Peritoneal neutrophil chemotaxis is impaired in biliary obstruction

Previous studies have shown impaired reticuloendothelial function in biliary obstruction. The chemotactic response of polymorphonuclear leukocytes from peripheral blood and peritoneal fluid of jaundiced rats (Group 1) was compared to that of sham operated controls (Group 2) and normal rats (Group 3). Male Sprague-Dawley rats underwent bile duct ligation or sham celiotomy. Studies were performed from 1 to 3 weeks after surgery. Mean serum bilirubin was 6.8 mg percent in Group 1 and normal in Groups 2 and 3. Peritoneal neutrophils were induced by intraperitoneal injection of 10 ml of 10 percent peptone broth 16 hours before the study, harvested from peritoneal fluid and peripheral blood, and isolated on Ficoll-Hypaque. F-met-leu-phe (FMLP) chemoattractant (10(-7) M) was used to induce migration of neutrophils across 3 mu filters. The filters were removed, mounted on slides, stained, and counts averaged for five oil immersion fields for each of three wells. Data were expressed as number of neutrophils per oil immersion field. Peritoneal neutrophil chemotaxis was significantly decreased in Group 1 (10.3 +/- 8.1) compared with Groups 2 (17.0 +/- 7.3) and 3 (20.2 +/- 6.4). A similar trend was noted in polymorphonuclear leukocytes from peripheral blood (Group 1: 13.1 +/- 7.8, Group 2: 18.2 +/- 6.7, Group 3: 17.4 +/- 5.9; P = 0.1). This impairment in neutrophil chemotaxis may contribute to the high rate of septic complications observed in the jaundiced host.