1997 Volume 47 Issue 6 Pages 393-398
The efficacy of an extracorporeal granulotrap column (G-1 column) against endotoxin shock was investigated using experimental rabbit models. G-1 column is a polycarbonate column filled with cellulose acetate beads. When extracorporeal circulation using a G-1 column was performed on rabbits (n=4) for 1 hour, 4.2 (±1.4) × 107 CD-11b-positive cells (indicative of monocyte and granulocyte fractions) were adsorbed to the column. Approximately 14% of granulocytes in whole blood were eliminated by the G-1 column treatment at a flow rate of 2 ml/minutes for 1 hour. In addition, when extracorporeal circulation was performed for 1 hour following LPS intravenous administration (2mg/kg), the survival rate of the rabbits treated with the G-1 column were significantly higher than those treated with sham column and non-treated ones (p=0.014, p=0.009, respectively). Histopathologically, 6 hours after LPS administration, the degree of thickening of alveolar septum and infiltration of inflammatory cells in the lung was milder in the G-1 treated rabbits than in the other two groups. However, the G-1 column treatments did not affect the count of leukocytes in the peripheral blood nor the myeloperoxidase activity in the lung 6 hours after LPS administration, which was indicating granulocyte infiltration. These findings suggest that the G-1 column might suppress lung injury and improve the survival in endotoxin shock model by eliminating the activated granulocytes. Thus, the G-1 column may be useful in endotoxin shock therapy.
