The distinct developmental routes of dendritic cells and mast cells from murine bone marrow cultures with interleukin-3 are unclear. We found that short-term bone marrow cultures with interleukin-3 after 8^10 d consist of about 10%^30% dendritic cells and 70%^90% mast cell precursors, and only after 4^6 wk do homogeneous populations of mast cells emerge. Phenotypical and functional analysis of interleukin-3/dendritic cells revealed a high similarity with myeloid dendritic cells generated with

more »

... anulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor in the expression of myeloid dendritic cell markers (CD11c þ B220^CD8a^CD11b þ ), major histocompatibility complex II and costimulatory molecules, endocytosis, maturation potential, interleukin-12 production, and T cell priming. Interleukin-3/dendritic cells expressed higher levels of interleukin-3 receptor, however. To dissect the interleukin-3/dendritic cell and mast cell development, we sorted fresh bone marrow cells into six subsets by the antibodies ER-MP12