Comparison of urinary leukotriene E4 and 16-carboxytetranordihydro leukotriene E4 excretion in allergic asthmatics after inhaled antigen.

Antisera to 16-carboxytetranordihydro leukotriene E4 (tetranor LTE4), a major urinary oxidative metabolite (via omega- and beta-oxidation) of leukotriene E4 (LTE4) in primates, were obtained by immunisation of rabbits with a related, non-naturally occurring synthetic metabolite (16-carboxytetranordihydro leukotriene C4 ester) conjugated to Keyhole Limpit haemocyanin. Material which competed with [11, 12-3H]tetranor LTE4 for binding to this antisera was isolated from urine from allergic asthmatics by reversed-phase HPLC. This material eluted with the retention time of synthetic standards, and its mean urinary excretion was elevated during both the first three hours (6.13 +/- 2.15 ng/h) and 3-6 h (5.87 +/- 1.99 ng/h) after antigen inhalation, compared with baseline values (3.42 +/- 1.49 ng/h), in 5 allergic mild asthmatics. A much greater and statistically significant increase in urinary leukotriene E4 (LTE4) excretion, occurring in all subjects, was seen during acute antigen-induced bronchoconstriction (baseline, 1.62 +/- 0.66 ng/h; 0-3 h, 19.58 +/- 8.79 ng/h; p less than 0.05) in these subjects. These data support the suggestion that endogenous peptide leukotrienes are metabolised by omega- and subsequent beta-oxidation in man, but emphasize the relative importance of urinary LTE4 excretion after allergen elicited leukotriene generation, further substantiating a pathological role for peptide leukotrienes in allergic asthma.