Effects of cytokines IL-4 on dendritic cell precursor from mice bone marrow in vitro

Objective:To establish the methods of isolation,purification and propagation of the dendritic cells(DCs) precursor from the mice bone marrow in vitro and to study the effects of cytokines IL-4 on mice bone marrow DCs.Methods:Bone marrow cells were flushed from the femurs of healthy mice,the floating cells were removed,and the adherent cells were divided into two groups.The Group 1 was continued to be cultured with recombinant granulocyte/macrophage colony stimulating factor(GM-CSF),and the Group 2 was cultured with GM-CSF plus interleukin 4(IL-4).The deduced DCs of two groups were observed by the phase microscope.Results:After DCs were cultured for 8-9 days,8 scopes under the phase microscope.were picked at random and the DC numbers were counted.The DC average number and standard deviation of Group 1 were 85.38 and 3.42,respectively.The DC average number and standard deviation of Group 2 were 119.25 and 3.96,respectively.There was a significant difference between the two groups(t=3.19,P0.05).The purity of cultured DC was over 90%.The cultured cells in these two groups exhibited special dendritic morphology of the mature DCs.Conclusion:A combination of GM-CSF plus IL-4 can greatly promote the proliferation and differentiation of DCs in vitro.