Effects of lentinan on the inducible nitric oxide synthase and intracellular glutathione in mouse peritoneal macrophages

Objective To investigate the effects of Lentinan on the activity of inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS) and intracellular glutathione (GSH) in mouse peritoneal macrophages and to study the immunoregulation mechanisms of Lentinan.Methods (1) Observed the effects of Lentinan on iNOS and intracellular GSH in mouse peritoneal macrophages. (2) Observed the effects of mRNA transcriptional inhibitor Actinomycin D, protein synthesis inhibitor Actidione and NO synthase(NOS) inhibitor N-monomethyl-L-arginine(L-NMMA) on the activity of iNOS and intracellular GSH in mouse peritoneal macrophages. (3) Observed the effects of GSH eliminants BrO?ETA and BSO on the activity of iNOS. Results The results indicated:(1) Lentinan caused the increase of activity of iNOS in mouse peritoneal macrophages and decrease of intracellular GSH.(2)The effects were blocked efficiently by three inhibitors. (3)The effect of Lentinan on the activity of iNOS was inhibited by GSH eliminants.Conclusions It concludes that Lentinan can induce the increase of the activity of iNOS accompanied by depleted of intracellular GSH in the activated mouse peritoneal macrophages . It suggested that intracellular GSH plays an important role in regulation of iNOS activity and protects host cells from cytotoxic attack by NO.