A Set of Screening Techniques for a Quick Overview of the Neutrophil Function

Summary

This protocol features a set of neutrophil functional assays to be used as a screening method to cover functions from different signaling pathways. The protocol includes an initial and simple evaluation of cell viability, purity, reactive oxygen species production, real-time migration, phagocytosis, and a preliminary suggestion of neutrophil extracellular traps.

Abstract

Neutrophils are known as one of the first lines of defense in the innate immune response and can perform many particular cellular functions, such as chemotaxis, reverse migration, phagocytosis, degranulation of cytotoxic enzymes and metabolites, and release of DNA as neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). Neutrophils not only have tightly regulated signaling themselves, but also participate in the regulation of other components of the immune system. As fresh neutrophils are terminally differentiated, short-lived, and highly variable among individuals, it is important to make the most of the collected samples. Researchers often need to perform screening assays to assess an overview of the many neutrophil functions that may be affected by specific conditions under evaluation. A set of tests following a single isolation process of normal density neutrophils was developed to address this need, seeking a balance between speed, comprehensiveness, cost, and accuracy. The results can be used to reason and guide in-depth follow-up studies. This procedure can be carried out in an average time of 4 h and includes the evaluation of cell viability, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, real-time migration, and phagocytosis of yeast on glass slides, leaving enough cells for more detailed approaches like omics studies. Moreover, the procedure includes a way to easily observe a preliminary suggestion of NETs after fast panoptic staining observed by light microscopy, with a lack of specific markers, albeit enough to indicate if further efforts in that way would be worthwhile. The diversity of functions tested combines common points among tests, reducing the analysis time and expenses. The procedure was named NeutroFun Screen, and although having limitations, it balances the aforementioned factors. Furthermore, the aim of this work is not a definite test set, but rather a guideline that can easily be adjusted to each lab's resources and demands.

Introduction

Neutrophils are the most abundant innate immune cells in human blood and are known to play a major part in infection and inflammation, being the first responders to arrive at the site of tissue damage¹. In recent years, there has been a growing recognition of the crucial role that neutrophils play in a variety of diseases and in supporting homeostasis². Neutrophils not only have tightly regulated signaling themselves, but also participate in the regulation of other components of the immune system^3,4,5. Therefore, investigating n....

Protocol

All experiments strictly followed the ethical guidelines set by the institutional review board at the University of Brasilia (process 13364819.0.0000.5558), and samples were identified by codes to ensure donor anonymity. The cells were obtained from normal healthy male donors aged 18-35 years, who signed the informed consent and met the following eligibility criteria: non-smokers/vapers, no chronic health conditions, and no history of inflammatory conditions in the last 14 days.

1. Blood.......

Discussion

Neutrophils are highly dynamic and responsive cells that are short-lived and cannot yet be cryopreserved¹⁹, making investigations into their biology challenging. Therefore, it is essential to follow careful steps to obtain viable, enriched, and resting neutrophils^11,20. This study employed a density-based isolation technique that emphasizes gentle and minimal manipulation, as well as the use of low temperatures until the activation step. A.......

Materials

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
CIM-Plate 16	Agilent	5665825001
CLARIOstar Plate Reader	BMG LABTECH		US Patent Number 9,733,124 Product details: MARS Data Analysis Software
Dimethyl sulfoxide	Dinâmica	1582
DNAse I	Sigma - Aldrich	DN 25
Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid disodium salt dihydrate	Sigma - Aldrich	E5134
Fast panoptic stain	Laborclin	620529
Glass slide	Exacta	7102
Hank’s Balanced Salt Solution with calcium, with magnesium, without phenol red.	Sigma - Aldrich	55037C
Hank’s Balanced Salt Solution without calcium chloride, magnesium sulfate and sodium bicarbonate.	Sigma - Aldrich	H4641
Heparin	Blau	7896014655229
Laminar flow cabinet	Veco	VLFS-12
Microscope	Zeiss	415501-0101-002	Product details: Primostar 1
Mixing Block	BIOER	MB-102
Neubauer improved bright-lined	New Optik	1110000
N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine	Sigma - Aldrich	F3506
Nitroblue tetrazolium	Neon	CAS 298-83-9
Percoll	Cytiva	17089101	separation media
Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate	Sigma - Aldrich	P8139
Phosphate buffered saline tablet	Sigma - Aldrich	P4417
ROTOFIX 32 A	Hettich	1206
Saccharomyces cerevisiae	Fleischmann
Safranin	Sigma - Aldrich	50240
Sodium dodecyl sulfate	Cytiva	17-1313-01
Sonicator	Qsonica	Q125
Trypan blue solution	Vetec	C.I. 23850
Vortex Genie 2	Scientific Industries, Inc.	0K-0500-902
xCELLigence Real-Time Cell Analysis (RTCA) DP (dual purpose)	Agilent	380601050	Product details: RTCA system composed of detection hardware, cell plates and software