Enhancement of murine hematopoiesis by synergistic interactions between steel factor (ligand for c-kit), interleukin-11, and other early acting factors in culture.

Entry into the cell cycle of dormant hematopoietic progenitors appears to be regulated by multiple synergistic factors, including interleukin-6 (IL-6), granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), IL-11, and the ligand for c-kit, which is also known as steel factor (SF). We have tested the effects of these and other hematopoietic factors on the proliferation of partially enriched dormant murine progenitors in the presence and absence of serum. In serum-containing cultures, SF and IL-11 interacted to support the formation of multilineage colonies; the level of colony formation was comparable with the colony formation supported by other effective two-factor combinations. In serum-free cultures, colony formation supported by two factors was significantly less than that in serum-containing culture and the most effective two-factor combination in serum-free culture was SF plus IL-3. In serum-free cultures, three-factor combinations consisting of SF, IL-3, and one of IL-6, G-CSF, or IL-11 yielded colony formation that was comparable with that seen in serum-containing cultures. These studies indicate that IL-11 belongs to a group of early-acting hematopoietic synergistic factors that now includes IL-6, G-CSF, and IL-11. In contrast, SF is unique among the synergistic factors in that it interacts either with growth factors such as IL-3 or GM-CSF or with synergistic factors such as IL-6, IL-11, or G-CSF.