Abstract
Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on effects of mouse fibroblast interferon (IFN-β) on tumoricidal activity and other functions of peritoneal macrophages (Mφ) and the possible relevance of these effects. In a study described in the chapter, cytolytic activity of peritoneal Mφ was measured as 3 H–TdR release from prelabeled mKSA–TU5 tumor cells after 48 h of cocultivation. Peritoneal Mφ of C3H/HeN mice can develop high cytolytic activity against tumor cells when exposed in vitro to partially purified mouse interferon (IFN-β). The kinetics of cytotoxicity enhancement also differed between IFN-β and Mφ activating factor (MAF). The ability of IFN-β to modulate in vitro another Mφ activity, thought to be controlled by the same mechanisms of Mφ cytolysis, was investigated. A variety of soluble factors released by Mφ have been hypothesized as responsible for their cytotoxic activity. The observation that IFN-β could differentially modulate Mφ functions leads to speculation about the importance of these events in the in vivo regulation of immune reactions in a viral infection.
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