The op/op variant of murine osteopetrosis is a recessive mutation characterized by impaired bone resorption due to lack of osteoclasts. Cultured osteoblasts and fibroblasts from this mutant do not secrete MCSF activity and resident macrophages are absent in bone marrow. This failure has been related to a mutation within the M-CSF coding region. We report now that the administration of recombinant human M-CSF (rhM-CSF) corrects in vivo the impaired bone resorption in this animal. The treatment restores the bone marrow cavity virtually absent in the op/op animal and induces the appearance of resorbing osteoclasts and of resident bone marrow macrophages. This proves that the deficiency of M-CSF is the cause of the op/op bone disorder and that this cytokine is directly or indirectly necessary for physiological osteoclastogenesis, the resulting bone resorption and for the establishment of bone marrow hemopoiesis.