Fresh frozen plasma increases adhesion molecule expression on human pulmonary endothelial cells

Background: Current blood banking practices allow fresh frozen plasma (FFP) to be thawed and then stored for 5 d between 1 and 6 °C. We hypothesized that aged plasma (d 5 FFP) would be pro-inflammatory to the endothelium compared with fresh plasma (d 0 FFP). Materials and Methods: Human pulmonary endothelial cells (PECs) were treated with (1) media, (2) media + lipopolysaccharide (LPS), (3) lactated Ringer's (LR), (4) LR + LPS, (5) d 0 FFP, (6) d 0 FFP + LPS, (7) d 5 FFP, and (8) d 5 FFP + LPS. After a 24 h incubation, the PECs were stained with antibodies for I-CAM, V-CAM, P-selectin, and E-selectin. The cells were subsequently analyzed by flow cytometry. Results: In both PEC groups treated with FFP and stimulated with LPS, I-CAM, V-CAM, P-selectin, and E-selectin were significantly up-regulated compared with LR when stimulated by LPS. Conclusion: FFP at both ages significantly increased expression of four different adhesion molecules compared with LR in PECs. This may represent a possible mechanism for increased leukocyte binding on the endothelium as a result of FFP transfusion.