The chicken macrophage response to carbohydrate-based irritants: temporal changes in peritoneal cell populations

Temporal changes in the recruitment and functional activation of Cornell K strain chicken peritoneal macrophages elicited by starch and dextrans were determined. During a 72-hr period following intraperitoneal injection, Sephadex (cross-linked dextran) elicited a gradually increasing number of peritoneal exudate cells (PECs) which contained greater than or equal to 78% macrophages in the adherent cell population. In contrast, starch tended to elicit higher numbers of PECs early in the stimulation process, with heterophils comprising a major proportion of the adherent cells. Later in the time course, macrophages were the predominant adherent cell type. Comparisons of PEC recruitment using Sephadex vs. low molecular weight dextrans demonstrated that the low-molecular weight dextrans elicited fewer PECs than did Sephadex; unlike Sephadex, however, the low molecular weight dextrans generated a significant peak of heterophil infiltration that was similar, although delayed, to that produced with starch. Sephadex-stimulated peritoneal macrophages exhibited time-dependent functional acquisitions for 1) the phagocytosis of sheep erythrocytes, 2) the engulfment of opsonized sheep erythrocytes, and 3) opsonin-erythrocyte rosetting. Acquisition of phagocytic activity for uncoated vs. opsonized erythrocytes occurred under very different rates during the time course. The results suggest that both the nature of the irritant and the time point of cell harvest can be appropriately selected to provide the particular cell population and functional status desired for subsequent in vitro analyses.