Effects of P. aeruginosa-derived bacterial products on tracheal ciliary function: role of O2 radicals.

The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the effects of bacterial products derived from Pseudomonas aeruginosa on the function of airway cilia and to assess the role of phagocytes and oxygen radicals in the observed responses. Ciliary beat frequency (CBF) was measured in a perfusion chamber with a microscopic technique using tracheal epithelial cells obtained from normal sheep by brush biopsy (70% epithelial cells, 18% macrophages, 11% neutrophils). Baseline CBF ranged between 678 and 1,126 min-1. After 20 min of perfusion with the cell free supernatant of P. aeruginosa culture (mucoid strain), a concentration-dependent depression of CBF was observed with a 58% inhibition at a 1:1 dilution (P less than 0.05). The P. aeruginosa-derived products pyocyanin and 1-hydroxyphenazine also decreased CBF in a dose-related fashion. The cilion-inhibitory effects of the supernatant and bacterial products were markedly attenuated after centrifugation of the brush preparation (80% epithelial cells, 16.5% macrophages, 3.5% neutrophils). Glucose/glucose oxidase also caused a rapid, concentration-dependent cilioinhibition or ciliostasis. Catalase blocked or attenuated the ciliary effects of the supernatant, bacterial products and glucose/glucose oxidase. Thus bacterial products released from P. aeruginosa impaired ciliary activity by a pathway which involved neutrophils and was mediated by toxic oxygen radicals.