Erythromycin inhibits Cl secretion across canine tracheal epithelial cells

We studied the effect of the macrolide antibiotic erythromycin on bioelectrical properties of canine cultured tracheal epithelium under short-circuit conditions in vitro. Addition of erythromycin to the submucosal but not to the mucosal side dose-dependently decreased short-circuit current (Isc), the maximal decrease from the baseline value and the concentration required to produce a half-maximal effect (IC50) being 5.6 +/- 1.0 microA.cm-2 (mean +/- SE, p less than 0.001) and 18 microM, respectively. In contrast, other antibiotics including ampicillin, cephazolin and tetracycline were without effect. The erythromycin-induced decrease in Isc was not altered by amiloride, but it was abolished by bumetanide, diphenylamine-2-carboxylate2, and substitution of Cl in the bathing medium with gluconate (p less than 0.001, in each case). The effect of erythromycin on epithelial Isc was attenuated by pretreatment of cells with indomethacin but not with AA-861 a lipoxygenase inhibitor. Incubation of cells with erythromycin inhibited the release of prostaglandins E2 and F2 alpha from tracheal epithelial cells. These results indicate that erythromycin may selectively inhibit Cl secretion across airway epithelium through the inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis and suggest that this action possibly reflects its clinical efficacy in the treatment of airway hypersecretion.