Production of interleukin-1-like cytokine by cultured rat glomerular macrophages.

Resident glomerular macrophages from normal rats were isolated and grown through long-term cultures in order to obtain confluent cell monolayers. These cells have a secretory function as revealed by the production of a cytokine with a molecular weight similar to interleukin-1 (IL-1). The demonstration that rat glomerular macrophages secrete an IL-1-like cytokine emphasizes the role of these cells in a number of glomerular secretory functions, including some which have been commonly attributed only to mesangial contractile cells.