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Journal of Lipid Research, Vol. 47, 975-981, May 2006 Mass kinetics of apolipoprotein A-I in interstitial fluid after administration of intravenous apolipoprotein A-I/lecithin discs in humans
* Diabetes Modeling Group, Department of Paediatrics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
1 To whom correspondence should be addressed. e-mail: n.e.miller{at}btinternet.com
Apolipoprotein kinetics are customarily determined by modeling time curves of specific radioactivity or isotopic enrichment in plasma after intravenous infusion of radiolabeled lipoproteins or stable isotope-enriched amino acids. However, this provides no information on the fractional rate of transfer of the apolipoprotein from plasma to interstitial fluid (kp-if) or its mean residence time in interstitial fluid (MRTif). To determine these parameters for a pharmacologic dose of exogenous apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) given intravenously as apoA-I/lecithin discs, we measured apoA-I in plasma and prenodal leg lymph in five healthy men before, during, and after a 4 h infusion at 10 mg/kg/h. ApoA-I concentrations in plasma and lymph were modeled by linear compartmental models (SAAM II version 1.1), using lymph albumin to adjust for the effects of variations in lymph flow rate. kp-if averaged 0.75%/h (range, 0.331.32), and MRTif averaged 29.1 h (14.140.0). Neither parameter was correlated with the distribution volume (57105 ml/kg) or the fractional elimination rate (1.442.91%/h) of apoA-I, determined by modeling plasma apoA-I concentration alone. Although used here to study the mass kinetics of apoA-I, if combined with infusion of a tracer, analysis of lymph could also expand the modeling of endogenous apolipoprotein kinetics.
Supplementary key words high density lipoprotein interstitium lipoprotein lymph tissue fluid Abbreviations: apoA-I, apolipoprotein A-I; IF, interstitial fluid; kp-if, fractional rate constant for transfer from plasma to interstitial fluid; MRTif, mean residence time in interstitial fluid
Apolipoprotein kinetics are customarily determined either by modeling the plasma specific radioactivity-time curve after intravenous injection of radioiodinated lipoprotein or by infusing a stable isotope-enriched amino acid and modeling its appearance in the apolipoprotein in plasma by mass spectrometry. Both procedures have provided much valuable information (15). However, a limitation of methods that rely on plasma measurements alone is their inability to provide information on either the fractional rate of transfer of the apolipoprotein across the endothelium from plasma to the interstitial fluid (IF) or its residence time in IF. Such data might improve our understanding of lipoprotein metabolism in the interstitium, such as the oxidative modification of low density lipoproteins (6) and reverse cholesterol transport by HDLs (7). To obtain such information, it is necessary to model changes in both plasma and IF. We have previously shown that IF can be collected continuously for several days from ambulant humans via a cannula placed in an afferent (prenodal) lymph vessel of the leg (8). We have now applied this technique to study the pharmacokinetics of exogenous apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) in IF after intravenous infusion of apoA-I/lecithin discs, a procedure of current interest as a potential new therapy for coronary heart disease (9, 10).
Subjects Five healthy men with low-normal plasma total and HDL cholesterol concentrations were studied (Table 1 ). All had undergone physical examination, electrocardiography, routine clinical chemistry and hematology, and screening for recreational drugs. None had evidence of renal, hepatic, endocrine, or cardiovascular disease or of drug abuse. None was taking a special diet or medication. The study had been approved by the relevant ethics committee. All subjects had given written informed consent.
Clinical procedures On day 1, subjects were admitted to a metabolic ward (London Bridge Hospital) and placed on an isocaloric solid food diet (cholesterol, 188 mg/d; total fat, 65 g/d; saturated-polyunsaturated-monounsaturated fatty acids, 44:22:34% weight; fat-protein-carbohydrate, 21:20:59% calories). On day 4, a fine polyethylene cannula (Intramedic® tubing PE60; Becton Dickinson and Co., Sparks, MD; inner diameter, 0.76 mm; outer diameter, 1.22 mm) was inserted into an afferent lymph vessel 6 cm above the ankle (8). The external end of the cannula was passed into a 3 ml plastic tube containing 2 mg of solid Na2EDTA, which was lightly strapped to the leg. The procedure was carried out under local anesthesia and sterile conditions. Volunteers were then transferred to the metabolic ward. Thereafter, lymph was collected continuously until the end of the study, during which the subjects were ambulant, adhered to the diet, and avoided alcohol.
On day 7, at Body weights were measured daily and remained essentially constant. No clinical complications developed, and no abnormalities of clinical chemistry or hematology were recorded.
Laboratory procedures Plasma cholesterol and triglycerides were quantified using commercial enzymes (Sigma, Poole, UK) and Trinder-type reagents (Research Organics) in a microtiter plate spectrophotometer (11). Precinorm L® (Boehringer-Mannheim GmBH, Mannheim, Germany) was used as a calibrator. Plasma HDL cholesterol was quantified after precipitation of apoB-containing lipoproteins with polyethylene glycol 6000 [8%, w/v (final concentration)] (11). ApoA-I in plasma and lymph was quantified by rocket immunoelectrophoresis in the presence of polyethylene glycol 6000 (3%, w/v) and Tween 20 (0.2%, w/v) (11). The primary antiserum was goat polyclonal IgGs raised against delipidated human apoA-I (International Immunology Corp.). ApoA-I assays were standardized using dilutions of Precinorm L. Albumin concentrations in plasma and lymph were quantified by immunoelectrophoresis (11). Coefficients of variation for all immunoassays were <10%. Plasma and lymph samples from the same subject were processed together. All assays were done in duplicate, and mean values were calculated.
Data analysis and modeling
First, the changes in plasma apoA-I concentration alone were modeled, as described previously (12), to provide the distribution volume of the infused apoA-I (V) and the fractional rate constant for elimination (kel). The model is described by the following equations:
Second, apoA-I concentrations in plasma and lymph were modeled simultaneously to provide the fractional rate of transfer of apoA-I from plasma to IF (kp-if) and the mean residence time of apoA-I in IF (MRTif). ApoA-I concentrations in lymph were adjusted for the effect of variations in lymph flow rate by entering lymph albumin concentration as an independent variable (13). A two-compartment model was used, composed of a single pool for plasma apoA-I and a single pool for IF apoA-I. Transfer from plasma to IF was assumed to be linearly dependent on plasma apoA-I concentration. The disappearance of apoA-I from IF represented its return to plasma and any degradation by peripheral cells. The model is described by the following equations:
The kinetic parameters of exogenous apoA-I were estimated using a nonlinear, weighted, least-squares algorithm. The weight was defined as the reciprocal of the square of the nominal measurement error, with a coefficient of variation of 10%. The precision of the parameter estimates was obtained from the Fisher information matrix and expressed as coefficient of variation (14). For the rate constant for elimination, these were all <18% (mean, 11.4%); for distribution volume, they were <11% (mean, 7.6%); and with one exception (subject 5), they were <35% (mean, 25.0%) for kp-if and <38% (mean, 25.3%) for MRTif. In subject 5, precision was 81% for kp-if and 83% for MRTif. A value of <100% is regarded as acceptable for such parameter estimates (14). In addition to calculation of the precision of parameter estimates, model validation included assessment of model fit using a plot of weighted residuals and use of the Runs test to evaluate the random distribution of residuals (14).
Plasma apoA-I concentration increased on average by 62.2 mg/dl during the infusion and returned to baseline by 4.5 days (range, 3.05.8 days). As in our other studies (11), this was accompanied by rapid but transient increases in plasma HDL unesterified cholesterol and preß apoA-I concentrations and slower increases in plasma HDL cholesteryl ester and apoA-I concentrations (data not shown). Plasma apoA-I, lymph apoA-I, and lymph albumin concentrations in all subjects are shown in Fig. 1 . Lymph apoA-I/albumin ratios are also shown. As documented previously (13), lymph apoA-I and albumin showed circadian variation, fluctuating inversely with lymph flow rate (i.e., with IF production rate). Average lymph flow rates in subjects 15 were 7.4, 24.6, 1.2, 3.4, and 2.5 µl/min, respectively. In the pooled data, flow rate was unaffected by the infusion of discs (ANOVA, P = 0.40). Plasma albumin concentration was also unchanged (data not shown).
The parameter estimates are given in Table 2 . Modeling of plasma apoA-I concentration alone yielded a distribution volume of 72.4 ± 9.1 ml/kg (mean ± SEM) and a fractional rate constant for elimination of 2.09 ± 0.25%/h. Modeling of plasma and lymph apoA-I simultaneously gave values of 0.75 ± 0.20%/h for the rate constant for plasma-to-IF transfer and 29.1 ± 5.81 h for the mean residence time in IF. There was a trend for the mean residence time to increase with increasing plasma HDL cholesterol (Spearman r = 0.90, P = 0.08). The increment in plasma apoA-I during the infusion was not significantly correlated with any of the kinetic parameters.
Model validity was supported by the distribution of weighted residuals. Visual assessment indicated that mean weighted residuals displayed a random pattern around 1 to +1, with standard deviations mostly crossing the zero line (Fig. 2 ). The weighted residuals associated with the model of lymph apoA-I kinetics displayed a more rugged pattern than those of plasma, with two mean weighted residuals and associated standard deviations being outside the 1 to +1 interval. This can be explained by the greater chance of measurement error associated with the model of lymph apoA-I kinetics, attributable to the involvement of three measurement processes (plasma apoA-I, lymph apoA-I, and lymph albumin) compared with one measurement process (plasma apoA-I) in the model of plasma apoA-I kinetics. The Runs test supported the random distribution of residuals, with the exception of the plasma apoA-I model in subject 5 (P < 0.05, after Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons) and the lymph apoA-I model in subject 3 (P < 0.05).
Because afferent peripheral lymph is essentially identical in composition to IF (15, 16), our results represent the kinetics of apoA-I in the interstitium. Although the advantages of sampling from more than one compartment are well recognized, this is the first time that long-term collection of lymph has been used to study the kinetics of a protein in humans or those of an apolipoprotein in any species. The only comparable studies have been of the kinetics of albumin in animals (17). Engeset et al. (18) described the appearance of radioiodinated albumin in leg lymph in eight cancer patients, but they did not model the data. Bergan et al. (19) modeled the concentrations of antibiotics in human leg lymph, but only for 12 h. For our purposes, we needed to collect for a longer period. In all subjects, lymph apoA-I concentration decreased during the day and increased at night. Such circadian variations occur in all lymph protein concentrations in ambulant subjects, as a consequence of the alterations in lymph flow rate (i.e., IF production rate) that are produced by changes in posture and physical activity (13, 15). The amplitude of the fluctuation varies from protein to protein as a function of molecular size. We have shown that lymph apoA-I concentration can be adjusted for this effect by reference to lymph albumin concentration (13).
Our model assumed that plasma apoA-I and IF apoA-I behave as two distinct pools. Studies of endogenous apoA-I kinetics, involving sampling of plasma alone after infusion of tracers, have also used a two-pool model, assumed to represent intravascular and extravascular compartments (2025). Although recent work has shown that apoA-I in subclasses of plasma HDLs is actually kinetically heterogeneous, with preß apoA-I turning over faster than Our model also assumed that the infusion did not perturb the metabolism or kinetics of endogenous apoA-I. There is no evidence that apoA-I synthesis in liver or intestine is affected by plasma apoA-I concentration. It is well documented that the fractional elimination rate and the plasma concentration of apoA-I are negatively correlated (2025). Although this is owing at least in part to an effect of the former on the latter, the question arises whether a primary increase in concentration decreases the fractional elimination rate. The available evidence suggests that it does not. When Doran (27) infused apoA-I/lecithin discs into rats (n = 10) and dogs (n = 4) at different doses over the ranges 120600 mg/kg and 100300 mg/kg, respectively, the fractional elimination rate was unchanged. When we infused the same discs at doses of 25 and 40 mg apoA-I/kg into healthy men with similar baseline apoA-I concentrations (n = 3 and 4, respectively), plasma apoA-I increased by 27 and 52 mg/dl on average, but the concentration decline thereafter was similar visually in the two groups (11). We have now modeled these data using the same modeling procedure used in the present work. The results confirmed that the fractional removal rates did not differ significantly at the two doses (2.48 ± 0.66%/h and 2.64 ± 0.47%/h at the low and high doses, respectively). On the basis of our current understanding of the mechanisms by which macromolecules cross endothelium from plasma, it is unlikely that the infusion will have altered the fractional rate of transfer of apoA-I to IF. In contrast to small molecules, which cross endothelia bidirectionally by diffusion, proteins move from plasma to IF by convection (solvent drag), as a consequence of the flow of water through pores at cell junctions, and return to plasma exclusively via the lymphatic system (15, 28). As the infusion had no effect on lymph flow rate, there must also have been no effect on water filtration rate. Under such conditions, the flux of a macromolecule to IF is linearly related to its concentration in plasma (15, 28). We have shown that, at a constant flow rate (e.g., samples collected at the same time of day, or under standardized conditions of posture and physical exercise), the concentration of apoA-I in lymph is directly related to its concentration in plasma (8, 13).
Because we have shown that apoA-I/lecithin discs interact with plasma HDLs in vivo to increase the proportion of apoA-I in small preß HDLs and the size of Our model also assumed that the disappearance of apoA-I from IF represents its return to plasma via lymph plus any degradation by peripheral cells. It is generally accepted that macromolecules return from IF to blood exclusively via the lymphatic system (15, 30), and not via venous capillaries. Degradation of apoA-I by peripheral cells makes a small contribution to total apoA-I catabolism, which occurs mostly in the liver and kidney (31). Our data are of interest in relation to the use of apoA-I/lecithin discs in the treatment of coronary atherosclerosis (10). In the only clinical trial reported to date (9), apoA-IMilano/lecithin discs were given at doses of 15 or 45 mg/kg at intervals of 1 week for 5 weeks. To our knowledge, there have been no comparisons of the concentrations of lipoproteins in peripheral tissue IF and artery wall IF in any species. If our present findings are representative of the latter, they suggest that native apoA-I/lecithin discs may need to be given more often than once weekly if they are to expose artery wall cells continuously to significantly increased concentrations of apoA-I. Knowledge of the parameters of apoA-I kinetics in IF could assist the design of alternative therapeutic regimens, as they enable the concentration-time curves in both plasma and IF to be predicted at different doses and infusion rates. For a hypothetical regimen consisting of a priming bolus followed by a constant infusion, Table 3 presents the doses and infusion rates that would maintain 2-fold increases in plasma and IF concentrations in the five subjects, together with the times taken to achieve those concentrations in IF.
Because we used a pharmacologic dose of exogenous apoA-I, our results do not permit any conclusions to be drawn about the kinetics of endogenous apoA-I. Such information would be of physiologic interest in relation to the dynamics of reverse cholesterol transport (7, 29), lipoprotein oxidation (6), and lipoprotein remodeling (32) in peripheral IF. For that purpose, further work will be required, in which lymph collection is combined with infusion of a radioactive or stable isotopic tracer. Such studies would be less complex, as they would not require any assumptions to be made about the effects of changes in apoA-I pool size or HDL subclass distribution. Nor would adjustments be required to correct for the effects of variations in lymph flow rate, because these would not be expected to alter the specific radioactivity or stable isotope enrichment of apoA-I in lymph. The values we obtained for the fractional elimination rate of exogenous apoA-I mass (1.442.91%/h) were somewhat greater than most published values for endogenous apoA-I measured using tracers (0.41.8%/h) (2025). It is not clear whether this reflects a difference between exogenous apoA-I and endogenous apoA-I or is attributable to the fact that the plasma HDL concentrations in our subjects were in the low-normal range, which is known to be associated with above-average fractional elimination rates of endogenous apoA-I (2025).
The clinical and laboratory components of this work were performed at London Bridge Hospital and the Department of Cardiovascular Biochemistry, St. Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College (London), and were funded by the British Heart Foundation. The apoA-I/lecithin discs were provided by ZLB Behring (Bern, Switzerland). The authors thank T. Hovorka for help with data processing. Manuscript received August 9, 2005 and in revised form November 29, 2005 and in re-revised form January 6, 2006.
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