Intraphagosomal pH in alveolar macrophages studied with fluorescein-labeled amorphous silica particles

Intraphagosomal pH in rabbit alveolar macrophages was studied using amorphous silica particles (FSP) and yeast particles (FYP) labeled with fluorescein. The pH was estimated from the quotient between the fluorescence intensity at wavelength 519 nm with excitation at wavelengths 495 and 450 nm. Within a factor of 10, pH was independent of the number of FSP added to macrophages in vitro. In macrophages cultured for 24 h, the pH obtained with FSP and FYP was about 5. Three hours after lavage, pH was the same as after 24 h for the FSP but significantly higher for the FYP, 5.8. Both 3 and 24 h after lavage, more lysosomes were in contact with the FYP-containing phagosomes than with the FSP-containing ones. Most FSP were in tight contact with the phagosomal membrane, while there was a clear zone between most FYP and the phagosomal membrane. The differences in pH and morphology between cells containing FSP and FYP might be explained by the assumptions that the macrophages disintegrate the FYP, which results in higher pH, and that the disintegration of FYP is more efficient at 3 than at 24 h after the lavage. The intraphagosomal pH was lower when the macrophages were allowed to phagocytize the FSP in vivo. The pH values were 5.1 in vitro, 4.9 at 24 h, and 4.5 at 1 week after the FSP had been instilled via trachea. The FSP should be a useful tool for estimation of intraphagosomal pH at basic conditions, i.e., the milieu to which many inhaled inorganic particles will be exposed.