レホフロキサシンの免疫修飾作用の検討 へん桃リンパ球において

Abstract

Some anti-bacterial agents have been reported to have immuno-potentiation effects and to show synergy in their anti-inflammatory effects. To study the immunomodulatory effect of Levofloxacin (LVFX), one of the new quinolones, we investigated the influence of LVFX on the production of cytokine in human tonsillar lymphocytes. Palatine tonsils were obtained from 10 patients (5 males and 5 females, ages 15-26 y. o.) who were tonsillectomized for the treatment of recurrent tonsillitis in the Department of Otolaryngology, Wakayama Medical College. Informed consent was obtained from all patients to use their tonsils for this study. The tonsillar lymphocytes were stimulated by Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB, 100ng/ml) and were divided into two groups according to the incubation time with LVFX (5μg/ml or 50μg/ml), the 24 hour-group and the 48 hour-group. Production of cytokines (IL-lα, IL-1β, IL-8, IL-12, IFN-γ, and TNF-α) in the supernatant was measured by solid-phase ELISA. TNF-α production of tonsillar lymphocytes was markedly sup-pressed in both groups incubated with 5μg/ml and 50μg/ml of LVFX (p<0.01) and IFN-γ production was also suppressed in both groups (24 hour-group, p<0.01 and 48 hour-group, p<0.05). IL-8 production of tonsillar lymphocytes was markedly suppressed only in the 24 hour-group incubated with 5μg/ml of LVFX (p<0.05). On the other hand, LVFX showed no influence on the production of IL-1α, IL-1β, or IL-12 of tonsillar lymphocytes.In conclusion, LVFX, one of the new quinolones, has some immunomodulatory effects on tonsillar lymphocytes through the suppression of proinflammaroty cytokine production such as IL-8, IFN-γ, TNF-α and may show the synergistic anti-inflammatory effect with its anti-bacterial properties.