Abnormal responses of granulocytes in chronic granulomatous disease.

Stimulation of normal granulocytes with chemotactic factor, phorbol myristate acetate, concanavalin A, and calcium ionophore results in rapid depolarization which precedes the 'respiratory burst'. Treatment of granulocytes in chronic granulomatous disease with these stimulants fails to generate chemiluminescence. This defect is associated with an absence of transmembrane potential shifts in response to treatment with chemotactic factor, phorbol myristate acetate, and concanavalin A while depolarization in response to A23187 is unaffected by this disease state.