Functional in vitro studies on the role and regulation of interleukin-6 in human somatotroph pituitary adenomas.

Objective: Interleukin-6 (IL-6), a member of the gp130 cytokine family, is considered to be an important modulator of function and growth in endocrine anterior pituitary cells. In pituitary adenomas, where IL-6 is often produced by the tumour cells, it is thought to be involved in pituitary adenoma pathophysiology via autocrine/paracrine mechanisms.

Methods: We have studied in primary cell cultures of human somatotroph adenomas whether IL-6 stimulates growth hormone secretion and whether intratumoral IL-6 is affected by various IL-6-regulating factors.