Adaptation to hyperthermia and changes in peripheral blood leukocytes in humans]

Heating humans up to rectal temperature 39.0-39.5 degrees C induces a heat stress and a physiological adaptation. Blood cells were found to produce nitric oxide under these conditions, neutrophiles playing a major role in the process. In our opinion, the HSC 70 takes part in the process of the long cell adaptation augmenting the cells' functional activity. Hyperthermia leads to a massive temporal HSP 72 expression in the blood mononuclears. This expression seems to be due to alterations in the cellular proteins and to oxidative stress.