The deficient migration in vitro of lung macrophages from newborn rats normalizes after three days of maturation in situ.
Because there are functional deficiencies in neonatal phagocytes, we investigated age-dependent differences in the directed migration of rat pulmonary macrophages (PM). Directed migration of PMs from newborn (less than 24 h old) rats towards partially purified rat C5a was lower than that of PMs from adults, but reached adult levels by the third post-natal day. Calculation of the dose of C5a resulting in a half-maximal migratory response (ED-50) revealed that the ED-50s for all age groups studied were similar. These results suggest that responding PMs at all times after birth have comparable sensitivity to C5a, but that a lower percentage of newborn PMs migrate toward this factor because of defects in either signal transduction or cell motility.
Kurland
G
G
Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pennsylvania.
Dauber
J H
JH
D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002633:Chemotaxis / Q000187:drug effects; D015936:Complement C5a / Q000494:pharmacology; D008168:Lung / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology; D008264:Macrophages / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013997:Time Factors
D015936:Complement C5a