A rapid loss of mitochondrial membrane potential stimulated by ONO--AE--248 induces non--apoptotic programmed cell death of neutrophils

Objective To investigate the changes and roles of mitochondria in neutrophil death induced by ONO-AE-248. Me- thods Human neutrophils were cultured in vitro with ONO-AE-248(5×10~ -5 mol/L)and medium, respectively. FACS and confocal microscopy were used to detect the mitochondria structure and flow cytometry was employed to detect the level of mitochondria membrane potential. Re- sults ONO -AE-248 resulted in a rapid loss of mitochondrial membrane potential of neutrophils. The mitochondrial structure and distribution also were obviously different between spontaneous apoptosis and non-apoptosis programmed cell death induced by ONO-AE-248. Conclu- sion The experiment results suggest that changes of mitochondrial structure and function might be a typical morphological, physiological, and biochemical feature in this unique form of neutrophil death, and that the mitochondrial pathway might play an important role in ONO-AE-248-induced death of neutrophils.