Differences in the accumulation of ascorbic acid in normal, myeloperoxidase deficient and NADPH-oxidase deficient...

Granulocytes contain large quantities of ascorbic acid (AA). The uptake mechanism is mainly restricted to the accumulation of the oxidized form, dehydroascorbate (DHA). We investigated the uptake of ascorbic acid and dehydroascorbate of normal, myeloperoxidase (MPO)-deficient, and NADPH-oxidase-deficient granulocytes. The accumulation of ascorbic acid was increased in all types of granulocytes after stimulation with phorbol-myristate-acetate, whereas the NADPH-oxidase-deficient cells showed a decreased uptake compared to normal and MPO-deficient cells. The intracellular concentration of ascorbic acid was further enhanced after incubation of granulocytes with DHA, most prominently in NADPH-oxidase-deficient granulocytes. MPO-deficient granulocytes are not able to produce HOCl after activation. The granulocytes of one individual with total MPO deficiency accumulated ascorbate in higher concentrations than did cells with partial MPO deficiency, indicating that HOCl is of minor importance for the oxidation of ascorbate. Since the ability of MPO-deficient cells to kill microorganisms is pronounced in contrast to NADPH-oxidase-deficient cells, effective mechanisms of compensating for the absence of HOCl must exist. We hypothesize that the enhanced uptake of ascorbic acid combined with an enhanced superoxide anion production may favor the generation of OH radicals via the Fenton reaction.