Effects of macrophage colony-stimulating factor on antifungal activity of neonatal monocytes against Candida albicans

The effects of recombinant macrophage-colony stimulating factor (M-CSF) on antifungal activities of monocytes (MNC) from healthy neonates and adults against Candida albicans were compared. Pretreatment of adult and neonatal MNC with 15 ng/ml of M-CSF for 4 days significantly increased superoxide anion (O(-2)) production in response to phorbol myristate acetate. While M-CSF-treated MNC from adults produced significantly higher O(-2) in response to Candida blastoconidia, M-CSF-treated neonatal MNC did not show a similar response. Further, M-CSF significantly enhanced phagocytosis of C. albicans by adult MNC but not by neonatal MNC. While M-CSF enhances antifungal activities of adult MNC against C. albicans, it does not appear to affect anticandidal function of neonatal MNC.