REDISTRIBUTION OF GRANULOCYTES DURING ADRENALINE INFUSION AND FOLLOWING ADMINISTRATION OF CORTISOL IN HEALTHY-VOLUNTEERS

Major surgical procedures induce an endocrine metabolic stress respons e characterized by increased secretion of adrenaline and cortisol. Fur thermore, surgical stress is accompanied by granulocytosis in peripher al blood. The granulocytosis may be due to increased adrenaline and co rtisol secretion. The purpose of this study was to investigate the red istribution of granulocytes during adrenaline infusion and following a dministration of cortisol. Granulocytes were isolated from peripheral blood from eight healthy volunteers, labelled with indium-111-tropolen e and reinjected. The distribution of granulocytes was imaged by using a gamma camera and calculated with an interfaced computer three times during a control period and three times during a corresponding hour a f adrenaline infusion 0.05 mu g kg b.w.(-1) min(-1). The distribution was then measured every second h for another 6-h control period and th en for 6 h following administration of cortisol 3.6 mg kg b.w.(-1) Inf usion of adrenaline resulted in granulocytosis in peripheral blood and a reduction of radioactivity radioactivity of the spleen to 83.0% of the initial value. The effect of adrenaline on the bone marrow was neg ligible. Cortisol administration was followed by granulocytosis and de creased radioactivity of both the spleen (81.5%) and the bone marrow ( 79.8%). It is concluded that the spleen is an active immunological org an as both adrenaline and cortisol induces efflux of granulocytes from the spleen. The cortisol induced efflux of granulocytes from the bone marrow explains that granulocytosis also occurs in splenectomized pat ients after major surgery.