Fes is a nonreceptor tyrosine kinase expressed at the highest level in macrophages. We previously showed that the overexpression of c-fes in murine macrophages of the BAC-1.2F5 cell line renders these cells independent of macrophage colony-stimulating factor (MCSF) for survival and proliferation, although no direct relationship could be established between tyrosine-phosphorylated substrates of Fes- and MCSF receptor-dependent signaling and mitogenesis. In this study, we investigated whether the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway is involved in the growth factor-independent growth of v-fes-overexpressing macrophages. We found a constitutively increased phosphorylation of extracellularly regulated kinase (ERK) in v-fes-overexpressing macrophages as compared with mock-infected cells. This finding was associated with activation of mitogen/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (MEK) and with constitutive localization of ERK in the nucleus. Treatment of v-fes-overexpressing cells with the MEK-specific inhibitor PD98059 markedly reduced cell growth, hyperphosphorylation, and nuclear localization of ERK, indicating that the MAPK pathway mediates the mitogenic effect of v-fes. (Blood. 2000;95:3959-3963)