title: Monocyte chemotactic protein-1 is a proinflammatory chemokine in rat skin injection sites and chemoattracts basophilic granular cells.
abstract: Chemokines may control mast cell infiltrates found in many inflammatory diseases. These cells act through at least two main functions: migration and degranulation. Here we show that human recombinant monocyte chemotactic protein (MCP)-1 (10 ng/50 microliters) induces, after 4 h, an inflammatory vascular permeability and cellular extravasation reaction, determined by Evan's blue dye (1% in saline) injected into the tail vein of the rat, when injected intradermally in the rat skin. The blue color accumulating at the sites of injection provides evidence of vascular permeability and cellular extravasation. The colored areas of the skin were then enucleated and immersed in a fixative solution. Slides were prepared with sections of tissue colored with toluldine blue and analyzed under an optical microscope. A significant number of basophilic cells migrated to the injected area where MCP-1 (10 ng/50 microliters) was used compared to the control PBS treatment. Cell recruitment was slightly less than N-formyl-methionine-leucyl-phenylalanine (used at 10(-6) M/50 microliters). Electron microscopy studies confirmed the presence of basophilic granular cells where MCP-1 was intradermally injected. After preparation of a histidine decarboxylase (HDC) probe, a Northern blot analysis was determined for HDC mRNA in the enucleated tissue injected with MCP-1 (10 ng/50 microliters). Steady-state levels of HDC mRNA levels were induced after 4 h. These results were confirmed by the higher amount of histamine release, compared to the control PBS, in the enucleated tissue from the MCP-1 injection sites. Our results suggest that MCP-1 could play a significant role in diseases characterized by basophilic cell accumulation and migration to sites of tissue damage. Moreover, we show for the first time that MCP-1 is a pro-inflammatory chemokine that induces basophilic cell migration in rat skin injection sites.
authors.affiliation: Immunology Division, University of Chieti School of Medicine, Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Conti
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Pang
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Boucher
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Letourneau
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Reale
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Barbacane
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Thibault
authors.forename: T C
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Theoharides
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001491:Basophils / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D018932:Chemokine CCL2 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002633:Chemotaxis / Q000187:drug effects; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D006636:Histamine Release / Q000187:drug effects; D006640:Histidine Decarboxylase / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D018836:Inflammation Mediators / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology; D012867:Skin / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D018932:Chemokine CCL2; D017931:DNA Primers; D018836:Inflammation Mediators; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D006640:Histidine Decarboxylase