The role of endogenous tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and interferon-beta (IFN-beta) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced activation of the inducible nitric-oxide synthase (i-NOS) gene was investigated. By Northern analysis or reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction, the mouse macrophage cell line (J774) was found to respond to LPS treatment by increased expression of mRNAs specific for TNF-alpha, IFN-beta, and i-NOS with the kinetics unique for each gene. Bioassay of the culture supernatants showed that TNF-alpha and IFN-beta secreted by J774 cells increased from an undetectable level to about 300 and 340 units/ml, respectively, 3-6 h after LPS stimulation. Nitrite concentration was found to increase from 0 to 7.8 and 28.5 microM by 12 and 24 h, respectively, in the culture supernatant of LPS-treated J774 cells. The presence of a neutralizing dose of antibodies against IFN-beta, but not against TNF-alpha, during treatment with either 10 ng or 1 microgram of LPS/ml significantly, but not completely decreased the level of i-NOS-specific mRNA expression and NO production. The incubation of J774 cells with mouse natural IFN-beta itself (up to the level of 1,200 units/ml) did not induce i-NOS-specific mRNA and therefore did not stimulate J774 cells to produce NO. However, natural IFN-beta synergistically augmented the expression of i-NOS mRNA and the production of NO by J774 cells triggered by suboptimal concentrations of LPS (1 to 5 ng/ml). These data thus suggest that endogenous IFN-beta, but not TNF-alpha, produced by LPS-stimulated J774 cells specifically contributes, probably in an auto/paracrine fashion, to the activation of the i-NOS gene expression by LPS.