1-3-dimethylthiourea and Edema

This study sought to determine whether oxygen radical scavengers of dimethylthiourea (DMTU), superoxide dismutase (SOD), or catalase (CAT) pretreatment attenuated ischemia-reperfusion (I/R)-induced lung injury. After isolation from a Sprague-Dawley rat, the lungs were perfused through the pulmonary artery cannula with rat whole blood diluted 1:1 with a physiological salt solution. An acute lung injury was induced by 10 minutes of hypoxia with 5% CO2-95% N2 followed by 65 minutes of ischemia and then 65 minutes of reperfusion. I/R significantly increased microvascular permeability as measured by the capillary filtration coefficient (Kfc), lung weight-to-body weight ratio (LW/BW), and protein concentration in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (PCBAL). DMTU pretreatment significantly attenuated the acute lung injury. The capillary filtration coefficient (P<.01), LW/BW (P<.01) and PCBAL (P<.05) were significantly lower among the DMTU-treated rats than hosts pretreated with SOD or CAT. The possible mechanisms of the protective effect of DMTU in I/R-induced lung injury may relate to the permeability of the agent allowing it to scavenge intracellular hydroxyl radicals. However, whether superoxide dismutase or catalase antioxidants showed protective effects possibly due to their impermeability of the cell membrane not allowing scavenging of intracellular oxygen radicals.

Topics: Animals; Body Weight; Edema; Free Radical Scavengers; Lung; Lung Injury; Microcirculation; Organ Size; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Reperfusion Injury; Thiourea

Effective use of interleukin (IL)-2 as an antineoplastic agent may be hindered by severe side-effects, in particular vascular leak syndrome, which leads to generalized, especially pulmonary, edema. The oxygen-free-radical scavenger dimethylthiourea (DMTU) was shown to attenuate IL-2-induced vascular leak syndrome in sheep receiving a single IL-2 injection. However, in the clinical setting multiple injections are necessary to gain a therapeutic effect. The present study tests whether DMTU attenuates IL-2-induced vascular leak syndrome following multiple IL-2 injections without affecting IL-2-induced cytotoxicity in peritoneal mononuclear cells. Mice were treated intraperitoneally with 1 x 10(5) units IL-2 three times daily for four consecutive days. DMTU (10 mg/0.5 ml) was administered to the study group once daily, prior to the first IL-2 injection. Comparing the wet/dry weight ratio of lungs, liver, and spleen showed that IL-2 caused a significant (P < 0.05) wet/dry increase in all three organs. DMTU attenuated the wet/dry increase in the lungs (P < 0.05), in the spleen (P < 0.05), and not at all in the liver. IL-2 induced a marked increase in peritoneal mononuclear cell counts, which was not attenuated by DMTU. The cytotoxic effect of IL-2-activated peritoneal mononuclear cells on target B16 cells was also unchanged in animals pretreated with DMTU. In conclusion, we have shown that DMTU ameliorates pulmonary permeability and vascular leak syndrome associated with multiple-dose IL-2 therapy, without eliciting an inhibitory effect on IL-2 induced-cytotoxicity.

Topics: Animals; Capillary Permeability; Drug Interactions; Edema; Female; Free Radical Scavengers; Immunotherapy, Adoptive; Interleukin-2; Killer Cells, Lymphokine-Activated; Leukocytes, Mononuclear; Melanoma, Experimental; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Peritoneal Cavity; Reactive Oxygen Species; Spleen; Thiourea

We hypothesized that measurement of a specific product from reaction of N,N'-dimethylthiourea (Me2TU) and H2O2 would provide a good indication of the H2O2 scavenging and protection seen after addition of Me2TU to biological systems. We found that addition of H2O2 to Me2TU yielded a single stable product, Me2TU dioxide. Me2TU dioxide formation correlated with Me2TU consumption as a function of added H2O2 concentration and was prevented by simultaneous addition of catalase (but not boiled catalase), superoxide dismutase, dimethyl sulfoxide, mannitol, or sodium benzoate. Me2TU dioxide formation, Me2TU consumption, and H2O2 concentration increases occurred in mixtures containing phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and normal human neutrophils but not in mixtures containing PMA and neutrophils from patients with chronic granulomatous disease or in mixtures containing PMA and normal neutrophils and catalase. Me2TU dioxide formation also occurred in isolated rat lungs perfused with Me2TU and H2O2 but not in lungs perfused with Me2TU and elastase, histamine, or oleic acid. In contrast, Me2TU dioxide formation did not occur after exposure of Me2TU to 60Co-generated hydroxyl radical or hypochlorous acid in the presence of catalase. The results indicate that reaction of Me2TU with H2O2 selectively forms Me2TU dioxide and that measuring Me2TU dioxide formation from Me2TU may be useful for assessing the presence and significance of H2O2 in biological systems.

Topics: Animals; Chromatography, Gas; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Edema; Granulomatous Disease, Chronic; Humans; Hydrogen Peroxide; Kinetics; Lung; Neutrophils; Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate; Thiourea