Z. Kmiec et al., EFFECT OF SUPERNATANTS FROM KUPFFER CELLS STIMULATED WITH GALACTOSAMINE AND ENDOTOXIN ON THE FUNCTION OF ISOLATED RAT HEPATOCYTES, Hepato-gastroenterology, 40(3), 1993, pp. 259-261
Activated Kupffer cells may release substances that are involved in li
ver injury induced by galactosamine and endotoxin. In the present stud
y Kupffer cells were isolated from rat livers, cultured for 24 hours a
nd incubated with galactosamine, endotoxin (LPS) or tumor necrosis fac
tor-alpha for 4 or 24 hours. The Kupffer cell-conditioned media were t
hen added in separate experiments to freshly prepared isolated rat hep
atocytes to determine their cytotoxic effect. No significant effects o
n the rate of protein synthesis, as assessed by the incorporation of C
-14-leucine on lactate dehydrogenase enzyme release from hepatocytes d
uring 1 h incubation was found as compared with conditioned media from
control Kupffer cells. In further experiments, Kupffer cells incubate
d for 4 hours with LPS and galactosamine were shown to produce thrombo
xane B2 and also the potentially cytoprotective prostaglandins PGE2 an
d small amounts of prostacyclin measured as 6-keto-PGF1alpha. It is co
ncluded that under the conditions of the present experiments, factors
secreted by cultured Kupffer cells have no cytotoxic effects on isolat
ed rat hepatocytes during short-term incubation.