title: Which mechanisms are involved in taurine-dependent granulocytic immune response or amino- and alpha-keto acid homeostasis?
abstract: We examined the effects of beta-alanine (taurine analogue and taurine transport antagonist), taurine (regarding its role in neutrophil (PMN) immunonutrition) and taurine combined either with L-NAME (inhibitor of *NO-synthase), SNAP (*NO donor), DON (glutamine-analogue and inhibitor of glutamine-requiring enzymes), DFMO (inhibitor of ornithine-decarboxylase) and beta-alanine on neutrophil amino- and alpha-keto acid profiles or important PMN immune functions in order to establish whether taurine transport-, nitric oxide-, glutamine- or ornithine-dependent mechanisms are involved in any of the taurine-induced effects. According to the present findings, the taurine-mediated effect appears to be based primarily on a modulation of important transmembraneous transport mechanisms and only secondarily on directly or indirectly induced modifications in intragranulocytic amino- and alpha-keto acid homoeostasis or metabolism. Although a direct relation to the parallel observed immunological modifications can only be presumed, these results show very clearly that compositional modifications in the free intragranulocytic amino- and alpha keto-acid pools coinciding with changes in intragranulocytic taurine levels are relevant metabolic determinants that can significantly influence the magnitude and quality of the granulocytic immune response.
authors.affiliation: Clinics of Anaesthesiology, Intensive Care Medicine and Pain Therapy, University Hospital Giessen and Marburg, Justus-Liebig-University Giessen, Giessen, Federal Republic of Germany. joerg.muehling@chiru.med.uni-giessen.de
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mühling
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Nickolaus
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Matejec
authors.forename: T W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Langefeld
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Harbach
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Engel
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wolff
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Weismüller
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fuchs
authors.forename: I D
authors.initials: ID
authors.lastname: Welters
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Krüll
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Heidt
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Hempelmann
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000596:Amino Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D003980:Diazooxonorleucine / Q000494:pharmacology; D000518:Eflornithine / Q000494:pharmacology; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000378:metabolism; D007651:Keto Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D019331:NG-Nitroarginine Methyl Ester / Q000494:pharmacology; D009504:Neutrophils / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology*; D009195:Peroxidase / Q000378:metabolism; D026423:S-Nitroso-N-Acetylpenicillamine / Q000494:pharmacology; D013481:Superoxides / Q000378:metabolism; D013654:Taurine / Q000502:physiology*; D015091:beta-Alanine / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D007651:Keto Acids; D003980:Diazooxonorleucine; D013481:Superoxides; D015091:beta-Alanine; D013654:Taurine; D026423:S-Nitroso-N-Acetylpenicillamine; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide; D009195:Peroxidase; D019331:NG-Nitroarginine Methyl Ester; D000518:Eflornithine