1 Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine, The Royal Group of Hospitals Trust, Grosvenor Road, Belfast BT12 6BA, 2 Department of Anaesthetics and Intensive Care Medicine and 3 Department of Microbiology and Immunobiology, Queens University of Belfast, Whitla Medical Building, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK*Corresponding author: Department of Anaesthetics and Intensive Care Medicine, Whitla Medical Building, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
Declaration of interest. We are grateful to Polystan UK who provided the cardiopulmonary bypass circuits for this study. This study was supported by a grant from BOC gases (UK) for the ELISA assays and supply of xenon. Dr Bedi was supported by a Research Fellowship from the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland (19982000).
This work was presented as an abstract to the Anaesthetic Research Society.
Accepted for publication: April 28, 2002
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Abstract |
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Methods. We examined the effects of 70% xenon in oxygen on cytokine balance and expression of adhesion molecules in an isolated cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) system, which simulates an evolving inflammatory response. Whole blood from 10 healthy male volunteers was circulated in a CBP system supplied with either 70% xenon in oxygen, or oxygen-enriched air FO2=0.3 (control). We took samples of blood after 30, 60 and 90 min of simulated CBP. We measured interleukin (IL)-1ß, tumour necrosis factor (TNF), IL-8, IL-10, IL-1ra and TNF-sr-2 levels, and the expression of HLA-DR and the adhesion molecules L-selectin, CD18 and CD11b on monocytes, granulocytes and lymphocytes.
Results. IL-8 concentrations were increased significantly, TNF-sr-2 concentrations decreased significantly and IL-10 levels decreased during bypass. There were no significant differences between the groups for any measured variable.
Conclusion. In an isolated CPB system, xenon and oxygen-enriched air had similar effects on cytokine production and expression of adhesion molecules.
Br J Anaesth 2002; 88: 54650
Keywords: anaesthetic gases, xenon; immune response; polypeptides, cytokines, adhesion molecules; surgery, cardiopulmonary bypass
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Introduction |
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Extracorporeal cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) stimulates an intense, progressive inflammatory response which includes complement activation, increased adhesion molecule expression and an increase in the plasma concentrations of pro-inflammatory cytokines. We have used this isolated CBP model to study the effects of various anaesthetic medications on the human immune system.4
Because the effects of xenon on immune function are not known, we used the same CPB system to compare the effects of 70% xenon in 30% oxygen with oxygen-enriched air (FO2=0.3) on the production of L-selectin, HLA-DR, CD18, CD11b, interleukin (IL)-1ß, tumour necrosis factor (TNF), IL-8, IL-10, IL-1ra and TNF-sr-2 during 90 min of simulated CPB.
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Methods |
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A 10-ml sample of blood was taken from each bag after donation (time 0) and from each membrane oxygenator at 30, 60 and 90 min. Samples were processed immediately. Four 0.1-ml aliquots of whole blood were stained using monoclonal antibodies for CD18, CD11b (Flow Cytometry Primary Antibodies and Conjugates, Dako Ltd, Denmark), L-selectin, HLA-DR and mouse IgG [control] (Becton, Dickinson and Company, NJ, USA). The whole blood was then lysed to remove the red cells, thus permitting the expression of surface markers on white blood cells to be determined using flow cytometry. Quantification of the adhesion molecules was carried out immediately after acquisition and processing of the samples, by a laboratory technician skilled in this field. Flow cytometric analyses were performed on an EPICS ELITE instrument (Coulter Electronics Ltd, Luton, UK). This instrument was calibrated before each series of analyses by a technician trained in this method, using Immno-Check alignment fluorospheres (Coulter Corporation, Hialah, FL, USA). Two thousand cells were analysed and displayed as dot histograms for each assay. Following subtraction of the background staining from the control samples, the percent positivity and mean channel fluorescence (MCF) intensity of the respective cell populations was determined.
At the same time, the second 250-ml sample of blood was centrifuged to separate the plasma, which was aliquoted and stored at 70°C for future analysis of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL1-ß, TNF, IL-8 and the anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-10, IL-1ra and TNF-sr-2. A commercially available enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay (ELISA) (QuantikineTM, R&D Systems, Abingdon, UK) was used for all cytokine assays.
Statistical analysis
The normality of the data was inspected and subsequent statistical analyses were performed using GraphPad PrismTM version 3.0. Adhesion molecule expression and cytokine data were normally distributed and were analysed using repeated measures ANOVA and Bonferronis post-test correction. The number of bypass experiments done was based on a previous similar study5 in which 10 bypass experiments were needed to show a difference in IL-8 levels of 16 pg ml1 after 90 min (power of 90%, =0.05). P<0.05 was considered statistically significant.
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Results |
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Discussion |
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One method of overcoming this difficulty is with the isolated CPB model, which has several advantages over in vivo blood sampling. Firstly, using the CPB model, changes to leucocyte sub-populations or surface markers reflect changes within the total leucocyte population in the donor blood sample, except for leucocytes which have been lysed during the CPB process or have adhered to the plastic surface. In other words, in the isolated CPB model, functional leucocytes have no hiding place from the investigator.
Secondly, this system simulates several elements of an evolving inflammatory response (complement fixation and IL-8 production as well as up-regulation of leucocyte adhesion molecule). Some extrapolation between these in vitro results and clinical effect may be made. In the isolated bypass system, methylprednisolone, a known immunosuppressant, causes an approximately fourfold decrease in plasma IL-8 levels.5 In vivo, a sixfold reduction in IL-8 was found at a similar time point.10 This difference in magnitude of response between the in vitro and in vivo situations may be partly explained by the lack of anti-inflammatory response generated by this isolated bypass system.
We did not find significant immunomodulatory effects of xenon in the isolated CPB system. There were no significant between-group differences in HLA-DR or the adhesion molecules, and there were no between-group differences for any cytokine values. The fact that IL-8 concentrations increased significantly from baseline in both groups by 90 min of isolated CPB, and IL-10 and TNF-sr-2 levels decreased in both groups after 15 min of simulated bypass supports our previous descriptions of the inflammatory response in this model and shows an inflammatory challenge. The adhesion molecule L-selectin is decreased in all cell lines in the xenon regimen compared with the control regimen. This did not achieve statistical significance at any point but is a trend that merits further investigation.
Our results suggest that, as far as immunomodulation is concerned, xenon appears as safe as oxygen-enriched air.
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References |
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