Enrofloxacin enhances the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps in bovine granulocytes

Several antibiotics are known for their ability to accumulate in neutrophils and thereby modulate the antimicrobial functions of those cells. This study demonstrates for the first time that an antibiotic, namely the fluoroquinolone enrofloxacin, enhances the formation of bovine neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). Pharmacologically inactivated NADPH oxidase or peptidyl-arginine deiminase-4 distinctly reduced enrofloxacin-induced NET formation. Additionally, when cells were treated with cytochalasin D or nocodazole, the enrofloxacin-mediated NET induction was abolished, indicating that besides oxidative burst and histone citrullination also actin and microtubule polymerization are involved in this process.