Adenosine A3 receptor agonist acts as a homeostatic regulator of bone marrow hematopoiesis

The present study was performed to define the optimum conditions of the stimulatory action of the adenosine A3 receptor agonist, N6-(3-iodobenzyl)adenosine-5′-N-methyluronamide (IB-MECA), on bone marrow hematopoiesis in mice. Effects of 2-day treatment with IB-MECA given at single doses of 200 nmol/kg twice daily were investigated in normal mice and in mice whose femoral bone marrow cells were either depleted or regenerating after pretreatment with the cytotoxic drug 5-fluorouracil. Morphological criteria were used to determine the proliferation state of the granulocytic and erythroid cell systems. Significant negative correlation between the control proliferation state and the increase of cell proliferation after IB-MECA treatment irrespective of the cell lineage investigated was found. The results suggest the homeostatic character of the induced stimulatory effects and the need to respect the functional state of the target tissue when investigating effects of adenosine receptor agonists under in vivo conditions.