title: Production of macrophage colony-stimulating factor by astrocytes and brain macrophages.
abstract: Morphological hallmarks of inflammatory and degenerative diseases of the brain are hypertrophy of astrocytes and accumulation of macrophages recruited from circulating blood monocytes and/or from resident macrophages, the so-called microglial cells. Recently, production of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) by astrocytes has been suggested to contribute to the macrophage response. Here we report that in addition to GM-CSF, murine astrocytes also produce macrophage (M)-CSF upon stimulation with tumor necrosis factor alpha, interleukin-1 and lipopolysaccharides. The bioactivity detected in supernatant of astrocytes was characterized using the M-CSF-dependent cell line M-NFS-60 and neutralizing anti-M-CSF antibodies. RNase protection analysis showed M-CSF mRNA already in unstimulated astrocytes without striking up-regulation by the stimuli. Thus, in astrocytes the expression of the M-CSF gene is predominantly regulated at the posttranscriptional level.
authors.affiliation: Section of Clinical Immunology, University Hospital, Zürich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Frei
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nohava
authors.forename: U V
authors.initials: UV
authors.lastname: Malipiero
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schwerdel
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fontana
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000378:metabolism*; D001921:Brain / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D016173:Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D008264:Macrophages / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D016186:Receptor, Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D016173:Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor; D016186:Receptor, Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor