Effects of lipid emulsions on lipid body formation and eicosanoid production by human peripheral blood mononuclear and polymorphonuclear cells

SummaryBackground & aimsThis study investigated the influence of four commercial lipid emulsions, Ivelip, ClinOleic, Omegaven and SMOFlipid®, on lipid body formation, fatty acid composition and eicosanoid production by cultured human peripheral blood polymorphonuclear cells (PMN) and mononuclear cells (PBMC).MethodsPMN and PBMC were exposed to emulsions at concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 0.04%. Lipid body formation was assessed by microscopy, fatty acid composition by gas chromatography and eicosanoids by ELISA.ResultsStimulation of inflammatory cells and exposure to lipid emulsions promoted the formation of lipid bodies, but there did not appear to be differential effects of the emulsions tested. In contrast, there were differential effects of lipid emulsions on eicosanoid formation, particularly with regards to LTB4 production by PMN. Omegaven dramatically increased production of eicosanoids compared with the other emulsions in a dose-dependent manner. This effect was associated with a significantly higher level of lipid peroxides in the supernatants of cells exposed to Omegaven.ConclusionsStimulation of inflammatory cells and exposure to lipid emulsions promotes lipid body formation and eicosanoid production, although the differential effects of different emulsions appear to be largely due to lipid peroxidation of unsaturated fatty acids in some emulsions in this in vitro system.