STIMULATING EFFECT OF LPS ON THE ACTIVITY OF NF-κB IN MOUSE KUPFFER CELLS

To investigate the effects of lipopolysaccharides (LPS), i.e. the main endotoxic components of Gram-negative bacteria, on the inflammation-related nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activity in mouse kupffer cells, mice were divided into the control group and the LPS stimulated group, and electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) was performed. It was found that after 3 h of LPS stimulation the activity of NF-κB was detected in dosage 1 mg/kg LPS, reached the maximum in 5 mg/kg LPS and the latter level persisted in 10 mg/kg LPS. Stimulated with 5 mg/kg LPS, the DNA-binding activity of NF-κB was observed half an hour after LPS infusion, peaked at 3 h and persisted for at least 8 h. The activation of NF-κB by LPS observed in this experiment well explained the inflammatory effects of LPS and showed that inhibiting NF-κB activation might be useful in the therapy of inflammation.