Granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor and interleukin-3 regulate the production of an interleukin-1 inhibitor by the differentiated AML-193 leukemic cell line.

Treatment of the AML-193 leukemic cell line with phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) resulted in the loss of their ability to proliferate in response to GM-CSF or IL-3. This was not due to a change in number or affinity of GM-CSF receptors, but possibly resulted from an other cellular mechanism. The AML-193 differentiated cells acquired the ability to phagocytose glutaraldehyde-fixed E.coli in a similar fashion to mature macrophages. In addition the PMA-differentiated AML-193 cells now secreted a factor which specifically inhibited the binding of interleukin-1 (IL-1) to its receptor on the murine thymoma cell line EL-4.6.1C10. The synthesis of this inhibitor was further increased by the addition of GM-CSF or IL-3. Pulse labelling experiments showed that this activity was due to a 26 kDa protein that bound to the IL-1 receptor even in the presence of neutralizing antibodies against IL-1 alpha or IL-1 beta, and this binding was only antagonized by IL-1 alpha or IL-1 beta. In contrast, peripheral monocytes obtained from the blood of normal donors, when induced with either GM-CSF or IL-3, produced large quantities of inhibitor in the absence of PMA. This report clearly shows that a leukaemic cell line can respond to GM-CSF and IL-3 in different ways before and after in vitro differentiation.