Alumina Ceramic Exacerbates the Inflammatory Disease by Activation of Macrophages and T Cells

• Main Authors: Seong-Min Lim, Juyoung Hwang, Hae-Bin Park, Chan Ho Park, Jun-O Jin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-09-01
• Series: International Journal of Molecular Sciences
• Subjects: Al2O3 FP; macrophage; CD4 T cell; CD8 T cell; inflammation
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/21/19/7114
• ISSN: 1661-6596; 1422-0067

(1) Background: Aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃) ceramic is one of the materials used for artificial joints, and it has been known that their fine particles (FPs) are provided by the wear of the ceramic. Al₂O₃FPs have been shown to induce macrophage activation <i>in vitro</i>; however, the inflammatory effect <i>in vivo</i> has not been studied. (2) Methods: We examined the <i>in vivo</i> effect of Al₂O₃FPs on the innate and adaptive immune cells in the mice. (3) Results: Al₂O₃ FPs promoted the activation of spleen macrophages; however, conventional dendritic cells (cDCs), plasmacytoid DCs (pDCs), and natural killer (NK) cells were not activated. In addition, increases in the CD4 and CD8 T cells was induced in the spleens of the mice treated with Al₂O₃ FPs, which differentiated into interferon-gamma (IFN-γ)-producing helper T1 (Th1) and cytotoxic T1 (Tc1) cells. Finally, the injection of Al₂O₃ FPs exacerbated dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced inflammation in the colon, mediated by activated and increased number of CD4 and CD8 T cells. (4) Conclusions: These data demonstrate that FPs of Al₂O₃ceramic may contribute to the exacerbation of inflammatory diseases in the patients.