title: Adjuvant therapy with recombinant interleukin-3 and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor.
abstract: Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and interleukin-3 (IL-3) are important members of the system of hematopoietic growth factors which control blood formation. Recombinant human (rh) GM-CSF stimulates proliferation and differentiation of myeloid cells and enhances effectively the regeneration of granulocytes and monocytes after chemotherapy or bone marrow transplantation. RhIL-3 acts on multipotent progenitor cells and induces an increase of leukocytes, platelets and reticulocytes after in vivo application. Combination of rhIL-3 and rhGM-CSF exerts a highly synergistic action on several hematopoietic cell lineages in monkeys and patients. Sequential application of rhIL-3 (5 days) followed by rhGM-CSF (10 days) has equivalent effects on myelopoiesis and thrombopoiesis compared with the effects of 15 days' monotherapy with rhGM-CSF on myelopoiesis and of a 15 days' treatment with IL-3 on platelet production. This combination seems to be very potent to reduce risk of neutropenia-associated infection and thrombocytopenic bleeding in patients with hematopoietic failure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Research, Behringwerke AG, Marburg, Germany.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Schulz
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Krumwieh
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Oster
mesh_terms: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000818:Animals; D001792:Blood Platelets / Q000187:drug effects; D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006410:Hematopoiesis / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D007377:Interleukin-3 / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000187:drug effects; D008252:Macaca fascicularis; D009503:Neutropenia / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000627:therapeutic use; D013921:Thrombocytopenia / Q000517:prevention & control*
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D007377:Interleukin-3; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor