抄録
Exacerbation of some autoimmune diseases is thought to be related to the generation of active oxygens by leukocytes. It has been known that a number of leukocytes appear frequently in demyelinating lesions of guinea pig brain induced by experimental allergic encephalomyelitis. The present studies showed that cerebroside sulfulic ester (CSE, sulfatide), a typical component of myelin membranes, stimulated guinea pig leukocytes to generate O2-, H2O2, and probably ⋅OH. Luminol-independent light emitted from CSE-stimulated cells was well correlated with generation of those active oxygens. Multilamella liposomes, which were made of CSE and lecithin, induced H2O2 generation by leukocytes. Incubation of CSE-stimulated cells with myelin membranes emitted more light than those without myelin membranes, suggesting that active oxygens released from CSE-stimulated cells react with the membranes. Further studies with thiobarbituric acid reaction revealed that CSE-stimulated cells induced lipid peroxidation in myelin membranes. These results suggest that active oxygens produced by CSE-stimulated leukocytes may have a hazardous effect on myelin membranes, leading to further demyelination.
