Granulocyte/Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor Stimulates Monocyte and Tissue Macrophage Proliferation and Enhances Their Responsiveness to Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor

• Published in: Blood 1988-04, Vol.71 (4), p.997-1002
• Main Authors: Chen, Ben D.-M., Clark, Carl R., Chou, Ta-hsu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis of the immune response. Humoral and cellular immunity; Animals; Biological and medical sciences; Bone Marrow Cells; Cell Adhesion; Cell Division - drug effects; Colony-Forming Units Assay; Colony-Stimulating Factors - metabolism; Colony-Stimulating Factors - pharmacology; Drug Synergism; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Fundamental immunology; Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor; Growth Substances - pharmacology; Hematopoietic Stem Cells - cytology; Immunobiology; Lymphokines, interleukins ( function, expression); Macrophages - cytology; Macrophages - metabolism; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred C3H; Monocytes - cytology; Peritoneal Cavity - cytology; Receptors, Cell Surface - drug effects; Receptors, Colony-Stimulating Factor; Regulatory factors and their cellular receptors
• ISSN: 0006-4971; 1528-0020
• DOI: 10.1182/blood.V71.4.997.997

Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is a specific humoral growth factor that stimulates both neutrophilic granulocyte and macrophage production by bone marrow hematopoietic progenitor cells. GM-CSF also stimulates the proliferation and clonal growth of both tissue macrophages and blood monocytes. Although at low concentrations GM-CSF was unable to support the long-term growth of tissue macrophages, it greatly enhanced their responsiveness to macrophage CSF (M-CSF, or CSF-1). This effect was also observed by treating macrophages with GM-CSF for a short time. GM-CSF did not compete with M-CSF for binding to M-CSF receptors nor was it inactivated by treatment with anti-M-CSF antiserum. Treatment of tissue macrophages with GM-CSF led to a rapid but transient downregulation of M-CSF receptors; prolonged incubation at 37°C, however, resulted in a restoration and upregulation of M-CSF receptors. Identical effects were observed with both native or recombinant GM-CSF. This study suggests that GM-CSF regulates tissue macrophage production by two modes of action: (a) direct stimulation of macrophage proliferation, and (b) enhancement of their responsiveness to M-CSF.© 1988 by Grune & Stratton, Inc. 0006-4971/88/7104-0052$ 3.00/0