Termination of the Respiratory Burst in Human Neutrophils

• Text
• PDF

Abstract

Recent evidence has suggested that a particulate O2−-forming system is responsible for the respiratory burst in activated neutrophils. The respiratory burst is normally a transient event, lasting only 30-60 min. To investigate the mechanism by which the burst is terminated, we examined the O2−-forming activity of neutrophil particles as a function of time in the presence and absence of agents known to affect the function of intact cells. Measurements of the O2−-forming capacity of the particles against time of exposure of neutrophils to opsonized zymosan, a potent stimulating agent, revealed a rapid fall in activity when exposure was continued beyond 3 min. Exposure to zymosan under conditions in which the myeloperoxidase system was inactive (i.e., in the presence of myeloperoxidase inhibitors, or in the absence of oxygen) resulted in a substantial increase in the initial O2−-forming activity of particles from the zymosan-treated cells, but did not prevent the sharp fall in activity seen when zymosan exposure exceeded 10 min. The fall in activity was, however, prevented when activation took place in the presence of cytochalasin B (1.5 μg/ml), an agent thought to act largely by paralyzing the neutrophil through an interaction with its microfilament network.

Authors

Robert C. Jandl, Janine André-Schwartz, Linda Borges-Dubois, Ruby S. Kipnes, B. Jane McMurrich, Bernard M. Babior