At 4 h following induction of pleural
inflammation in rats using either an immune stimulus (reverse passive
Arthus reaction, RPAR) or a chemical stimulus (
carrageenan), the cellular infiltration and fluid accumulation responses were quantitated. The bell-shaped
antigen (BSA) dose-response curve describing the fluid response was increased upward as the anti-BSA dose was increased from 0.25 to 1 mg, whereas the dose-response curve for cellular infiltration was both shifted upward and to the right. Both nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and a mixed
lipoxygenase-
cyclooxygenase inhibitor (
BW 755C) preferentially inhibited fluid accumulation in RPAR
pleurisy elicited with 5 mg BSA and 1 mg anti-BSA and in
carrageenan pleurisy. In contrast, these drugs inhibited cellular infiltration preferentially in RPAR
pleurisy elicited with 1 mg BSA and 1 mg anti-BSA. These results demonstrate that the fluid and cellular responses in rat pleural
inflammation can be differentially regulated by anti-inflammatory drugs depending upon the doses of
antigen and antibody employed in RPAR
pleurisy and the identity of the inflammatory stimulus.