title: Erythromycin inhibition of lipopolysaccharide-stimulated tumor necrosis factor alpha production by human monocytes in vitro.
abstract: The mechanism of clinical effectiveness of low-dose and long-term erythromycin (EM) treatment for diffuse panbronchiolitis, sinobronchial syndrome, and associated otitis media with effusion was investigated by studying the effects of EM on tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) production by cultured human monocytes stimulated with lipopolysaccharide. At concentrations of 0.1 microgram/mL or more, EM inhibited TNF-alpha release from human monocytes stimulated by lipopolysaccharide in a dose-dependent manner. Of the other macrolides tested, roxithromycin, an EM derivative, also showed significant inhibition of TNF-alpha production, whereas josamycin failed to inhibit TNF-alpha release from monocytes. Nonmacrolidic drugs such as minocycline hydrochloride, ofloxacin, or penicillin G had no significant effect on TNF-alpha production. These results suggest that the clinical improvement of chronic respiratory diseases by EM may depend on the suppression of production of inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-alpha.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, National Medical Center, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Iino
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Toriyama
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kudo
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Natori
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yuo
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D004917:Erythromycin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004926:Escherichia coli; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009000:Monocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000096:biosynthesis*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D004917:Erythromycin