Eosinophil transendothelial migration induced by cytokines. III. Effect of the chemokine RANTES.

Selective eosinophil recruitment occurs after experimental Ag challenge and in tissue sites of allergic diseases. The mechanisms of selective eosinophil migration are still unknown. In our study, we examined the ability of chemokines to induce transendothelial migration (TEM) of eosinophils in vitro. Among the chemokines tested, only RANTES induced eosinophil TEM. RANTES failed to induce TEM of neutrophils. Interestingly, IL-8 induced neutrophil TEM and had no effect on eosinophil TEM. RANTES-induced TEM was concentration-dependent and was inhibited by Abs directed against the beta 2 integrin CD18. When IL-1-activated endothelial cells were utilized, RANTES-induced TEM also involved the eosinophil beta 1 integrin VLA-4. RANTES did not increase eosinophil adhesion to either resting or IL-1-activated endothelial cells, nor did the chemokine increase CD11b or decrease L-selectin expression. A gradient of RANTES appears to be required for eosinophil TEM. Pre-exposure of eosinophils to IL-5 dramatically potentiated the TEM response to RANTES. These findings suggest that the chemokine RANTES is a potent and selective inducer of eosinophil TEM. Because RANTES appears to be produced in vivo during allergic reactions or in allergic diseases, we speculate that these findings may have some direct relevance to the mechanism of selective eosinophil recruitment in vivo in humans.