tc-MDP to blood cells; 2) cyclophosphamide did not alter (o.25 to 8h) 6the binding of 99m TcO-4 in insoluble fraction of plasma and decreasde (1 to 4h) percent radioactivity of 99mTc-MDP in the insoluble fraction of plasma; 3) cyclophosphamide increased (0.25 to 4h) percent radioactivity of 99mTcO-4 in the insoluble fraction of blood cells but did not alter the binding of 99m Tc-MDP. Cyclophosphamide and/ or its methabolities modified the effective half-life of these radiopharmaceuticals (to 99TcO-4 was increased 2.3 to 3.4h and to 99mTc-MDP was decreased 3.3 to 2.1 h) and possibly increased the permeability of blood cells to 99m TcO-4

Estudos sobre os níveis sanguíneos de sulfametoxazol em caninos e ovinos: necessidade de adequaçäo do regime posológico / Sulphamethoxazol blood levels in dogs and sheep. Evidence for a differentiated dosage regimen

Os níveis sanguíenos de sulfametoxazol (SMT) foram determinados em caninos e ovinos, após administraçäo de produto comercial potencializado pela trimeoprina, em dose única de 30 mg/kg, por via intramuscular. Os níveis máximos alcançados foram: 6,52 mg/l em cäes, 4 h após a administraçäo, decaindo gradativamente até 24 h e 5,50 mg/l, em ovinos 2 h após a administraçäo, decaindo gradativamente até 12 h. A meia-vida biológica foi de 7,55 h para os caninos e 3,93 h, para os ovinos. O "clearance" total foi de 7,16 e 12,66 ml/min/kg, respectivamente no cäo e no carneiro. Cálculos adicionais mostraram que para se manter, nos ovinos, os mesmos níveis sanguíneos previstos para os caninos será necessário administrar dose 1,56 vezes maior ou diminuir o intervalo entre as administraçöes, nesta mesma proporçäo