An optimized permeabilization step for flow cytometry analysis of nuclear proteins in myeloid differentiation of blood cells into neutrophils.

Polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNLs) or neutrophils play an important role in the innate immune response. Working with human neutrophils is challenging because these cells are sensitive to changes in the surrounding media and quickly become apoptotic. Meanwhile the experiments with mature neutrophils may be very important for studies of blood function. In this paper we propose an improved technique of flow cytometry nuclear protein analysis with double antibody labeling, which allows direct comparison of protein quantity (overlay histograms) in the primary cells (neutrophils) and progenitor cell lines (line HL-60), to study differentiation process and for other research purposes. We suggest improved technique to analyze and compare nuclear proteins levels in the myeloid differentiation model system (HL-60 cell line) and / or primary human neutrophils. This method was justified with measurement of GFI1 protein expression level, as well-known transcription factor, typical and essential for mature neutrophils. The key protocol features are as follows: •Suggested protocol allows simply, direct and correct visual comparison of flow cytometry data in overlay diagrams for myeloid blood cells on various stages of differentiation.•70% ethanol permeabilization of neutrophils and HL-60 cells results in lower background fluorescence and better peak resolution than MeOH and Saponin permeabilization.•Non-specific antibody binding in neutrophils can be efficiently blocked by using 1% BSA and non-immune goat serum.

Interaction of ceruloplasmin and 5-lipoxygenase.

The interaction between ceruloplasmin (CP), the multicopper oxidase of human plasma, and 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO), the key enzyme of leukotriene synthesis, is shown for the first time. By Western-blotting and mass spectrometry of tryptic fragments, it is shown that 5-LO from protein extract of human leukocytes binds with immobilized CP. Dose-dependent influence of intact CP on leukotrienes synthesis is found: CP reduced leukotrienes synthesis in leukocytes in a dose above 50 µg/ml (normal CP concentration in plasma is about 300-400 µg/ml). Proteolyzed CP and apo-form of CP is unable to inhibit activity of 5-LO. CP increased activity of 5-LO at low doses (5-10 µg/ml). On the whole, the influence of CP on phagocytosis index of leukocytes coordinates with influence on activity of 5-LO: the index increased in the range of 2-10 µg/ml CP and decreased at doses of CP above 40 µg/ml. The dual role of CP in regulation of cellular response of leukocytes is discussed.

Cyclooxygenase (COX) and 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX) selectivity of COX inhibitors.

In vitro evaluations of the selectivity of COX inhibitors are based on a great variety of experimental protocols. As a result, data available on cyclooxygenase (COX)-1/COX-2/5- lipoxygenase (LOX) selectivity of COX inhibitors lack consistency. We, therefore, performed a systematic analysis of the COX-1/COX-2/5-LOX selectivity of 14 compounds with selective COX inhibitory activity (Coxibs). The compounds belonged to different structural classes and were analyzed employing the well-recognized whole-blood assay. 5-LOX activity was also tested on isolated human polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Among COX inhibitors, celecoxib and ML-3000 (licofelone) inhibited 5-LOX in human neutrophils at micromolar ranges. Surprisingly, ML-3000 had no effect on 5-LOX product synthesis in whole-blood assay. In addition, we could show that inhibition of COX pathways did not increase the transformation of arachidonic acid by the 5-LOX pathway.

Biosynthesis of leukotriene B4 in human polymorphonuclear leukocytes: regulation by cholesterol and other lipids.

Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) is one of the most potent chemotactic compounds produced in macrophages and neutrophils. LTB4 is a product of arachidonic acid oxygenation by 5-lipoxygenase pathway. We present here the data on regulation of LT synthesis in human polymorphonuclear leukocytes by cholesterol, cholesterol sulfate and cholesterol phosphate. The addition of Pseudomonas aeruginosa lipopolysaccharides (LPS) with lipid vesicles containing phosphatidylcholine or phosphatidylcholine/cholesterol (70:30) showed that omitting cholesterol abolished the effect of LPS on LT synthesis. We show here the capacity of cholesterol sulfate, the most abundant sulfated sterol in human blood, to suppress LT production in human neutrophils and to neutralize the effect of P. aeruginosa LPS on LT synthesis. We suggest that sulfated lipids serve as specific endogenous regulators of LT synthesis in neutrophils, and anti-inflammatory therapy may be based on modification of cholesterol level and its conversion to anionic derivatives.

[Suppression of 5-lipoxygenase activity by anionic cholesterol derivatives].

5-Lipoxygenase (5-LO) is a key enzyme involved in leukotriene (LTs) biosynthesis which act as host defense mediators, and inflammatory agents as well. In this work the influence of anionic cholesterol derivatives on 5-LO activity has been investigated. Cholesterol sulfate activated human polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNL) and stimulated their adhesion to endothelium and collagen. Cholesterol sulfate and cholesterol phosphate suppressed leukotriene production in PMNL and in rat RBL-1 cells. Kinetic characteristics of this process are presented. Cholesterol phosphate (charge -2) was shown to be more potent inhibitor then cholesterol sulfate (charge-1) in all experiments. We suppose that this fact highlights the importance of negatively charged ester groups to suppress 5-LO activity.

Sulphatides trigger polymorphonuclear granulocyte spreading on collagen-coated surfaces and inhibit subsequent activation of 5-lipoxygenase.

Sulphatides are sulphate esters of galactocerebrosides that are present on the surfaces of many cell types and act as specific ligands to selectins. The present study was undertaken to investigate the effect of sulphatides on polymorphonuclear granulocyte (PMN) attachment, spreading and 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) metabolism. Sulphatides, but not non-sulphated galactocerebrosides, dose-dependently enhanced attachment to collagen, as measured by the myeloperoxidase assay. Studies with blocking antibodies indicated that the increased attachment was mediated by CD11b/CD18 (Mac-1) beta 2 integrin. Scanning electron microscopy indicated that sulphatides also greatly enhanced the degree of cell spreading. In PMNs treated in suspension, sulphatides had no effect on the ionophore A23187-stimulated release of arachidonic acid and the synthesis of 5-LO metabolites. In contrast, in PMNs attached to collagen, the enzymic conversion of arachidonic acid by 5-LO was inhibited by sulphatides. Inhibition of 5-LO metabolism by sulphatides was observed even in the presence of exogenous substrate, suggesting that sulphatides directly inhibited 5-LO action. Consistent with this, sulphatides interfered with ionophore-induced translocation of the 5-LO to the nuclear envelope. Substances competing with sulphatide binding to cells, like dextran sulphate, or a strong inhibitor of cell spreading, like the actin-polymerizing agent jasplakinolide, prevented the effects of sulphatides on PMN attachment and spreading and leukotriene synthesis. We conclude that shape changes occurring in response to sulphatides specifically impair PMN leukotriene synthesis by inhibiting translocation of 5-LO.

Inhibition of neutrophil spreading during adhesion to fibronectin reveals formation of long tubulovesicular cell extensions (cytonemes).

Human neutrophils developed long thin tubulovesicular extensions (cytonemes) upon adhesion to fibronectin-coated substrata, when spreading was blocked. We observed extension formation when neutrophils were plated to fibronectin-coated substrata in Na(+)-free extracellular medium or in the presence of drugs capable of inhibiting spreading: 4-bromophenacyl bromide, N-ethylmaleimide, 7-chloro-4-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazole, and cytochalasin D. Addition of Na(+) ions or washing of inhibitors restored neutrophil spreading. Phase-contrast and scanning electron microscopy revealed two types of extensions: (1) highly dynamic, flexible tubulovesicular extensions with unattached tips 0.2-0.4 microm in diameter, which can achieve 70-80 microm in length during 20 min, and (2) thinner straight extensions with flattened tips, which were formed in the presence of phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate and connected cells to substratum or to the neighboring cells several cell diameters away. The latter may have derived from the former through tension after attachment of the tips. Spreading and extension formation may represent two states of the cell adhesive and communicative mechanism.

Effects of suramin on PMN interactions with different surfaces.

Human polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) were found to tightly adhere on endothelial (lines EAhy926 and ECV304) and collagen surfaces under the influence of the chemotherapeutic drug suramin. This was observed by scanning electron microscopy and quantitated by myeloperoxidase assays. Suramin also inhibited Ca2+ ionophore A23187-stimulated leukotriene (LT) synthesis in PMN interaction with endothelial cells or with collagen surface. Suramin decreased the release of radiolabeled arachidonic acid (AA) and 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) metabolites by prelabeled PMN stimulated with A23187. Using agents releasing the suramin-stimulated adhesion namely jasplakonolide and dextran sulfate, we observed a reversal of the suramin effect on leukotriene synthesis. Jasplakonolide released the adhesion of PMN on endothelial and collagen-coated surfaces and restored 5-LO activity. Dextran-sulfate released adhesion on collagen-coated surfaces and abolished suramin inhibition. Arachidonate could also overcome adhesion and inhibition of 5-LO. We conclude that suramin-induced tight attachment of PMN on to solid surfaces lead to decreased leukotriene synthesis during subsequent A23187 stimulation in the absence of exogenous substrates.

Dependence of neutrophil activation on cell density and adhesion.

Upon an increasing cell density human neutrophils develop more cell-to-cell contacts in conjunction with an increase in the pHi. These changes are accompanied by decreased superoxide formation after adherence, and a decrease in the total amount of 5-lipoxygenase products after various stimuli. Among the various arachidonate metabolites, leukotriene formation remained almost constant but the yield in 5-HETE decreased. This drop in could account for the decrease in total 5-lipoxygenase products observed when the cell density increased. We conclude that cellular signalling can be affected by an increase of cell-cell interactions. Whether the increase in cellular pH is a cause or consequence of such contact inhibition has yet be answered.

Involvement of ecto-ATPase and extracellular ATP in polymorphonuclear granulocyte-endothelial interactions.

The adhesion of human polymorphonuclear granulocytes (PMN) with confluent human endothelial cells (line EAhy926) and with solid substrate coated by collagen and fibronectin (Fn) was studied by phase contrast microscopy and by the measurement of myeloperoxidase activity. The ecto-ATPase inhibitors suramin and Reactive Blue 2 (RB2) more than doubled the adhesion of PMN to endothelial cells. The cells hydrolyzed added ATP and this reaction was inhibited by suramin and RB2. The degree of ATP hydrolysis during PMN adherence depended on solid substrata and decreased in the order: non-stimulated endothelial cells, TNF-stimulated endothelial cells, collagen-coated surface, Fn-coated surface. In the same order adherence increased. The endogenous level of extracellular ATP in the PMN-endothelial coculture was around 25 nM. We conclude that PMN-endothelial adhesion is counteracted by an ecto-ATPase or by ATP receptors with ATPase activity. Such interactions may play a role in PMN rolling and diapedesis as well as in the pathophysiology of PMN activation by an anergic endothelium.

Regulation of intracellular pH by phospholipase A2 and protein kinase C upon neutrophil adhesion to solid substrata.

Adhesion to solid substrata has been shown to increase intracellular pH (pH(i)) of fibroblasts and of other cells (FEBS Lett. (1988) 234, 449-450; Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA (1989) 86, 4525-4529; J. Biol. Chem. (1990) 265, 1327-1332; Exp. Cell Res. (1992) 200, 211-214; FEBS Lett. (1995) 374, 17-20). We have found that the inhibitors of PLA2, 4-bromophenacyl bromide and manoalide, completely blocked the increase of pH(i) and spreading of neutrophils upon adhesion to solid substrata. Inhibition of phospholipase C with neomycin or removal of extracellular Ca2+ affects neither neutrophil spreading nor their pH(i). Inhibition of PKC with H-7 or staurosporin increased pH(i). PMA, an activator of PKC, dramatically decreased pH(i) but did not impair the spreading of neutrophils. The effect of arachidonic acid, a product of PLA2 activity, on neutrophil pH(i) and spreading was similar to that of PMA. H-7, an inhibitor of PKC, partially blocked the effect of arachidonic acid (AA) on pH(i). BW755C, an inhibitor of AA metabolism by cyclooxygenase or lipoxygenase, affected neither the pH(i) nor cell spreading. We propose that the increase of pH(i) upon neutrophil adhesion is mediated by PLA2 activity, while PKC decreased pH(i). AA produced by PLA2 activates PKC, thus forming a feedback regulation of pH(i).

Competitive inhibition of the 5-lipoxygenase-catalysed linoleate oxidation by arachidonic and 5-hydroperoxy-eicosatetraenoic acids.

Linoleic and arachidonic acids are competing substrates for 5-lipoxygenase from barley. When these two substrates are added simultaneously, arachidonic acid acts as a competitive inhibitor of linoleic acid oxidation with Ki of 20 microM, the same value as the Michaelis constant for arachidonate oxygenation by this enzyme (22 +/- 3 microM). Linoleic acid hydroperoxide accumulated in the reaction mixture does not inhibit the enzymatic process, while arachidonic acid hydroperoxy product (5-hydroperoxy-6,8,11,14-eicosatetraenoic acid) inhibits it with very low Ki equal to 0.5 microM.

Regulation of intracellular pH by cell-cell adhesive interactions.

As was shown in our previous work, the intracellular pH (pHi) of cultured human fibroblasts depends on cell density. The pHi is low in single cells, higher in cells, forming small groups and maximal in a sparse monolayer. On the other hand, the pHi is low in areas of confluent monolayers. In the present work, we show that the effects of inhibitors of various pH-controlling mechanisms as well as inhibitors of key enzymes in signal transduction pathways depend on the local cell density. We have found that N-ethylmaleimide and 7-chloro-4-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazole, known as inhibitors of V-type H+ ATPase, inhibit the elevation of pHi induced by cell-cell contact interactions; meanwhile Cd2+ ions, which inhibit H+ conductive pathway, cause an increase of pHi in a confluent monolayer. Our data revealed also that the Na+/H+ antiporter does not play an essential role in the pHi regulation by intercellular contacts. Inhibitors of phospholipase A2 (4-bromophenacyl-bromide), phospholipase C (neomycin) and protein kinase C (H-7) dramatically change the way the pHi is modulated by local cell density. It is suggested that cell-cell interactions regulate cell activities via modulation of pHi, which is under positive control from phospholipase A2 and under negative control from protein kinase C.

[Lipophilic derivatives of caffeic acid as lipoxygenase inhibitors with antioxidant properties]. / Lipofil'nye proizvodnye kofeinoi kisloty--lipoksigenaznye ingibitory s antioksidantnymi svoistvami.

We have prepared two lipophilic derivatives of caffeic acid at the carboxylic function--caffeic acid phenethyl ester, an active component of propolis, and N,N'-dicyclohexyl-O-(3,4-dihydroxycinnamoyl)-isourea. Both substances inhibit barley 5-lipoxygenase and soybean 15-lipoxygenase at micromolar concentrations. The inhibition is uncompetitive, dose-dependent and reversible. The caffeic acid derivatives also exhibit antioxidant properties and at a concentration 5-10 microM completely block the production of the reactive oxygen species in human neutrophils and in the cell-free xanthine/xanthine oxidase system.

Adhesive interactions of neutrophils and leukotriene synthesis.

Cell-substrate and cell-cell adhesion of neutrophils has been found to slow down the calcium ionophore A23187-induced synthesis of 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) metabolites of arachidonic acid. Addition of the exogenous substrate, arachidonic acid (AA), together with A23187, resulted in the enhanced production of leukotriene B4 (LTB4) and 5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (5-HETE) by adherent neutrophils in comparison with those by the cells in suspension. We observed also the enhanced production of 5-LO metabolites in attached cells when we stimulated the cells by the combined action of phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and A23187. Thus, the adhesion to solid substrate and to other cells, an important regulatory factor for the activity of many cells, is a powerful regulator of leukotriene production by neutrophils.

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester as a lipoxygenase inhibitor with antioxidant properties.

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester, an active component of propolis extract, inhibits 5-lipoxygenase in the micromolar concentration range. The inhibition is of an uncompetitive type, i.e. the inhibitor binds to the enzyme-substrate complex but not to the free enzyme. Caffeic acid phenethyl ester also exhibits antioxidant properties. At a concentration of 10 microM, it completely blocks production of reactive oxygen species in human neutrophils and the xanthine/xanthine oxidase system.

Cell-cell contacts alter intracellular pH.

Intracellular pH, an important regulatory factor for many cellular activities, was shown to be modulated by cell adhesion to the solid substratum. In the present work we have shown that cell-cell contacts also affect intracellular pH. pH(i) depends on how many contacts the cell has established with the substratum and the neighboring cells. pH(i) is low in single cells, not contacting each other. It increased with the increase of cell density. pH(i) is again decreased in confluent (topoinhibited) monolayers. pH(i)-shifts triggered by cell-cell contacts seem to be mediated by Na+/H(+)-antiporter. Dependence of pH(i) on cell density could be simulated by different concentration of Arg-Gly-Asp--which is part of the site of extracellular matrix proteins involved in integrin binding. The dependence of pH(i) on cell-cell contacts is discussed in relation to the phenomena of topoinhibition.

Respiratory burst inhibition in human neutrophils by ultra-low doses of [D-Ala2]methionine enkephalinamide.

An ultra-low dose (10(-14) M) of opioid peptide [D-Ala2]methionine enkephalinamide (DAMEA) is found to exert an inhibitory effect on the production of reactive oxygen species (respiratory burst) in human neutrophils. The validity of this phenomenon has been verified in a series of studies that comprised 30 experiments. The inhibition has proved to be statistically significant (P less than 0.001). The dose-response dependence of the effect (10(-15)-10(-9) M) followed a characteristic biphasic pattern (with the maximum effect at ultra-low doses). An opioid antagonist, naloxone partially blocks the inhibitory effect, which indicates that the DAMEA action is at least partially mediated by opioid receptors.

[Lipoxins: study of various biosynthesis pathways]. / Lipoksiny. Issledovanie razlichnykh putei biosinteza.

Lipoxins A4 and B4 were obtained by using soybean lipoxygenase and blood cells as a source of enzymatic activity. The conditions facilitating lipoxin biosynthesis from arachidonic acid catalyzed by soybean 15-lipoxygenase were selected. A comparative analysis of lipoxin biosynthesis with the use of cell suspensions containing only granulocytes and of mixed suspensions (platelets + granulocytes and platelets + total fraction of blood leucocytes) was carried out.