Possible involvement of aiPLA2 in the phosphatidylserine-containing liposomes induced production of PGE2 and PGD2 in microglia

article i nfo PGE2 PGD2 15d-PGJ2 aiPLA2 Liposomes containing phosphatidylserine (PSL) produce PGE2 after being phagocytosed by microglia, but the precise underlying mechanism behind it still remains unclear. Here, we showed that liposomes consisting of phosphatidylserine and lysophosphatidylcholine, a lipolysis product of phosphatidylcholine by PLA2, were phagocytosed by microglia, but failed to induce secretion of PGE2. Furthermore, PSL-induced PGE2 secretion was significantly inhibited by MJ33, an aiPLA2 inhibitor, but not by AACOCF3, a cPLA2 inhibitor. PSL also pro- duced PGD2 and 15d-PGJ2 in microglia. We thus hypothesize that free arachidonic acid is supplied through aiPLA2-mediated lipolysis of phagocytosed phosphatidylcholine, leading to the production of PGH2 and its downstream metabolites.