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1 From the Diet, Health and Consumer Science Division, the Institute of Food Research, Norwich Research Park, Colney, Norwich, Norfolk, NR4 7UA, United Kingdom.
2 Supported by a Competitive Strategic Grant from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council. Soluble tetanus toxoid was provided by Medeva PLC, Leatherhead, United Kingdom.
3 Address reprint requests to DA Hughes, Institute of Food Research, Norwich Research Park, Colney, Norwich, Norfolk, NR4 7UA, United Kingdom. E-mail: davida.hughes{at}bbsrc.ac.uk.
| ABSTRACT |
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-activated monocytes. We also established that dietary fish-oil supplementation can inhibit the expression of these surface molecules on circulating human monocytes. We subsequently showed that when EPA and DHA were combined in the same ratio as is commonly found in fish-oil-supplement capsules (3:2), there was no significant effect in vitro on the expression of HLA-DR on unstimulated monocytes, but the expression on activated monocytes remained significantly inhibited. In the same in vitro system, the ability of activated monocytes to present antigen to autologous lymphocytes was significantly reduced after culture with the combined n-3 PUFAs. These findings provide one potential mechanism for the beneficial effect of fish oil in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, a disorder associated with elevated expression of MHC class II and adhesion molecules on monocytes present within affected joints.
Key Words: n-3 PUFAs major histocompatibility complex class II molecules MHC class II molecules monocytes humans antigen presentation n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids HLA-DR HLA-DP HLA-DQ ICAM-1 fish oil rheumatoid arthritis eicosapentaenoic acid EPA docosahexaenoic acid DHA
| INTRODUCTION |
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Blood monocytes initiate cell-mediated immune responses by processing and subsequently expressing antigens on their surface membranes for recognition by the appropriate T cells (3). A prerequisite for this antigen-presenting cell function is the expression of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II antigens such as human lymphocyte antigen (HLA)-DR, -DP, and -DQ (4). It has been shown that the T cellproliferative response to an antigen is proportional to the number of MHC class II molecules on the surface of antigen-presenting cells (5). Research has also shown that the percentage of MHC class IIpositive cells and the density of these molecules on the cell surface can alter the degree of immune responsiveness of an individual (6). In addition, the interaction of adhesion molecules between monocytes and lymphocytes appears to be critical for the initiation of a primary immune response, not only by enhancing adhesion but also by providing an additional, distinct costimulatory signal. The binding of the adhesion molecule, leukocyte function associated antigen-1 (LFA-1), to its ligand, intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), has been shown to be capable of costimulating an immune response (7).
We reported previously that the n-3 PUFA eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) can inhibit the expression of HLA-DR and ICAM-1 on normal human monocytes in vitro in a dose-dependent manner (8). In contrast, significant increases in the expression of HLA-DR and HLA-DP on monocytes were observed after incubation with the other major n-3 PUFA found in fish oil, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Because it has been shown that synovial fluid monocytes obtained from patients with rheumatoid arthritis express elevated amounts of MHC class II molecules (9), we also examined the effect of n-3 PUFAs on activated monocytes. These monocytes were cultured in the presence of interferon
(IFN-
) to up-regulate the expression of MHC class II molecules on the monocytes. Both EPA and DHA significantly inhibited the expression of HLA-DR, HLA-DP, and ICAM-1 on the activated monocytes (8). We have also shown that dietary fish-oil supplementation can inhibit the expression of these molecules on human peripheral blood monocytes (10).
The aim of this study was to investigate the combined effect in vitro of EPA and DHA, when provided in the same ratio as is commonly found in fish-oil supplement capsules (3:2), on the expression of functionally associated surface molecules on human monocytes. In addition, an in vitro assay of antigen presentation was used to investigate whether changes in the expression of surface molecules were associated with an alteration in antigen-presenting function.
| SUBJECTS AND METHODS |
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n-3 Polyunsaturated fatty acids
EPA and DHA were obtained from Sigma (Poole, Dorset, United Kingdom) and were solubilized in 95% ethanol. A concentrated stock mixture of EPA and DHA, at a ratio of 3:2, was stored under nitrogen until immediately before use.
Antibodies for immunostaining
The following monoclonal antibodies were used to investigate the modulatory effects of the fatty acids on cell surface antigen expression: anti-HLA-DR, anti-HLA-DP, and anti-HLA-DQ (Becton Dickinson, Oxford, United Kingdom); and anti-CD54 (ICAM-1), anti-CD11a (LFA-1), and anti-CD58 (LFA-3) (Serotec, Oxford, United Kingdom). Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labeled rabbit antimouse immunoglobulin F(ab')2 fragment (Dako, High Wycombe, United Kingdom) was used as a second-layer antibody to detect monoclonal antibody binding. This FITC-labeled antibody was also used alone to control for nonspecific binding. Anti-CD45 (Serotec), which is common to all leukocytes, was used as a positive control.
Purification of monocytes
Monocytes were acquired by density gradient centrifugation by using a method described previously in detail (11). The recovered cells were resuspended in 1 mL of culture medium (HEPES-buffered RPMI containing 5% heat-inactivated fetal calf serum, 2 mmol/L L-glutamine, 1 x 105 U/L penicillin, 0.07 mmol/L streptomycin; Gibco BRL, Paisley, United Kingdom). The cells were then counted and adjusted to 5 x 109 cells/L. The monocytes were >95% viable, as assessed by trypan blue exclusion.
Purification of autologous lymphocytes
For use in the assays of antigen-presenting function, autologous lymphocytes were obtained from an additional 50-mL blood sample by using a method described previously in detail (12); the lymphocytes were then resuspended at 1.1 x 109 cells/L in culture medium.
Cell culture with n-3 PUFAs
Monocytes were cultured in the presence or absence of a combination of EPA and DHA in 15-mL polypropylene tubes (Falcon 2097; Becton Dickinson, Lincoln Park, NJ). The stock solution of EPA and DHA (3:2) was diluted in culture medium immediately before use (to minimize oxidation) and was added to the cultures at a final concentration of 12 µg/mL EPA and 8 µg/mL DHA. Control cells were mixed with equivalent amounts of 95% ethanol to reach a final concentration of 0.1% ethanol. In addition, cultures in the presence or absence of the n-3 PUFAs were performed with the further addition of IFN-
(Genzyme, West Malling, United Kingdom) to up-regulate surface molecule expression, at a previously determined optimal concentration of 4 x 105 units/L. After incubating for 48 h at 37°C, the cells were adjusted to a concentration of 5 x 109 cells/L in minimal essential medium for staining before flow cytometry.
Immunofluorescence and analysis of surface marker expression by flow cytometry
The cells were stained with the various monoclonal antibodies by using the technique described by Parker and Haslam (13). The percentages of FITC-positive cells and the intensity of expression of the cell surface molecules were quantified by laser flow cytometry as described previously (8).
Assay of antigen-presenting function
To determine the effect of n-3 PUFA pretreatment on monocyte function, an in vitro assay of antigen presentation was performed as we have described previously (11). However, lymphoproliferation was assessed by adding bromodeoxyuridine in place of the 3H-thymidine. Bromodeoxyuridine was added to the cultures 18 h before quantification of its uptake with an ELISA kit (Boehringer Mannheim, Lewes, United Kingdom). We used soluble tetanus toxoid with a limited flocculation (Lf) value of 2050 Lf/mL and a purity of 1073 Lf/mg (Medeva PLC, Leatherhead, United Kingdom). The results were expressed as mean absorbance (±SEM) of triplicate cultures.
Statistical analysis
Differences between pairs of n-3 PUFAtreated and untreated samples were analyzed with the paired t test (14).
| RESULTS |
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stimulated monocytes
(compared with controls cultured in the absence of n-3 PUFAs) are shown in Table 2
. There were also significant decreases in the intensity of expression of HLA-DR (P < 0.05), HLA-DP (P < 0.001), ICAM-1 (P < 0.01), and LFA-3 (P < 0.01).
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resulted in reduced ability of monocytes from all the subjects to present tetanus toxoid to autologous lymphocytes, as assessed by lymphocyte proliferation. The mean (±SEM) absorbance was 1.10 ± 0.12 in the absence of PUFAs and 0.92 ± 0.15 with PUFAs present (P < 0.05). | DISCUSSION |
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-activated monocytes to present antigen to autologous lymphocytes following preincubation with the combined n-3 fatty acids. As Janeway et al (6) emphasized, functional assays are of central importance in indicating the potential effects in vivo. The inhibitory effects observed in vitro were obtained with concentrations of EPA and DHA that can be achieved in blood plasma by consuming relatively low doses of fish oil (3 g/d) (15). In a human supplementation study, we reported that 3 g fish oil/d for 21 d reduced the expression of MHC class II molecules and adhesion molecules on peripheral blood monocytes (10). The supplements used in this study contained the same EPA-to-DHA ratio as was used in the present in vitro study.
The ability of n-3 PUFAs to inhibit the antigen-presenting function of activated monocytes supports the possibility that fish oil may be beneficial in the treatment of autoimmune disorders. A number of double-blind studies have reported that consumption of fish oil by patients with rheumatoid arthritis was associated with mild to moderate improvement in symptoms, including reductions in morning stiffness and the number of tender joints (2). The striking inhibition by EPA and DHA of MHC class II molecules and ICAM-1 expression on IFN-
-stimulated monocytes seen in this study may be particularly relevant to rheumatoid arthritis, because patients with this disorder have been shown to have abnormally elevated expression of both MHC class II molecules (9) and ICAM-1 (16) in chronically inflamed joints. A corresponding reduction in antigen-presenting function might lead to reduced helper T cell activation, thus decreasing both the production of inflammatory cytokines and the production of antibodies by B cells at these localized sites of disease.
Several animal studies have shown that n-3 PUFAs can inhibit the expression of Ia molecules, the murine equivalent of human MHC class II molecules. Kelley et al (17) reported that dietary supplementation with fish oil suppressed autoimmune lupus in MRL-lpr mice and prevented an increase in macrophage surface Ia expression. Mosquera et al (18) showed that administering fish oil to mice and rats by esophageal gavage reduced the percentage of peritoneal macrophages that expressed Ia compared with saline-gavaged controls. In addition, Huang et al (19) showed that mice fed fish oil and then infected with Listeria monocytogenes had reduced expression of Ia on the surface of peritoneal macrophages compared with mice fed other fat sources. Dietary enrichment with EPA has been shown to inhibit the ability of spleen cells to present antigens to murine helper T cell clones, and in vitro pretreatment of splenocytes with EPA also resulted in inhibition of antigen-presenting cell function (20). Recently, it has been shown that dietary fish oil can diminish the ability of rat dendritic cells (another class of antigen-presenting cells) to present antigen to autologous spleen lymphocytes (21). Taken together, the results of these studies and those of the current study support the hypothesis that n-3 PUFAs suppress cell-mediated immune responses, at least in part by inhibiting the function of antigen-presenting cells.
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