Prostaglandin-mediated suppression of in vitro growth of erythroid progenitor cells

In vitro hematopoiesis was evaluated in 37 patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) who developed moderate to severe anemia in order to clarify the relationship between the growth of erythroid progenitor cells and CRF-associated anemia. Bone marrow cells from these patients were cultured in the presence of recombinant erythropoietin. Both early and late erythroid progenitor cells (BFU-E and CFU-E) were significantly suppressed in patients with CRF compared to those in normal controls, while myeloid progenitor cells (GM-CFC) remained normal. Suppression of CFU-E was shown to be mediated by prostaglandin(s) secreted from bone marrow adherent cells. Furthermore, the suppression of CFU-E was inversely correlated with concentrations of uremic serum or parathyroid hormone added to the assay system. These observations suggest a possibility that late erythroid progenitor cells may be preferentially suppressed by the network consisting of parathyroid hormone, bone marrow adherent cells and prostaglandin(s).