Arginine and Adhesion Molecules - Adhesion Molecules - page 103

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CHAPTER

Arginine and Adhesion Molecules

Sung-Ling Yeh
Professor, School of Nutrition and Health Sciences, Taipei Medical University,
250 Wu-Hsing Street, Taipei, Taiwan 110, Republic of China,
E-mail: [e-mail]
Departmental contact : E-mail: [e-mail]

ABSTRACT

Arginine (Arg) is a non-essential amino acid for healthy adults. It is the precursor
of nitric oxide (NO). Previous reports show that Arg and NO possess numerous
physiological properties. Many studies have demonstrated the benei ts of Arg
supplementation on immune functions. Arg is considered to be an essential
amino acid for patients with catabolic conditions. Currently, Arg is added to
enteral formulas in an attempt to modulate immune function and improve clinical
outcomes of critically ill patients. Adhesion molecules are important mediators
of host defense and are localized in the earliest inl ammatory lesions. Numerous
studies have shown that Arg, possibly through the regulation of NO, modulates
the expression of adhesion molecules and hence attenuates the inl ammatory
reaction. h is chapter appraises several animal studies and current clinical evidence
regarding the ef ects of Arg supplementation on adhesion molecule expression in
various conditions. Some in vitro studies using an NO donor and NO synthase
inhibitors to investigate the roles of NO in leukocyte adherence and immigration
are also included. Most studies suggested that Arg and/or NO administration
can reduce adhesion molecule expression and decrease leukocyte adherence and
transmigration. h e mechanisms through which NO decreases endothelial and
leukocyte adhesion molecule expressions are postulated. However, conl icting
results in some situations have been reported, and discrepancies between dif erent
experiments with Arg or NO administration are discussed.

Key terms are dei ned at the end of the chapter.