The effect of stress in vivo on the function of mouse macrophages in vitro.

Macrophages were harvested from home cage control (HCC) mice, and from mice which had been stressed by repeated brief exposures (3-8 min) to cold water at 10-15 degrees C twice daily for 8 or 14 days. Macrophages obtained from mice stressed 8 or 14 days compared to macrophages from HCC mice showed in vitro increased amounts of membrane-bound prothrombinase activity, whereas the thrombin degradation activity was unchanged. Furthermore, macrophages of mice stressed 8 days showed increased release of coagulation factor X/Xa to supernatant in vitro. These findings suggest an increased amount of prothrombinase complex enzymes on the surface of macrophages from mice stressed 8 days, and increased activity of the prothrombinase enzyme in macrophages from mice stressed 14 days. The synthesis of proteoglycans (PG) and glycosaminoglycans (GAG) was increased in macrophages from mice stressed 8 days compared to macrophages from HCC mice and mice stressed 14 days. When macrophages from mice stressed 8 days or HCC mice were stimulated in vitro with phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) and IL-1 or PMA and IL-2, a changed PG/GAG synthesis was observed only in macrophages from the HCC animals. Furthermore, both the tumour cytotoxicity and the released tumour necrosis factor (TNF) were decreased from macrophages from mice stressed 14 days compared to HCC mice. The results suggest that the macrophages of stressed mice have an altered mode of function more complex than a simple general suppression or activation.