Immunological communications最新文献

New microspheres having functional aldehyde groups have been prepared by radiation polymerization of acrolein solution containing hydroxyethyl methacrylate and glutalardehyde. The size distribution in the microspheres was narrow and average particle diameter was 1 - 2 micron. The binding ability of the microspheres to antigen increased by increasing the concentration of glutalardehyde. The preparation procedure of the microspheres is simple. The microspheres can be used for immunoresearch.

A kinetic study assessing the relationship between tumor growth and the ability of BALB/c mouse splenocytes to produce Interleukin 3 (IL 3) indicated a concomitant decrease in IL 3 activity with tumor growth. Tumor-bearing host (TBH) splenocytes produced 600 pmoles/hr/10(8) cells of IL 3 activity at Day 0 but only 62 pmoles/hr/10(8) cells by Day 28 post tumor cell inoculation. Nylon wool fractionation (to remove adherent suppressor cells) did not restore IL 3 activity. Addition of purified IL 3 to mitogen proliferation assays showed that IL 3 alone was mitogenic for normal host but not TBH splenocytes. In concert with concanavalin A (Con A) and phytohemagglutinin, IL 3 augmented in vitro normal host splenocyte responsiveness but significantly further suppressed it in the TBH. An absorption assay indicated that fresh cells had acceptors to remove IL 3 from supernatants. Con A-induced normal or TBH blast cells lost their ability to absorb IL 3. Intravenous inoculation of purified IL 3 into normal and TBH resulted in further suppression of TBH splenocyte mitogen-induced blastogenesis. The exacerbation of TBH spleen cell reactivity by IL 3 may be due to a tumor-induced feedback inhibition mechanism further suppressing cellular differentiation critical to cytotoxic T lymphocyte maturation.

Rabbit antisera to bovine nerve preparations were used to study the tissue distribution in the ox of P2, an antigen specific for the peripheral nervous system. Double diffusion gel precipitation tests were able to demonstrate P2 in spinal nerves, trigeminal nerve, spinal cord, medulla oblongata, and pons, but not in higher centers of the CNS, optic nerve, or non-neural tissues. A highly sensitive inhibition of enzyme immunoassay was developed to detect and quantitate low levels of P2. By this assay, P2 was found to be most concentrated in peripheral nerves, with decreasing amounts found in the spinal cord, medulla oblongata, pons, cerebellum, and cerebral peduncle. No P2 was found in the thalamus, cerebrum, or optic nerve; however, low levels of P2 were detected in the adrenal medulla, a non-neural tissue composed largely of cells derived from the embryonic neural crest region.

Functional differences between adherent macrophages and macrophages in suspension have been repeatedly reported. During the course of developing serum-free phagocytic assays to evaluate Fc gamma receptor (Fc gamma R)-mediated phagocytosis by rat alveolar macrophages (AM) we found Fc gamma R-mediated phagocytosis by Rat AM in suspension was markedly greater than when these cells were bound to plastic substrate in protein-free medium. This dissimilarity in performance was related, in part, to a plastic substrate-associated loss in Fc gamma R-mediated phagocytosis in that this cell function was preserved when monolayers of AM were formed in culture medium containing a low concentration of bovine serum albumin (BSA). The results of particle binding studies suggest the diminished phagocytic activities of AM in monolayers formed in the absence of BSA was due to a loss in the functional expression of Fc gamma R.

An immunogenic inflammation was induced in the eyes of inbred Wistar-Furth rats by intravenous injection of anti-human serum albumin IgG antibodies and intravitreal injection of human serum albumin. The ocular inflammation was compared to the findings observed following the intravenous injection of F(ab')2 fragments of anti-human serum albumin IgG antibody and intravitreal injection of human serum albumin. The dose of antigen and IgG immunoglobulin antibody molecules used in the experiments caused a consistent inflammatory response that reached a peak at 24 hours and lasted for approximately seven days. The experimental animals, in which an intraocular reaction of the antigen with F(ab')2 antibody fragments occurred, did not show any immunogenic inflammatory response, indicating an absence of complement activation by either the classical or the alternative pathways.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) lymphocytes of 6 multiple sclerosis (MS) patients were cultured with tetanus toxoid (TT) and irradiated autologous antigen presenting cells (APC) followed by propagation of the responding T-cells in interleukin-2 containing medium. TT-reactive cell lines were recovered from 4 of the 6 CSF samples, even though the patients had not been TT booster immunized in recent years. These findings suggest an active circulation of antigen reactive lymphocytes from the systemic immune compartment(s) into the CSF even without recent activation by booster immunization. Since immune reactions to TT are very unlikely to be pathogenic in MS, these findings also indicate that presence of CSF lymphocytes reactive to a particular antigen does not necessarily imply a causal role.

The stimulatory capacity in mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR) and responsiveness to pokeweed mitogen (PWM) by peripheral blood non-T cells were studied. E rosette- and adherent cell-depleted lymphocytes were divided into low, medium and high density populations using discontinuous Percoll gradient. Low density non-T cells were potent stimulators in both autologous and allogeneic MLR despite low proliferative response to PWM. In contrast, those with medium density showed weaker stimulation in autologous though not in allogeneic reactions and underwent strong blastogenesis in PWM cultures. Non-T cells with high density had low MLR-stimulatory capacity and yet manifested the highest stimulation indices on PWM stimulation. These findings suggest that functional characteristics of non-T cells may be separable on the basis of cell density.

Modification of graft immunogenicity using graft (GPTX) and donor pretreatment (DPTX) has been pursued in an attempt to modify allograft immunogenicity using various immunosuppressive agents. The murine skin allograft and canine renal allograft models were used to study the efficacy of Cyclosporine (Cy A) as a DPTX and GPTX prior to transplantation. Tail skin allografts from C3HHeN male mice were grafted to Balb/c female mouse recipients. Minimal immunosuppression was given to all skin graft recipients. Skin allograft were either GPTX with Cy A, DPTX with either Cy A, methylprednisolone (MP), or cyclophosphamide (CP), or Cy A GPTX and DPTX with the three drugs alone or in combination. Cy A GPTX alone of skin allografts did not significantly prolong survival. DPTX with Cy A significantly prolonged skin graft survival, however, CP or MP alone did not. The various combinations of MP, Cy A, and CP as DPTX and MP, Cy A, and CP DPTX used together with Cy A GPTX also significantly prolonged murine skin allograft survival. Kidney allografts used unrelated mongrel dogs as donors or recipients. Renal transplant experimental groups were either: Non-pretreated and immediately transplanted, nonpretreated and hypothermically stored (HS) for 24 hours in Collins (C-2) solution, GPTX with 12.5 mg Cy A during 24 hr. HS in C-2, DPTX with Cy A (25 mg/Kg), or Cy A DPTX (15 mg/kg) and GPTX during 24 hrs. HS in C-2. Cy A GPTX during HS was sometimes effective in prolonging kidney allograft survival greater than 30 days using only minimal immunosuppression with azathioprine. Cy A DPTX prolonged survival somewhat, but not significantly. Improved results were seen, however, when Cy A DPTX was used together with Cy A graft pretreatment. These results indicate the potential for the successful use of Cy A as a donor and/or graft pretreatment, however, further studies will be necessary to optimize the use of Cy A in these modalities.

Endogenous immunoglobulin (Ig) determinants on blood B-lymphocytes (B-cells) were investigated in 13 healthy individuals, 9 patients with thyrotoxic Graves disease, 5 patients with chronic sarcoidosis, and 4 patients with IgA deposition in renal glomeruli. Specificities of goat antisera to Ig determinants were confirmed by studying Ig isotypes on leukemic B-cells. Absence of nonspecific attachment of the goat antisera was ascertained by reacting cells with goat IgG. Lymphocytes were distinguished from monocytes by morphology and by reacting monocytes with rhodamine-conjugated immune complexes. The endogenous nature of the cell surface Ig was established by an antibody-prelabeling technique as follows: after the surface Ig had been labelled with fluorescent antibody, the cells were cultured for 3 days. Antibody-prelabelled surface Ig diminished by the third day of incubation because of shedding. Thus restaining of the cells at the end of the culture identified the membrane Ig determinants expressed during the incubation. Our results indicated that endogenous gamma and alpha chains were present on B-cells of all donors. In Graves disease, epsilon chain was also found. In all cases of Graves disease, 2 cases of sarcoidosis and 2 normal individuals, gamma, alpha, mu and delta chains were present on the majority of B-cells suggesting coexpression of these heavy chains on a single cell. I conclude that all 5 Ig isotypes may be coexpressed on B-cells under certain clinical conditions.