EFFECT OF GRANULOCYTE-COLONY-STIMULATING FACTOR ON THE CANDIDACIDAL ACTIVITY OF POLYMORPHONUCLEAR NEUTROPHILS AND THEIR COLLABORATION WITH FLUCONAZOLE

The effect of granulocyte colony stimulating factor (GCSF) treatment o f polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) in vitro was studied with respec t to their candidacidal activity. The candidacidal activity of PMN was found to be significantly increased when they were pretreated with GC SF. Fluconazole (1 mu g/ml) was found to be highly fungistatic (90%) f or Candida albicans Sh27 and collaborated with PMN for significantly i ncreased killing. Collaborative killing by PMN significantly increased when they were treated with GCSF before and after fungal exposure, Th e enhancing activities of GCSF required optimization of the GCSF dose and were thus inoculum and strain dependent.