Pulmonary macrophages alter the collagen phenotype of lung fibroblasts

Cultured lung fibroblasts produced and secreted interstitial collagen types I and III. The relative proportion of type III collagen increased as a linear function of cell density, with confluent cultures producing 8.6% type III collagen. When human lung fibroblasts were cultured in the presence of newly harvested lung macrophages, the proportion of type III collagen secreted rose to 15.5%. This high level of type III collagen synthesis was greater than could be induced by withdrawal of serum, a perturbation known to alter the proportion of types I and III collagen synthesized by fibroblasts. This effect on fibroblast phenotype was independent of cell density, as both low and high density cultures of fibroblasts responded similarly when cultured with macrophages. There was no evidence that fibroblasts synthesize new or different collagen types (such as type I trimer) in response to macrophages. Optimal conditions for eliciting an effect on fibroblast connective tissue metabolism required interaction of the two cell types for 5–8 days. These in vitro changes are analogous to the sequence of interactions and changes in connective tissue metabolism seen during recovery from tissue injury.