Phenotypic change and proliferation of murine Kupffer cells by colony-stimulating factors

Kupffer cells were isolated from C57BL/6 mice by collagenase perfusion and assessed for response to colony-stimulating factors (CSFs) in terms of their phenotypic change and proliferation. Kupffer cells expressed F4/80, but not Mac-1, CD71, or asialo-GM1 initially. This phenotype pattern was different from that of alveolar and peritoneal macrophages. After stimulation with recombinant human macrophage CSF (M-CSF) or mouse granulocyte-macrophage CSF (GM-CSF), Kupffer cells expressed Mac-1 and a low level of CD71 in addition to F4/80 and increased in phagocytotic activity in association with the expression of CR3. Both M-CSF and GM-CSF, but not human IL-3, induced the proliferation of Kupffer cells in a dose-dependent manner, and after 7 days, the number of the cells increased to about four to six times the initial number. The relatively high dose of GM-CSF downmodulated the M-CSF receptor on Kupffer cells and inhibited the cell proliferation induced by the optimal dose of M-CSF. These data indicated that murine Kupffer cells have a different phenotype from other macrophages and that they respond to M-CSF and GM-CSF, leading to functional maturation and proliferation.