Stimulation of antibacterial macrophage activities by B-cell stimulatory factor 2 (interleukin-6).
Mononuclear phagocytes provide the major habitat of intracellular bacteria, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis. The capacity of B-cell stimulatory factor 2 (interleukin-6 [IL-6]) to activate tuberculostatic functions was investigated by using murine bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMM phi). BMM phi stimulated with recombinant IL-6 and subsequently infected with M. bovis organisms failed to inhibit mycobacterial growth. In contrast, marked tuberculostasis was induced by IL-6 in BMM phi that were already infected with M. bovis, indicating that IL-6 has a macrophage-activating function.
Flesch
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Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ulm, Federal Republic of Germany.
Kaufmann
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D000818:Animals; D001770:Blood Bactericidal Activity; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000494:pharmacology; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008262:Macrophage Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D008264:Macrophages / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology; D051379:Mice; D009164:Mycobacterium Infections / Q000276:immunology; D009163:Mycobacterium bovis / Q000276:immunology*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins
D015850:Interleukin-6; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D007371:Interferon-gamma