Leukemia inhibitory factor: A biological perspective

AbstractThe notion that a single hormone may exert a broad range of effects has become well established. As such, leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) is a prime example. LIF was initially described, purified, and genetically cloned on the basis of its ability to induce the differentiation and suppress the clonogenicity of the monocytic leukemia cell line, M1. Subsequently, it has become apparent that in vitro LIF inhibits the differentiation of pluripotential ES cells, stimulates the synthesis of hepatic acute‐phase proteins, induces a switch in neurotransmitter phenotype from adrenergic to cholinergic, suppresses adipocyte lipoprotein lipase activity, and results in an increase in bone resorption. Moreover, elevation of LIF levels in vivo has a number of patho‐physiological consequences, many of which parallel those effects observed in vitro. The challenge that lies ahead is to determine whether other sites of LIF action exist and to define more clearly the physiological role LIF plays in vivo.A major mechanism of cell‐cell communication is by the production and secretion of polypeptide hormones by one cell type, which act either systemically or locally, via interaction with specific