The effect of thermal injury on murine neutrophil oxidative metabolism.

The ability of polymorphonuclear leukocytes to kill bacteria and yeast is reflected by cellular chemiluminescence or similarly by the production of H2O2 during oxidative metabolism. With the use of flow cytometry and 2'7' dichlorodihydrofluorescein-diacetate, we determined the direct effect of thermal injury and the indirect effect of burn serum on murine polymorphonuclear leukocyte oxidative metabolism after stimulation on days 1, 5, and 10 after 25% total body surface area burn. Control or burn peritoneal leukocytes and 10% control or burn serum were incubated in vitro with 2'7' dichlorodihydrofluorescein-diacetate for 15 minutes, then stimulated with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate. The change in polymorphonuclear leukocyte fluorescence was calculated from fluorescence histograms before and after stimulation. The oxidative metabolism of burn polymorphonuclear leukocytes was clearly depressed on days 5 and 10 after burn injury. Control polymorphonuclear leukocytes in the presence of day 5 burn serum produced decreased levels of H2O2, returning to normal by day 10. In general, bactericidal activity is markedly depressed on days 5 and 10 after thermal injury and may be associated with increased risk of sepsis.