Recombinant GM-CSF Induces in Vitro Differentiation of Dendritic Cells from Mouse Bone Marrow

The unprecedented functional capacity of dendritic cells (DC) in sensitizing resting T cells and their role in triggering T dependent immune responses attract increasing interest in this unique accessory cell population. Like macrophages (Mph) DC have been described to originate in the bone marrow (BM) (1). While the cytokine-promoted in vitro differentiation of Mph from BM-cells is well established, a convincing in vitro culture system for propagating mouse DC from BM-cells has not yet been reported. This work demonstrates the differentiation of DC from mouse bone marrow cells by a short term in vitro culture system supplemented with rGM-CSF.