MORPHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF ITRACONAZOLE ON MURINE MACROPHAGE

Morphological effects of itraconazole (ITCZ) on murine macrophages wer e examined by light microscopy (LM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM ) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and compared with the ef fects of other antifungal agents. Thioglycolate-induced peritoneal mac rophages were prepared from C3H/He J mice and cultured for 20 h in the presence of the antifungal azoles econazole, fluconazole, miconazole, ketoconazole, ITCZ, hydroxy-itraconazole (ITCZ-OH), and a polyene ant ibiotic amphotericin B (AMPH), Among these reagents, only ITCZ and its derivative ITCZ-OH were effective in causing morphological changes of murine macrophage as determined by LM and SEM. Macrophages treated wi th 2 mu g/ml ITCZ or ITCZ-OH were stretched out bidirectionally, their surface was smooth and their 'ruffles' decreased. TEM observation sho wed that the bundles of the filamentous structure existed along the ce ll shape in the cytoplasm, These findings suggest that ITCZ and ITCZ-O H affect the morphology of macrophages. (C) 1998 Federation of Europea n Microbiological Societies, Published by Elsevier Science B.V.