Changes of the blood lymphocyte subpopulations and their functions following 131I treatment for nodular goitre and 32P treatment for polycythemia vera.

The blood lymphocyte population was examined in 34 patients who were treated with 131I for toxic or atoxic nodular goitre. One to three doses of 300-550 MBq of 131I were administered at 1-week intervals. Lymphocyte counts were found to be significantly reduced at both 1 and 6 weeks after treatment. This decrease was accompanied by a changed composition of the lymphocyte subpopulations. The frequency of lymphocytes expressing membrane receptors for C'3 (EAC-rosette forming cells) was significantly reduced at 1 and 6 weeks following 131I administration. At 6 weeks there was a small but statistically significant increase of the frequency of T cells as identified by Leu 1 monoclonal antibodies. This was essentially due to an increased proportion of helper/inducer T cells as identified by Leu 3 monoclonals. 131I treatment also decreased the capacity of lymphocytes to secrete immunoglobulins (Ig) when stimulated with pokeweed mitogen (PWM). The greatest effect was observed for IgM. Secretion of IgG and IgA were less reduced. Mitogenic stimulations of lymphocytes with phytohemagglutinin (PHA) and concanavalin A were not significantly changed. It is concluded that these findings, with the exception of mitogen reactivity, are largely similar to those occurring following external radiation therapy for cancer. It is suggested that blood lymphocytes passing through the continuously irradiated gland are damaged mainly by beta-rays. The effect of 32P treatment on the blood lymphocyte population was examined in 16 patients with polycythemia vera. Before treatment the lymphocyte counts were within the normal range but the expression of certain membrane structures, as identified by monoclonal antibodies against total T cells (Leu 1 and 4), helper/inducer (Leu 3) and suppressor/cytotoxic T cells (Leu 2), were slightly decreased. Moreover, mitogenic responses of the lymphocytes to PHA and PWM-induced Ig secretion were impaired. Following a single oral dose of 32P (150-305 MBq), which normalized the production of erythrocytes and/or platelets, the blood lymphocyte counts were reduced by approximately 40 per cent 12 weeks after treatment. Examination of subsets demonstrated that the proportion of B-cells, as identified by B1 monoclonal antibodies, was decreased by the highest relative extent. On the other hand, lymphocytes expressing the above-mentioned T cell markers were somewhat increased. 32P treatment markedly increased PHA reactivity but it further reduced PWM-induced Ig secretion. The latter observation was in agreement with the finding that serum concentrations of Ig were reduced after treatment.