EXPRESSION OF CD35 (CR-1) AND CD11B (CR3) ON CIRCULATING NEUTROPHILS AND EOSINOPHILS FROM ALLERGIC ASTHMATIC-CHILDREN

Complement receptors on neutrophils and eosinophils play a role in act ivation and adhesion. During asthmatic reactions these receptors have been found elevated on circulating granulocytes. In the present study we compared the expression of CD35 (complement receptor type 1) and CD 11b (complement receptor type 3) on neutrophils and eosinophils from a sthmatic and non-asthmatic children. This was done in whole blood samp les using depolarized light scattering for the discrimination of neutr ophils and eosinophils. The non-stimulated expression as well as the u pregulated expression of receptors by the chemotactic peptide N-formyl methionyl-leucyl-phenyl-alanine (fMLP) were studied. The results showe d that without prior stimulation only the expression of CD35 on neutro phils was significantly elevated in children with asthma (P < 0.05). A fter up-regulation with fMLP, the CD11b expression on neutrophils (P < 0.005, fMLP: 0.002 muM) and eosinophils (P < 0.05, fMLP: 0.02 muM) wa s significantly higher in asthmatic children than in the controls. The se results indicate that the inducible expression of CD11b on neutroph ils and eosinophils from allergic asthmatic children is primed in vivo .