MOTILITY OF RABBIT ALVEOLAR CELLS - ROLE OF UNSATURATED FATTY-ACIDS

Abstract

Unsaturated fatty acids, i.e., linoleic and linolenic acids, which accumulate in rat pleura following injection of carrageenan or during incubation of rabbit alveolar macrophages (AM), strongly activated migration in vitro of AM but not of human polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNL). Other anionic lipids, i.e., phosphatidylglycerol, and various nonspecific proteins, such as gelatin or albumin, were potent activators of migration of AM and not of PMNL. Apparently the elaboration of unsaturated fatty acids, and of nonspecific proteins, caused the specific accumulation of macrophages in injured body spaces, such as alveoli or pleura.