CULTURED HUMAN MONOCYTES RELEASE PROINFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES IN RESPONSE TO MYELIN BASIC-PROTEIN

In human cultured monocytes we examined the ability of myelin basic pr otein (MBP) to induce the production;of proinflammatory cytokines pote ntially involved in inflammatory demyelination. Northern blots and spe cific immunoassays demonstrated that monocytes incubated with optimal doses of MBP showed increased mRNA expression and release of tumor nec rosis factor (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), interleukin- 6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8) but not of interleukin-12/p40 (IL-12/p4 0). We also showed that cytokine production by MBP-stimulated monocyte s was abrogated by incubation with Dexamethasone. These data suggest t hat interaction of mononuclear phagocytes with MBP may participate in the regulatory process of cytokine production during inflammatory demy elination and support the beneficial role of corticosteroids therapy i n aberrant immune responses to the myelin sheath. (C) 1998 Published b y Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.