Gallium arsenide differentially affects processing of phagolysosomal targeted antigen by macrophages

Gallium arsenide, a semiconductor utilized in the electronics industry, causes immunosuppression in animals. The chemical's effect on macrophages to process antigen for activating pigeon cytochrome-specific helper T cell hybridoma was investigated. Mice were administered 200 mg/kg gallium arsenide or vehicle intraperitoneally. Five-day exposure suppressed processing by splenic macrophages but augmented processing by thioglycollate-elicited and resident peritoneal macrophages. Cytochrome coupled to latex beads was targeted to phagolysosomes to examine processing in lysosomes. Cytochrome beads required phagocytosis for processing and were located in phagolysosomes. Gallium arsenide did not alter the phagocytic ability of macrophages. Peritoneal macrophages normally processed the targeted antigen, indicating that gallium arsenide influenced compartment(s) preceding lysosomes. However, the processing efficiency of exposed splenic macrophages depended on the size of particulate cytochrome, suggesting that processing varied in phagolysosomes of different sizes. Gallium arsenide impacted different intracellular compartments in these macrophages, perhaps contributing to systemic immunotoxicity and local inflammation caused by exposure.