Recombinant human interleukin 6 is a potent inducer of the acute phase response and elevates the blood platelets in nonhuman primates.

Human interleukin 6 (IL-6) produced by molecular cloning was administered to nonhuman primates to assess its biological activities in vivo. Rhesus monkeys were treated s.c. with recombinant human (rh) IL-6 at 3 and 30 micrograms/kg body weight/day for 11 days, followed by the administration of recombinant human granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (rhGM-CSF) at 5.5 micrograms/kg/day for 5 days. Serum levels of positively regulated acute phase proteins (APP) (C-reactive protein, alpha 1-antitrypsin, haptoglobin, and ceruloplasmin) increased, whereas negatively regulated APP (prealbumin) decreased in response to rhIL-6 treatment in a dose-dependent manner. Platelet counts rose after a latent period of 4-5 days following the start of rhIL-6 treatment, resulting in a maximum twofold increase above normal levels 2-3 days after the termination of the rhIL-6 treatment. Recombinant human IL-6 treatment induced a two to threefold rise in myeloid progenitor blood cell levels. The subsequent administration of rhGM-CSF to rhIL-6-pretreated animals did not increase the progenitor cell levels in blood above those found with rhGM-CSF treatment alone, indicating that rhIL-6 compared to recombinant human interleukin 3 (rhIL-3) has a minor proliferative effect on hematopoietic precursors in vivo. In conclusion, rhIL-6 was shown to be a potent stimulator of APP and was able to increase the number of platelets in circulation in nonhuman primates.