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Biomedical subjects

G L Logue

Publications and source records attributed to G L Logue.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Complement activation by heparin-protamine complexes during cardiopulmonary bypass: effect of C4A null allele.

OBJECTIVES: The first objective was to determine the effect of inherited differences in the classic pathway complement protein C4 on complement activation by heparin-protamine complexes in cardiac surgery. Specifically, we hypothesized that patients with heterozygous C4A null phenotype (A0BB), who have decreased amounts of C4A, may have increased complement activation because of reduced clearance of heparin-protamine complexes. The second objective was to determine whether heparin-protamine-induced complement activation correlated with postoperative pulmonary shunt fractions. METHODS: C4 typing was performed by agarose gel immunofixation and crossed immunoelectrophoresis. Complement activation was measured by radioimmunoassay of C3a and C4a before cardiopulmonary bypass, after bypass, and after protamine infusion. Shunt fractions were calculated from blood gases. RESULTS: Of the 79 patients, 18 expressed heterozygous C4A null allele (A0BB), 16 had heterozygous C4B null allele (AAB0), three had homozygous C4B null alleles (AA00), and the rest expressed both C4A and C4B alleles (AABB). Patients with heterozygous C4A null allele had significantly increased plasma levels of C4a after protamine neutralization of heparin (C4a of 2862 +/- 375 ng/ml; mean +/- standard error of the mean) when compared with patients with normal expression of C4 alleles (AABB) (C4a of 1580 +/- 141 ng/ml) or heterozygous C4B null allele (C4a 1526 +/- 208 ng/ml). Pulmonary shunt fractions obtained after the operation correlated with the classic pathway complement activation by heparin-protamine complexes, but not with alternative pathway complement activation during cardiopulmonary bypass. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with heterozygous C4A null phenotype have increased complement activation by heparin-protamine complexes during cardiac operations, possibly because of their defective clearance. The classic pathway complement activation by heparin-protamine interaction correlates with postoperative pulmonary shunt fractions.

Alleles

Diving decompression fails to activate complement.

The present study evaluated complement activation during decompression after air dives in a hyperbaric chamber. Intravascular bubbles were quantified by Doppler ultrasound scoring. Eighteen subjects completed 92 dives, of which 74 produced bubbles. Complement activation was assessed by plasma C3a des Arg and red-cell-bound C3d before and after each dive. These parameters of in vivo complement activation failed to show significant activation. In vitro complement activation susceptibility tests on pre-dive sera were performed to explore their association with in vivo complement activation and intravascular bubbles. Such tests failed to identify a distinct complement-sensitive group and did not correlate with in vivo complement activation during the dives and/or intravascular bubble appearance. Two subjects developed decompression sickness but were not different from the rest of the group regarding in vitro complement sensitivity or complement activation during dives.

Adult

Autoimmune neutropenia.

There have been several new developments in the field of autoimmune neutropenia over the past decade. Neutropenia caused by antibodies directed against granulocyte precursor cells, the oligoclonal nature of antineutrophil antibodies, and the expanding knowledge of neutrophil antigens, particularly in relationship to autoantibodies, are exciting new areas of investigation. Knowledge has also been advanced in the effector mechanisms of neutrophil autoantibodies and the effect of autoantibodies on the neutrophil function. In addition, some clinical syndromes of immune neutropenia have been better defined over the past decade, such as autoimmune neutropenia of infancy and chronic idiopathic neutropenia in adults. The past decade also saw interesting developments in the treatment of immune neutropenia, particularly in the use of gammaglobulin preparations and more recently in the advent of hematopoietic growth factors. This review focuses on these newer aspects of autoimmune neutropenia.

Animals

Light chain composition of serum granulocyte binding immunoglobulins.

Serum granulocyte binding IgG, IgM, and the light chain composition of granulocyte binding immunoglobulins were measured in 58 adult subjects, including 8 normal individuals, 6 with Felty syndrome, 6 with chronic idiopathic neutropenia, 32 with B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), and 6 with multiple myeloma. An abnormal kappa/lambda ratio of granulocyte binding immunoglobulins was detected in 12 of 32 patients with CLL. Neutropenia in patients with CLL did not correlate with an abnormal kappa/lambda ratio or excess granulocyte binding IgG, but did correlate with granulocyte binding IgM (P less than 0.02). Eight of the 12 patients (5 with chronic idiopathic neutropenia and 3 with Felty syndrome) with an immune neutropenia without underlying neoplastic disorder had light chain restricted granulocyte binding immunoglobulins. Of all patients' sera with light chain restriction, 76% were of lambda light chain isotype. Thus, the frequent detection of light chain restriction of granulocyte binding immunoglobulins is not a reflection of malignancy but is suggestive of the somatic mutation of immunoglobulin light chain genes.

Felty Syndrome

Complement activation by artificial blood substitute Fluosol: in vitro and in vivo studies.

A perfluorocarbon blood substitute, Fluosol, is undergoing clinical trials as an adjunct to chemotherapy. The adverse effects associated with its administration have been postulated to result from complement activation. When gel electrophoresis and Western blotting of Fluosol are used after its incubation with serum, activated C3 and factors Bb and H are bound to the Fluosol particles in a time-dependent fashion, which suggests that complement activation with Fluosol, as does that with zymosan, occurs on the surface of the particles. Paradoxically, it is found, both by the measurement of Fluosol-bound C3d and by fluid-phase C5a, that lower concentrations of Fluosol cause greater amounts of complement activation, which suggests a complex interaction of activators and inhibitors that changes as the available surface area is decreased. Studies performed with bystander red cell-bound C3d demonstrated in vivo complement activation occurring in six patients receiving Fluosol as an adjunct to chemotherapy for colon cancer. In two patients, there was a marked increase in red cell-bound C3d after Fluosol infusion; these two patients also developed adverse reactions during Fluosol infusion. These studies suggest that the Fluosol surface plays a major role in the initiation and regulation of complement activation that is seen during Fluosol infusion.

Adenocarcinoma

In vitro activation of human complement by nitrogen bubbles.

Complement activation may be responsible for some of the symptoms of decompression sickness. In the present study, complement activation was studied by exposing human sera with or without red blood cells to nitrogen bubbles. Nitrogen bubbles activated human complement as measured by generation of the fluid-phase, complement-split product C5a des Arg. In addition, we found that complement activation continued after exposure to bubbles was stopped. This continued complement activation may explain the failure of recompression treatment in some patients. Complement activation induced by nitrogen bubbles in human sera was enhanced when red cells were present. Red cells may be able to provide a stable membrane surface on which complement activation by bubbles can occur more efficiently. Complement activation by nitrogen bubbles in serum also led to the binding of activated C3 to red cells. Quantitation of bystander red-cell-bound C3d may allow the assessment of complement activation occurring by nitrogen bubbles in individuals undergoing decompression.

Complement Activation

Idiopathic neutropenia: antineutrophil antibodies and clinical correlations.

PURPOSE: The present study was done to evaluate the clinical characteristics of a large series of adult patients with chronic idiopathic neutropenia, and correlate the presence of antineutrophil antibodies, their class (IgG or IgM), and their ability to fix complement with clinical parameters, including other hemocytopenias, splenomegaly, and infections. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred twenty-one adult patients with chronic idiopathic neutropenia were studied. Serum neutrophil-binding antibodies were measured using paraformaldehyde-fixed granulocytes (PFGs) from normal volunteers as target cells. 125I-labeled staphylococcal protein A was used to detect IgG antibodies while IgM antibodies were detected by using 125I-labeled mouse monoclonal anti-IgM antibody. Sera containing antineutrophil antibodies were tested for their ability to fix complement on donor PFGs by using 125I-labeled monoclonal antibody to the third component of complement. RESULTS: Of the 121 patients with chronic idiopathic neutropenia, 71 patients had isolated neutropenia, while 50 had neutropenia combined with either anemia and/or thrombocytopenia. Among the 71 patients with isolated neutropenia, there were 51 females (72%), compared with 28 females (56%) among the 50 patients with combined hemocytopenias (p = 0.083). Patients with multiple hemocytopenias were significantly older (p less than 0.01), were more likely to demonstrate splenomegaly (p = 0.001), and may have had more infectious complications. From all the patients, 36% of sera were shown to have antineutrophil antibodies, with a non-significant trend for these to be found more frequently in patients with multiple hemocytopenias. Sera with mixed IgG-IgM antineutrophil antibodies were significantly more likely to fix complement than those with isolated IgG or IgM antibodies, and among the patients with antineutrophil antibodies, complement-fixing antibodies were significantly associated with multiple hemocytopenias. Splenomegaly was significantly associated both with antineutrophil antibodies (p = 0.008) and with infections (p = 0.007). Antineutrophil antibodies were not associated with infections. CONCLUSIONS: Approximately one third of adult patients with idiopathic neutropenia have IgG and/or IgM antineutrophil antibodies demonstrable in their serum. There is a subset of patients with idiopathic neutropenia with multiple hemocytopenias who tend to be older, less likely to show female predominance, more likely to have splenomegaly and infections, and more likely to have antineutrophil antibodies, especially mixed IgG-IgM and complement-fixing antibodies.

Adult

Acquired factor VIII inhibitor with squamous cell cancer of the epiglottis.

A 73-year-old woman developed an acquired factor VIII inhibitor in association with squamous cell carcinoma of the epiglottis. The inhibitor was an IgG antibody that reacted with factor VIII in vitro and in vivo. Intravenous gamma-globulin therapy was successful in reducing the inhibitor so that curative surgery could be undertaken. With surgical resection of the tumor the inhibitor did not recur. The relevance of this type of coagulation disorder to the surgical management of the patient's head and neck cancer is discussed.

Aged

Effect of RBCs on the activation of human complement by heparin-protamine complexes.

Complement activation on red cells by heparin-protamine complexes was studied by using whole human serum. C3 bound to red cells was measured by radiolabeled monoclonal antibody to C3, and fluid-phase C5a was determined by radioimmunoassay. Heparin and protamine in clinically relevant concentrations caused the binding of C3 to red cell membranes, and the measurement of C3 binding provided a sensitive indicator of complement activation produced by these complexes. Complement activation by these reagents occurred at concentration ratios of protamine and heparin at which protamine neutralized the anticoagulant effect of heparin. Heparin-protamine complexes appeared to bind to red cells and produce complement activation by the classic pathway. C5a generation with heparin-protamine complexes in serum was greatly enhanced in the presence of red cells and increased with increasing red cell concentration. This enhancement of complement activation in the presence of red cells was also seen as measured by depletion of available C3 hemolytic complement units in the fluid phase. Thus red cells seem to play an important role in activation of complement by heparin-protamine complexes.

Complement Activation

Effect of antigen site and complement receptor status on the rate of cleavage of C3c antigen from red cell bound C3b.

C3b was bound to human red cells when serum complement was activated by addition of antibodies directed against different red cell antigens, and the rate of cleavage to C3dg was determined by assay for loss of bound C3c antigens using radiolabeled monoclonal anti-C3c. When C3b was bound by antibodies to antigens on branched-chain glycoproteins, cleavage to C3dg occurred more rapidly than when C3b was bound by antibodies to antigens closer to the red cell lipid bilayer. The rate of cleavage to C3dg also correlated directly with the number of complement receptors (CR1) per red cell, reflecting their role as cofactors in the cleavage of iC3b by factor I. Thus, the life span of C3b/iC3b on human red cells, which may be important for determining the rate and mechanism of clearance of C3-coated red cells, appears to depend on the CR1 status of the red cells and the characteristics of the antigen sites around which complement is bound.

Antigens

Flecanide-induced immune neutropenia. Documentation of a hapten-mediated mechanism of cell destruction.

Immune-mediated granulocytopenia due to cardiac antiarrhythmic medications is a rare, but potentially dangerous, event. This article characterizes the first case, to our knowledge, of severe granulocytopenia associated with the administration of flecanide acetate, a new class I antiarrhythmic drug. Immunologic studies determined that flecanide was capable of binding to the surface of normal neutrophils. The patient's serum contained an IgG antibody that could specifically bind to the haptenized neutrophils, presumably mediating enhanced destruction of mature granulocytes both in the serum and within the bone marrow. Cessation of flecanide therapy resulted in resolution of the granulocytopenia. The titer of antineutrophil antibody in the patient's serum decreased to background levels within the next five months. Similar antibodies were not found in serum from nonsensitized individuals. The capacity of flecanide to bind to normal neutrophils may prove to be a significant risk factor for the subsequent development of antineutrophil antibodies and agranulocytosis in patients receiving this drug. Careful hematologic monitoring of all patients who are receiving this medication is, therefore, strongly urged.

Aged

Granulocyte antibodies in leukaemic chronic lymphoproliferative disorders.

The anti-granulocyte activity of serum from patients with B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) and other lymphoproliferative disorders was investigated. Granulocyte-binding IgG was measured in 34 patients with CLL, 13 patients with hairy cell leukaemia, one patient with prolymphocytic leukaemia, two patients with Sézary cell leukaemia, and seven patients with chronic T-cell lymphocytosis who had a predominance of circulating large granular lymphocytes. Anti-granulocyte activity was absent in CLL and its variants, but present in the majority of granulocytopenic patients with chronic T-cell lymphocytosis. In one of these patients, granulocytopenia was associated with complement-activating IgG granulocyte antibody. Thus, antibody-mediated granulocyte injury appears to be an unusual occurrence in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, but is a frequent complication of chronic T-cell lymphocytosis.

Adult

Antibodies to granulocyte precursors in selective myeloid hypoplasia and other suspected autoimmune neutropenias: use of HL-60 cells as targets.

Patients with syndromes of autoantibody-mediated hematocytopenias may manifest signs of increased cell destruction and/or decreased cell production, depending on the maturity of the target cell and the effects of antibody binding. The purpose of this study was to use a cultured human cell line of hematopoietic origin for in vitro assays of antibody binding to overcome the relative inaccessibility of natural human marrow progenitor cells. This report describes the detection, using radioiodinated staphylococcal protein A (SPA), of antibodies binding to a human promyelocytic cell line (HL-60) in sera from three patients with chronic idiopathic granulocytic hypoplasia ("pure white cell aplasia," PWCA) and 22 patients with other syndromes of suspected immune neutropenia. Bone marrow from patients with increased IgG binding to HL-60 cells showed less than 15% granulocytic lineage cellularity in 11 of 17 cases. In vitro differentiation of HL-60 cells by retinoic acid resulted in increased IgG binding for sera that had shown increased IgG binding to mature granulocytes but not undifferentiated HL-60 cells; in contrast, for sera with antibodies to untreated HL-60 cells and for normal serum, in vitro differentiation had little effect on IgG binding. Antibodies eluted from mature granulocytes were similar to the parent serum regarding the ratio of IgG binding to mature cells v HL-60 cells. No sera from 19 patients with febrile transfusion reactions showed increased IgG binding to HL-60 cells in the absence of increased IgG binding to mature granulocytes, although two sera had antibodies to both cell types. The use of HL-60 cells as targets may permit measurement of serum antibodies associated with granulocytic hypoplasia. In combination with assays to detect antibody binding to mature granulocytes, these techniques may discriminate among autoantibody specificities for antigens that are gained, conserved, or lost during myeloid maturation.

Aged

Teardrop-shaped red cells in autoimmune hemolytic anemia.

The presence of teardrop-shaped red cells in peripheral blood has traditionally been felt to reflect altered marrow architecture, namely myelofibrosis. We evaluated two patients with splenomegaly, moderately severe hemolytic anemia due to warm-reactive IgG anti-red cell autoantibody, and bone marrow erythroid hyperplasia without myelofibrosis. A striking predominance of teardrop-shaped red cells was noted upon examination of their blood films. Removal of a spleen containing extramedullary hematopoiesis in one and resolution of splenomegaly in the other were accompanied by disappearance of these cells. Our observations support a role for the spleen and for extramedullary hematopoiesis in the pathogenesis of this distinctive red cell morphologic abnormality.

Anemia, Hemolytic, Autoimmune

Complement-activating antineutrophil antibody in systemic lupus erythematosus.

Serum samples from 18 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) were tested for neutrophil C3-fixing ability and neutrophil-binding lgG by the binding of radioiodinated monoclonal anti-C3 antibody and staphylococcal protein A to paraformaldehyde-fixed allogeneic neutrophils sensitized with serum. Serum from patients with SLE resulted in the binding of significantly greater amounts of lgG to neutrophils than normal serum, but this lgG binding did not correlate with the degree of neutropenia. In contrast, serum samples from 10 neutropenic patients with SLE resulted in the binding of significantly greater amounts of C3 to neutrophils when compared with serum samples from eight non-neutropenic patients with SLE. Fixation of C3 to neutrophils by serum from patients with SLE appeared to be due to the binding of complement-activating monomeric antineutrophil lgG autoantibody. A significant negative correlation (r = -0.78) between the neutrophil count and the C3-fixing ability of serum from patients with SLE suggested that antineutrophil antibody-mediated activation of complement may be important in the pathophysiology of neutropenia in SLE.

Antibody-Dependent Cell Cytotoxicity