Stability of cytokine, cellular and clinical response to the intravenous LPS challenge repeated after one year: a healthy volunteer trial.

Whether the magnitude of individual cytokine, cellular, and clinical responses to the intravenous lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge is constant in individuals over extended time periods is unknown. Nine healthy volunteers received an intravenous LPS injection of 2 ng/kg bodyweight twice at intervals of at least one year. Circulating cytokines and leukocyte subsets were quantified using a multiplex immunoassay and cytometry by time-of-flight, respectively.

Reproducibility of LPS-Induced ex vivo Cytokine Response of Healthy Volunteers Using a Whole Blood Assay.

Introduction: Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation of human whole blood ex vivo has been widely used to investigate human innate immune responses. However, there are uncertainties regarding the reproducibility and reliability of this assay.

Methods: In this prospective, single-center study, cytokine responses (interleukin 8, interferon-α, interferon-γ, interleukin 10, interleukin 1-β, interleukin 6, and tumor necrosis factor-α) to ex vivo whole blood LPS stimulation were assessed in 12 healthy volunteers.