Microtubule dynamics and glutathione metabolism in phagocytizing human polymorphonuclear leukocytes.

Glutathione oxidants such as tertiary butyl hydroperoxide were shown previously to prevent microtubule assembly and cause breakdown of preassembled cytoplasmic microtubules in human polymorphonuclear leukocytes. The objectives of the present study were to determine the temporal relationship between the attachment and ingestion of phagocytic particles and the assembly of microtubules, and simultaneously to quantify the levels of reduced glutathione and products of its oxidation as potential physiological regulators of assembly. Polymorphonuclear leukocytes from human peripheral blood were induced to phagocytize opsonized zymosan at 30 degrees C. Microtubule assembly was assessed in the electron microscope by direct counts of microtubules in thin sections through centrioles. Acid extracts were assayed for reduced glutathione (GSH) and oxidized glutathione (GSSG), by the sensitive enzymatic procedure of Tietze. Washed protein pellets were assayed for free sulfhydryl groups and for mixed protein disulfides with glutathione (protein-SSG) after borohydride splitting of the disulfide bond. Resting cells have few assembled microtubules. Phagocytosis induces a cycle of rapid assembly followed by disassembly. Assembly is initiated by particle contact and is maximal by 3 min of phagocytosis. Disassembly after 5-9 min of phagocytosis is preceded by a slow rise in GSSG and coincides with a rapid rise in protein-SSG. Protein-SSG also increases under conditions in which butyl hydroperoxide inhibits the assembly of microtubules that normally follows binding of concanavalin A to leukocyte cell surface receptors. No evidence for direct involvement of GSH in the induction of assembly was obtained. The formation of protein-SSG, however, emerges as a possible regulatory mechanism for the inhibition of microtubule assembly and induction of their disassembly.

Guinea Pigs: A Suitable Animal Model to Study Lipoprotein Metabolism, Atherosclerosis and Inflammation

Numerous animal models have been used to study diet effects on cholesterol and lipoprotein metabolism. However, most of those models differ from humans in the plasma distribution of cholesterol and in the processing of lipoproteins in the plasma compartment. Although transgenic or knock-out mice have been used to study a specific pathway involved in cholesterol metabolism, these data are of limited use because other metabolic pathways and responses to interventions may differ from the human condition.Carbohydrate restricted diets have been shown to reduce plasma triglycerides, increase HDL cholesterol and promote the formation of larger, less atherogenic LDL. However, the mechanisms behind these responses and the relation to atherosclerotic events in the aorta have not been explored in detail due to the lack of an appropriate animal model. Guinea pigs carry the majority of the cholesterol in LDL and possess cholesterol ester transfer protein and lipoprotein lipase activities, which results in reverse cholesterol transport and delipidation cascades equivalent to the human situation. Further, carbohydrate restriction has been shown to alter the distribution of LDL subfractions, to decrease cholesterol accumulation in aortas and to decrease aortic cytokine expression. It is the purpose of this review to discuss the use of guinea pigs as useful models to evaluate diet effects on lipoprotein metabolism, atherosclerosis and inflammation with an emphasis on carbohydrate restricted diets.