The effect of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on the accumulation and release of interleukin-1-like activity by peritoneal macrophages from the mouse.

1. The non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) indomethacin, 10 and 100 microM, piroxicam, 100 microM, and sodium meclofenamate, 1 and 100 microM, potentiated the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated release of interleukin-1 (IL-1)-like activity from mouse peritoneal macrophages. Aspirin up to 100 microM was without effect. The drugs did not themselves stimulate the release of IL-1-like activity at the concentrations used. 2. LPS, 1 microgram ml-1, stimulated prostaglandin E2 production by mouse peritoneal macrophages and this was totally inhibited by aspirin, 100 microM, indomethacin, 1 microM, piroxicam, 10 microM and sodium meclofenamate, 0.1 microM. 3. The potentiation of LPS-stimulated release of IL-1-like activity produced by indomethacin, 100 microM, piroxicam, 100 microM, or sodium meclofenamate, 10 microM, was inhibited by prostaglandin E2, (PGE2) 10 ng ml-1. 4. Aspirin, 100 microM, indomethacin, 100 nM to 10 microM, piroxicam, 1 to 100 microM, and sodium meclofenamate, 10 nM, all potentiated cell-associated IL-1-like activity in LPS- stimulated macrophages. The drugs had no effect on cell-associated IL-1-like activity by themselves. 5. Exogenous PGE2, 2 to 30 ng ml-1, inhibited the cell-accumulation of IL-1-like activity stimulated by LPS in the presence of indomethacin, 1 microM, or sodium meclofenamate, 0.1 microM. 6. The 5-lipoxygenase inhibitors BWA4C, 0.01 to 10 microM, and L-651,392, 0.01 to 10 microM, had no effect on LPS-stimulated released or cell-associated IL-1-like activity. Over the same concentration-ranges,neither of the 5-lipoxygenase inhibitors affected released or cell-associated IL-1-like activity in LPS stimulated mouse macrophages in the presence of indomethacin, 1 JM.7. The synthetic diacylglycerol, DiC8, 10 to 200 JAM, did not itself increase released or cell-associated IL-I-like activity but in the presence of the diacylglycerol kinase inhibitor, R59022, 10 JM, DiC8increased released and cell-associated IL-i-like activity. The activity of DiC8 on released and cell associated IL-l-like activity was not increased by indomethacin, 100 micro M.8. NSAIDs increase LPS-induced cell-associated IL-i-like activity in mouse macrophages by inhibiting the formation of cyclo-oxygenase products such as PGE2 but at higher concentrations the NSAIDs potentiate LPS-induced release of IL-I-like activity by a mechanism independent of cyclo-oxygenase inhibition. The potentiation of the release of IL-i-like activity appears not to be related to an effect of NSAIDs on either 5-lipoxygenase or diacylglycerol metabolism.