• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.159-166
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• 1996

In order to investigate the recycling of the pulmonary surfactant in association with morphological changes in macrophage after interleukin-1 $\alpha$ (IL-1) induced lung injury, an acute lung injury was induced by instillation of IL-1 into the trachea. Numbers of neutrophils and phospholipid content were increased significantly(P<0.01) in IL-1 treated BAL(brochoalveolar lavage) compared to control rat. By increased phagocytosis, the lamellar structures in the macrophges of IL-1 treated rats' BAL were increased and the compositions of the cellular organelles were changed in comparison to control rat. This difference in compositions of cellular organelles denotes difference of functions in macrophages between control and IL-1 treated rats. As macrophages have been said to implicate (in the difference in the recycling of pulmonary surfactant, it is highly probable that the difference in compositions of cellular organelles is closely related to the recycling of pulmonary surfactant. In the present study circular structures were synthesized in the cytoplasm of the macrophages in BAL of normal rats. Based on these experimental results, it is suggested that macrohages might synthesize during recycling of surfacuant in the lung.