The intestinal epithelial cytoskeleton selectively constrains lumen-to-tissue migration of neutrophils. Hofman, Paul, Lisanne D'andrea, Denice Carnes, Sean P. Colgan, and James L. Madara. Division of Gastrointestinal Pathology, Departments of Pathology and Center for Experimental Therapeutics and Reperfusion Injury, Department of Anesthesia, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and the Harvard Digestive Diseases Center, Boston, MA 02115, USA
APStracts 3:0027C, 1996.
Migration of neutrophils (PMN) across polarized epithelia is asymmetrical - basolateral-to-apical (physiologically directed) migration is far more efficient than migration in the reverse direction, suggesting the presence of "luminal retention signal(s)". Following pilot observations, we used polarized intestinal epithelial monolayers (T84) to examine whether asymmetrical constraint of migration afforded by the epithelial cytoskeleton, might underlie such retention signals. Rearrangement of epithelial cortical F-actin accompanied PMN transepithelial migration (in either direction) and was prevented by pre-loading monolayers with the F-actin stabilizing agent phallacidin. While phallacidin pre-loading did not influence physiologically directed PMN transepithelial migration, such treatment greatly enhanced migration in the reverse direction (i.e. effective loss of luminal retention signal). BAPTA preloading also prevented epithelial cortical actin rearrangements and selectively resulted in loss of luminal retention signal(s). BAPTA preloading did not influence resistance or forskolin induced Cl- secretion and phallicidin preloading did not influence resistance or carbachol induced Cl- secretion suggesting that barrier function and surface polarity were maintained under these conditions. These and supplementary data suggest that epithelial actin (but not microtubule) cytoskeletal reordering asymmetrically influences PMN migration and underlies, at least in part, the observed signal which biases for retention of PMN in the luminal space.

Received 27 November 1995; accepted in final form 11 January
1996.
APS Manuscript Number C706-5.
Article publication pending Am. J. Physiol. (Cell Physiology).
ISSN 1080-4757 Copyright 1996 The American Physiological Society.
Published in APStracts on 25 January 96