Docosahexaenoic acid inhibits PAF and LTD4 stimulated [Ca2+]i-increase in differentiated monocytic U937 cells.

We investigated the effects of different polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) of the n-6 and n-3 family on the PAF and LTD4 stimulated increase in cytosolic free Ca(2+)-concentration [Ca2+]i in retinoic acid (RA) differentiated, human monocytic U937 cells. Docosahexaenoic acid (10 microM DHA) reduced the PAF induced increase in [Ca2+]i from 455 +/- 25 nM to 319 +/- 24 nM (P less than 0.01). DHA also significantly attenuated the LTD4 induced increase in [Ca2+]. However [Ca2+]i-increase stimulated by f-MLP, ATP, or ionophore A 23187 was not affected by DHA. Other PUFAs like eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), alpha-linolenic acid (LnA), arachidonic acid (AA) or gamma-linoleic acid (LA) were ineffective. Cellular differentiation as assessed by nitrobluetetrazolium reduction and enhanced expression of specific PAF binding sites in RA treated cells were not altered by DHA. Fatty acid composition in cellular phospholipids revealed effective incorporation of each PUFA. The DHA-effect on [Ca2+]i was time dependent and occurred at 48 h, whereas the DHA-content in phospholipids reached a plateau already at 24 h. The antioxidant vitamin E, the lipoxygenase inhibitor NDGA and the cytochrome P-450 inhibitor SKF 525A completely prevented the DHA induced reduction of PAF stimulated [Ca2+]i-increase. In contrast, the cyclooxygenase inhibitor indomethacin had no effect. Our results indicate that DHA selectively reduces intracellular [Ca2+]i-increases induced by PAF and LTD4 in RA-treated U937 cells, presumably involving an oxidative modification of DHA.