The biological activities of chemically synthesized leukotriene B, and eight structural analogues have been studied using chemotaxis, lysosomal-enzyme release and receptor-binding assays on human neutrophils. The results show that increasing the number of double bonds between C14 and C20, having triple bonds at C6 or C14, substitution of the primary carboxyl group at C1, changing the geometry of the double bond at C6 from the cis to trans configuration and changing the chirality of the hydroxyl group at C12 from the R to the S configuration result in substantial loss of both biological activity and the capacity to bind to the LTB, recognition site in parallel. We suggest that the functional epitopes of 5S, 12R-dihydroxy-6,14-cis-8,lO-truns-icosatetraenoic acid (LTB,) are either the same, or reside in the same domain as the binding site for the LTB, receptor. Development of LTB, antagonists to the high-affinity LTB, receptor, based on the structure of LTB,, is unlikely to be successful.Arachidonic acid is released from membrane phospholipids upon stimulation and is transformed via 5-hydroperoxy-6,8,11,14-icosatetraenoic acid (5-HPETE) by the 5-lipoxygenase enzyme [l-31 into an unstable epoxide, leukotriene A, (LTA,; 5,6-oxido-7,9,11,14-icosatetraenoic acid) [4]. LTA, is formed from 5-HPETE by abstraction of a hydrogen at ClO and elimination of a hydroxyl anion from the hydroperoxy group. LTA, undergoes either spontaneous, non-enzymic hydrolysis to form several stereochemically distinct 5,12-dihydroxy-icosatetraenoic acids (5,12-diHETE) or is enzymically catalyzed by the hydrolase enzyme to form leukotriene B, (LTB, ; 5S, 12R-dihydroxy-6,14-cis-8,1 O-trunsicosatetraenoic acid), a specific form of 5,12-diHETE [5, 61. Conjugation of LTA, with glutathione at the C6 position, by the glutathione-S-transferase enzyme LTC, synthetase, leads to the formation of LTC, (5S-hydroxy-GR-glutathionyl-7,9-truns-ll,14-cis-icosatetraenoic acid) [7, 81. LTC, is metabolically altered by successive elimination of a y-glutamyl residue, then glycine, to form its 6-cysteinylglycyl analogue, LTD, [9] and its 6-cysteinyl analogue, LTE, [lo] respectively. The structure of LTB, is 5S,12R-dihydroxy-6,14-cis-8,1O-truns-icosatetraenoic acid (compound I) [ll]. It is synthesized by human neutrophils, monocytes and alveolar macrophages in response to a wide variety of stimuli Abbreviations. PMN, polymorphonuclear cells ; HPETE, hydroperoxyicosatetraenoic acid; LTA,, 5,6-oxido-7,9,11,14-icosatetraenoic acid; diHETE, dihydroxyicosatetraenoic acids ; DMA, dimethylamide; LTB,, 5s. 12R-dihydroxy-6,14-cis-8,lO-trunL~-icosatetraenoic acid (compound 1); LTC,, SS-hydroxy-6R-glutathionyl-7,9-trans-11,14-cis-icosatetraenoic acid; IC,,, concentration at which half of the response is inhibited; fmet, formylmethionyl; HBSS, Hanks' balanced-salt solution; HPF, High-power field; compounds I-IX, the structures and chemical formulae are shown in Fig. 1. and is a potent chemotactic agent for neutrophils [12]. It induces aggregation of polymorphonuclear cells (P...