Inhibition of neutrophil apoptosis after elective surgery

Neutrophils play a crucial role in host defense against infections, but their inappropriate infiltration and activation within tissues can cause host tissue damage through release of reactive oxygen metabolites, metalloproteinases, and proinflammatory cytokines. The termination of a neutrophil-mediated inflammatory response is effected through programmed cell death or apoptosis. Delayed neutrophil apoptosis is associated with proinflammatory diseases, such as the systemic inflammatory response syndrome. Surgery induces a profound inflammatory response; therefore, neutrophil apoptosis of patients undergoing elective surgery was investigated.

Nonseptic patients undergoing elective orthopedic surgery while under epidural anesthesia had neutrophils and platelet-poor isolated from whole venous blood harvested at 4 time points: pre-epidural, 45 minutes postepidural but before surgical intervention, 1 hour postsurgical incision, and 24 hours postsurgery. Neutrophil apoptosis was quantified at 1, 12, and 24 hours in culture by immunofluorescence flow cytometry of annexin V and propidium iodide staining and confirmed by TUNEL (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase nick end labeling) assay for DNA strand breaks. Serum cytokines were quantified by specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Spontaneous neutrophil apoptosis after elective surgery was significantly (P < .001) inhibited with an effect evident within an hour of surgical incision and persisting at 24 hours postsurgery. The addition of patients' 24 hour postoperative plasma to healthy neutrophils markedly (P < .01) reduced neutrophil apoptosis, whereas plasma taken an hour after surgical incision was ineffective. Interleukin (IL)-6 was notably increased (1395 +/- 196 pg/mL, P < .01) 24 hours postsurgery and at this postoperative concentration inhibited (P < .01) apoptosis of normal neutrophils. Levels of other inflammatory mediators (IL-1 beta, tumor necrosis factor alpha, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, soluble Fas, soluble Fas ligand) were unaltered. The anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 was only slightly increased 24 hours postsurgery (8.32 +/- 2.99 pg/mL); however, the addition of recombinant human IL-10 (10 ng/mL) counteracted (P < .05) inhibition of neutrophil apoptosis induced by IL-6 and post-surgery plasma.

These results identify marked inhibition of neutrophil apoptosis after elective surgery and suggest that the inhibition of neutrophil apoptosis in the postoperative period is, at least in part, a result of soluble circulating factors. The marked imbalance favoring proinflammatory over anti-inflammatory cytokine release in the immediate postoperative period mediates the overwhelmingly antiapoptotic net capacity of postsurgery plasma.