Neonatal rat cortical astrocytes in primary culture synthesize and secrete nerve growth factor (NGF). Interleukin-1 beta(IL-1) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) treatment of astrocytes increased NGF mRNA content by about 2-fold. The effect of these two factors was specific, because other growth factors, such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha, insulin-like growth factor-1, and epidermal growth factor, failed to change NGF mRNA content. The concentrations of IL-1 and bFGF causing half-maximal stimulation were 1 unit/ml and 1 ng/ml, respectively. The increase in NGF mRNA elicited by IL-1 and bFGF was maximal at 3 hr of incubation. In the presence of IL-1 this increase persisted for 36 hr, whereas in the presence of bFGF the initial increase in NGF mRNA was followed by a decrease to 50% of control levels after 24 hr of incubation. Readdition of bFGF after 24 hr of treatment gave a similar increase in NGF mRNA content, suggesting that the decrease at 24 hr was not due to receptor desensitization. The effect of IL-1 was reversible, because removal of IL-1 after 3 hr of incubation resulted in a decrease of NGF mRNA content to control levels by 6 hr, whereas a readdition of IL-1 at this time led to a 2-3-fold increase in NGF mRNA content after an additional 3 hr of treatment. This second increase in NGF mRNA was also maintained for several hours. The combined treatment of astrocytes with maximally effective doses of IL-1 and bFGF produced an additive increase in NGF mRNA content, suggesting that different mechanisms are operative. Treatment of astrocytes with cycloheximide increased (about 6-fold) NGF mRNA content, and this content failed to increase further with IL-1 or bFGF treatment. Experiments using actinomycin D indicated that IL-1 increased the stability of the NGF mRNA. bFGF treatment failed to change this parameter. Thus, IL-1 increases NGF mRNA content in astrocytes, at least in part, by stabilizing mRNA, whereas bFGF does not affect mRNA stability but may act at the level of NGF gene transcription.