title: Neutrophil formyl-peptide receptors. Relationship to peptide-induced responses and emphysema.
abstract: A reproducible assay was established to assess the number of formyl-peptide receptors expressed on the surface of human polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN). Using this assay the number of receptors was shown to demonstrate wide within- and between-subject variability. However, the receptor numbers were related to the chemotactic response (r = 0.572) and degranulation response (r = 0.512) to the peptide formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine. Subsequent studies showed increased receptor numbers on PMN from patients with emphysema (median, 459 x 10(3)/cell; range, 207 to 1,080) as compared with age-matched control subjects (median, 288; range, 168 to 519; p < 0.02), which may explain the increased chemotactic response of the PMN to formyl peptides. This difference was not observed in patients with bronchiectasis, suggesting that the increased receptor number is a feature of emphysema. Furthermore, the increase was largely a feature of smokers with emphysema (median, 463; range, 362 to 1,080), whereas age-matched smokers without emphysema had lower numbers of receptors (p < 0.001; median, 332; range, 243 to 411). This observation suggests a mechanism that may explain the susceptibility of some smokers to the development of emphysema.
authors.affiliation: Lung Immunobiochemical Research Laboratory, General Hospital, Birmingham, England.
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Stockley
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Grant
authors.forename: C G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Llewellyn-Jones
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Burnett
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001987:Bronchiectasis / Q000378:metabolism; D015550:Cell Degranulation / Q000502:physiology; D002634:Chemotaxis, Leukocyte / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009240:N-Formylmethionine Leucyl-Phenylalanine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009504:Neutrophils / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000166:cytology; D011656:Pulmonary Emphysema / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism*; D044042:Receptors, Formyl Peptide; D011971:Receptors, Immunologic / Q000032:analysis*; D018000:Receptors, Peptide / Q000032:analysis*; D012907:Smoking / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D044042:Receptors, Formyl Peptide; D011971:Receptors, Immunologic; D018000:Receptors, Peptide; D009240:N-Formylmethionine Leucyl-Phenylalanine