Kinetics and function of tumor cytotoxic factor(s) produced by human blood monocytes activated to the tumoricidal state.

Human monocytes obtained from healthy volunteers and isolated by centrifugal elutriation were not cytotoxic to allogeneic tumorigenic cells. These freshly isolated monocytes were rendered tumoricidal following interaction in vitro for 24 hours with greater than 0.01 micrograms lipopolysaccharide (LPS)/ml or over 1 microgram nor-muramyl dipeptide/ml. Monocytes activated by this procedure produced a soluble factor that lysed tumor cells. Full expression of tumor cell lysis required a minimum of 18 hours' exposure of tumor cells to the factor. The degree of tumor cytotoxic factor (TCF) production was closely related to the intensity of monocyte activation to become tumoricidal. Significant production of TCF by monocytes was detected in the supernatants after treatment for 3 hours with LPS. TCF was also released by activated monocytes when cocultivated with tumorigenic cells. Similarly, the level of TCF production correlated with the monocyte density. TCF destroyed human allogeneic tumor cell lines (melanoma, glioblastoma, colon carcinoma, prostatic carcinoma, and breast carcinoma), but it did not affect nontumorigenic cell lines (lung and skin fibroblasts). TCF activity was not blocked by superoxide dismutase, catalase, or protease inhibitors; it was destroyed by being heated at 100 degrees C for 2 minutes. The ability of activated monocytes to release TCF could enhance host defense against cancer.