CONTROL OF GLUCAN-INDUCED SYSTEMIC GRANULOMATOSIS BY CYCLOSPORINE-A

This study has shown that cyclosporine A (CyA), under certain conditio ns, is a powerful inhibitor of intravascular and extravascular monocyt e/macrophage accumulation. Experiments were carried out in Lewis rats in which intravenous injection of particulate glucan calls forth a str iking granulomatous response in lung, liver, and spleen and produces a marked stimulation of splenic erythro- and myelopoiesis. In agreement with the results of others, there was also a considerable elevation i n monocyte/macrophage chemoattractant levels in the bronchoalveolar la vage fluid, which is held to be a key reaction in the pathogenesis of the histologic lesions. Treatment of the animals with subcutaneous inj ections of CyA prevented the rise in the chemoattractant activity and suppressed the granulomatous organ infiltration as well as the splenic hemopoiesis. The findings supply new insights into the activities of CyA and would support its clinical use in macrophage-dominated disease s.