Immature megakaryocytes in the mouse: in vitro relationship to megakaryocyte progenitor cells and mature megakaryocytes.

An assay describing conditions for the maturation of single immature megakaryocytes in vitro is reported. Enriched populations of small, relatively immature megakaryocytes have been found to develop into single, mature megakaryocytes by 60 hours in semisolid agar cultures. Continued incubation of these cells did not lead to the formation of colonies within 5-7 days. Maturation was indicated by increasing cell size and cytoplasmic and acetylcholinesterase content. Factors stimulating the development of immature megakaryocytes were found in preparations of human embryonic kidney cell-conditioned media (a source of in vivo Thrombopoietic Stimulatory Factor), peritoneal exudate cell-conditioned medium, lung-conditioned medium, or bone marrow cellular sources of activity (adherent cells or cells that sediment at 5-6 mm hr-1). Immature megakaryocytes cultured serum free responded to sources of an auxiliary megakaryocyte potentiating activity by developing into single, large megakaryocytes but did not respond to a megakaryocyte colony-stimulating factor devoid of detectable potentiator activity present in WEH1-3-conditioned medium. In contrast, serum-free proliferation of the megakaryocyte progenitor cell required both megakaryocyte colony-stimulating factor and the auxiliary potentiator activity. In the presence of megakaryocyte colony-stimulating factor alone, progenitor cells did not form colonies of easily detectable megakaryocytes. However, groups of cells comprised entirely of small acetylcholinesterase containing immature megakaryocytes were observed, thus establishing that megakaryocyte colony development passes through a stage of immature cells prior to detectable megakaryocyte development and that some acetylcholinesterase-containing cells can undergo cellular division.