Tiotropium bromide inhibits human monocyte chemotaxis

Abstract

Tiotropium bromide (Spiriva®) is used as a bronchodilator in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, clinical evidence suggests that tiotropium bromide may improve COPD by mechanisms beyond bronchodilation. We hypothesized that tiotropium bromide may act as an anti-inflammatory agent by inhibiting monocyte chemotaxis, a process that plays an important role in the lung inflammation of COPD. To test this hypothesis monocytes were pretreated with tiotropium bromide prior to exposure to chemotactic agents and monocyte chemotactic activity (MCA) was evaluated with a blind chamber technique. Tiotropium bromide inhibited MCA in a dose- and time- dependent manner (respectively, p< 0.01) by directly acting on the monocyte. Acetylcholine (ACh) challenge increased MCA (p< 0.01), and tiotropium bromide effectively reduced (p< 0.01) the increase in MCA by ACh. The inhibition of MCA by tiotropium bromide was reversed by a muscarinic type 3 (M3)-muscarinic receptor antagonist (p< 0.01), and was not effected by an M2 receptor antagonist. Furthermore, a selective M3 receptor agonist, cevimeline, and Gq protein stimulator, Pasteurella multocida toxin, significantly increased MCA (P < 0.01), and tiotropium bromide pretreatment reduced (p< 0.01) the increase in MCA induced by these agents. These results suggest that tiotropium might regulate monocyte chemotaxis, in part, by interfering with M3-muscarinic receptor coupled Gq protein signal transduction. These results provide new insight that an anti-cholinergic therapeutic may provide anti-inflammatory action in the pulmonary system.

Keywords

• M3 receptor
• Pasturella multocida toxin
• acetylcholine
• anti-inflammatory
• anticholinergic
• chemotaxis
• monocyte
• muscarinic receptor
• tiotropium