Premium
Natural glucocorticoids induce survival and proliferation of murine bone marrow granulocytes without altering function
Author(s) -
Trottier Mark Daniel,
Newsted Matthew M.,
Williams Olatundun,
King Louis E.,
Fraker Pamela J.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.22.1_supplement.844.10
Subject(s) - lymphopoiesis , bone marrow , myeloid , myelopoiesis , granulocyte , phagocytosis , progenitor cell , haematopoiesis , apoptosis , immunology , lymphocyte , chemotaxis , biology , corticosterone , immune system , endocrinology , chemistry , medicine , stem cell , microbiology and biotechnology , biochemistry , receptor , hormone
Natural glucocorticoids (Gc) produced during stress have profound effects on cells of the immune system. It is known that Gc induce apoptosis in precursor T and B cells markedly altering lymphopoiesis; however, it has been noted that bone marrow myeloid cells expanded both in proportion and absolute numbers in the mouse marrow after Gc treatment. In this study, increased serum Gc and atrophied thymus were observed in mice implanted with corticosterone tablets compared to sham operated mice. Additionally, blood neutrophil counts were elevated dramatically, while lymphocyte counts sharply declined. In the bone marrow, nucleated cell number was unchanged, however the distribution of cell type was dramatically shifted. As expected, marrow lymphocytes declined more than 40% after 3 days, while monocytes and granulocytes increased in number by at least 40%. Further, all granulocyte developmental stages showed dramatic increases in both total number and percent of nucleated marrow. Gc‐exposure had little to no effect on the ability of granulocytes to produce superoxide, undergo chemotaxis or phagocytose bacteria. These results indicated that Gc treatment drastically shifted bone marrow composition and provided evidence that granulocytes and their progenitors were selectively preserved under stressful conditions without losing function. This research was supported by NIH grant DK 52289‐29.