Joint Diseases Laboratory, Shriners Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Exposure of human synovial cells and fibroblasts in monolayer culture to interleukin 1 results in prominent secretion of proteins with Mr values of 6000 and 7000. By N-terminal sequence analysis, the Mr-6000 protein is identified as the protein encoded by a recently described gro mRNA. The Mr-7000 protein is identical to a neutrophil chemotactic factor released from monocytes. Stimulation of normal human fibroblasts with tumour necrosis factor alpha also results in expression and secretion of these two proteins. In addition to these cytokine-induced proteins, we have identified beta 2-microglobulin as an Mr-8000 protein constitutively secreted by synovial cells.