title: Regulation of microglial function by interferons.
abstract: Cultured neonatal rat microglia were pretreated with varying doses of either purified interferon (IFN) alpha/beta or recombinant IFN gamma for 24 or 48 h and the following functional parameters examined; superoxide anion production, interleukin-1 secretion and chemotaxis. IFN gamma produced a marked increase in superoxide anion levels when PMA was used to initiate superoxide anion production but had no effect in OPZ-stimulated microglia. Treatment with IFN alpha/beta potentiated superoxide anion production in both PMA and OPZ-stimulated cells. Interleukin-1 activity was decreased by treatment with IFN gamma for 24 h while IFN alpha/beta increased IL-1 activity at 48 h. Removal of serum from the treatment media prevented the action of IFN alpha/beta on IL-1 production. Treatment with IFN alpha/beta or gamma decreased chemotaxis of microglia in response to zymosan activated serum. The data indicate that IFN gamma and alpha/beta can regulate microglial function and that this regulation may differ from that seen for other monocytically derived macrophages.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Georgetown University Medical School, Washington, DC 20007.
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Colton
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Keri
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gilbert
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000838:Anions / Q000378:metabolism; D002633:Chemotaxis / Q000187:drug effects; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016899:Interferon-beta / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007375:Interleukin-1 / Q000378:metabolism; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D013481:Superoxides / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000838:Anions; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D007375:Interleukin-1; D013481:Superoxides; D016899:Interferon-beta; D007371:Interferon-gamma