Effects of bacterial endotoxin on the ciliary activity in the in vitro middle ear mucosa

In the present study, we have examined the hitherto unknown effects of long-term exposure to lipopolysaccharide (LPS), possessing the major parts of biological activity of endotoxin, on ciliary activity in the middle ear. Our results show that LPS can affect the ciliary activity in a dose-response fashion: 1) LPS does not impair the ciliary activity up to 168 h if the concentration is 1 ng/ml or less; 2) 10 ng/ml of LPS does not impair ciliary activity in the middle ear close to the tympanic orifice up to 168 h, but can cause reduced activity distal to the orifice after extended exposure (more than 96 h); 3) 100 ng/ml or more of LPS can cause dysfunction of cilia in the tympanic cavity, and in particular 1 microgram/ml or more of LPS can quickly disable the ciliary activity in the middle ear distal to the orifice.