Human neutrophil chemotactic and degranulating activities of leukotriene B5 (LTB5) derived from eicosapentaenoic acid.

Leukotriene B4 exhibited 10- to 30-fold greater chemotactic potency for human neutrophils than eicosapentaenoic acid-derived leukotriene B5, as assessed in modified Boyden micropore filter chambers. In contrast, leukotrienes B4 and B5 were equipotent stimuli of human neutrophil lysosomal degranulation in vitro, as quantified by the release of beta-glucosaminidase. Analyses of competitive inhibition of the binding of [3H] leukotriene B4 to neutrophils indicated that leukotriene B4 binds with a 500-fold greater association constant than leukotriene B5 to a subclass of high-affinity receptors, which appears to transduce chemotactic responses efficiently, while leukotrienes B4 and B5 bind equally well to low-affinity receptors.