Role of humoral factors in granulopoiesis: Colony promoting factor (CPF) and its target “pre-CFU-C’ in long-term bone marrow culture

Supernatant of long-term bone marrow cultures contains colony promoting factor (CPF). The factor has no colony stimulating activity itself but augments granulocyte-macrophage colony formation in semi-solid culture of bone marrow cells in the presence of colony stimulating factor (CSF). CPF was specifically absorbed by bone marrow cells but not by thymocytes. Incubation of bone marrow cells with CPF alone resulted in the increase of the number of granulocyte-macrophage progenitor cells (CFUc). CPF-containing supernatant did not stimulate the proliferation of pluripotent stem cells (CFUs) but inhibited CFUs proliferation. These results suggest that CPF is a separate factor from CSF or from CFUs regulators, and that CSF-non-responsive cells (pre-CFUc) in the bone marrow mature into CSF-responsive CFUc by the stimulus of CPF.