title: Recombinant human interleukin-3 enhances the in vitro survival of mononuclear phagocytes from the peripheral blood of very low birth weight premature infants at birth.
abstract: Interleukin 3 (IL-3) is a pluripotent hematopoietic growth factor that stimulates proliferation, differentiation, and function of multiple cell lineages. We examined the effects of recombinant human IL-3 (rhIL-3) on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (MNC) isolated from 18 premature human newborns with birth weights between 600 and 1,500 g at birth and at 2 and 4 weeks of age, from 7 full-term neonates, and from 26 normal adult volunteers. After 2 weeks in liquid culture, rhIL-3 treatment was associated with a six- to nine-fold increase in the survival of MNC from very low birth weight (VLBW) neonates. In the absence of rhIL-3, VLBW neonatal MNC exhibited a low survival rate. MNC from 6 of 7 full-term neonates responded similarly to rhIL-3 with an eight-fold increase in survival. In contrast, rhIL-3 showed only a 20-30% increase in the survival of adult MNC (p = NS). When analyzed by immunofluorescent microscopy using monoclonal antibodies to phenotypic markers characteristic of individual MNC lineages, 70-80% of the surviving VLBW neonatal MNC were mononuclear phagocytes, while 70-80% of the surviving adult MNC were T cells. Full-term MNC cultures displayed a population of cells with an intermediate phenotype. Following rhIL-3 treatment, surviving MNC from term neonates displayed 35% T cells and 53% mononuclear phagocytes which was not significantly different from untreated MNC. rhIL-3 treatment was associated with a seven- to twelve-fold increase in the number of progenitor cells (CD34+) from VLBW neonatal blood and a three- to five-fold increase in the number of adult progenitor cells. Full-term neonates had a lower percentage of CD34+ cells than VLBW neonates, and this was not significantly altered by the rhIL-3 treatment. We conclude that rhIL-3 increases the number of mononuclear phagocytes that survive in culture following isolation from the peripheral blood of VLBW neonates. These in vitro studies may have a predictive value for in vivo studies utilizing combinations of hematopoietic growth factors to enhance neonatal host defense.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, State University of New York at Stony Brook 11794-8111, USA.
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Omar
authors.forename: H B
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Fleit
authors.forename: C D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Kobasiuk
authors.forename: E F
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: La Gamma
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002452:Cell Count; D002470:Cell Survival; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature / Q000097:blood*; D019102:Infant, Very Low Birth Weight / Q000097:blood*; D015931:Intensive Care, Neonatal; D007377:Interleukin-3 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010586:Phagocytes / Q000502:physiology*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D007377:Interleukin-3; D011994:Recombinant Proteins