THE EFFECTS OF ACETYLSALICYLIC-ACID ON THE PHAGOCYTIC FUNCTION OF BOVINE NEUTROPHILS IN-VITRO

Acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), a cyclooxygenase inhibitor, has been used for its analgesic and antiinflammatory properties. Its stimulating eff ect on the immune system has recently been described. In the present s tudy, the effect of ASA on phagocytic and microbicidal activity was in vestigated in vitro at the concentrations of 50, 100, 150, 250 and 500 mu g/ml in the peripheral blood polymorphonuclear leucocytes (PMNL) o f twelve healthy Holstein heifers. The functions of PMNL were evaluate d with flourescent microscopy using flourochrome dye, acridine orange. In this study, all the results compared to the controls at the concen trations of 50, 100 and 150 mu g/ml of ASA revealed that phagocytosis increased from 74.25 % to 80.3, 80.5 and 83.7 %, respectively. There w as a statistically significant decrease of phagocytic activity of PMNL between the 500 mu g/ml of ASA and control group. In addition to this , the microbicidal activity increased at the dose of 50 mu g/ml of ASA (97.1 %). Whereas there was a decrease at doses of 250 (87.4 %) and 5 00 mu g/ml of ASA (87.3 %) compared with the control group (92.2 %). T he results of the in vitro experiments showed that the function of bov ine polymorphonuclear leucocytes was altered by different concentratio ns of acetylsalicylic acid.