Role of cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant (CINC) in ozone-induced airway inflammation and hyperresponsiveness

Cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant (CINC) is a rat chemokine with potent chemoattractant effects on neutrophils. We determined the involvement of CINC in ozone-induced airway neutrophilia and bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) in the rat. We found a marked increase in lung CINC messenger RNA (mRNA) within 2 h after cessation of ozone exposure (1 ppm for 3 h), as measured by Northern blot analysis, whereas rats exposed to room air had no detectable CINC mRNA. Ozone exposure induced a significant neutrophilia in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) at 24 h after exposure (air-exposed rats: 4.2 ± 2.0 × 104, versus ozone-exposed rats: 16.1 ± 3.7 × 104); prior treatment with a goat anti-CINC antibody (1 mg, intravenously) suppressed the neutrophilia (3.1 ± 0.9 × 104). When administered intratracheally, the antibody (230 μ g) partially inhibited the influx of neutrophils. The increase in bronchial responsiveness to acetylcholine observed after ozone exposure was not inhibited by the anti-CINC antibody....