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HUMAN T LYMPHOCYTE COLONIES IN AGAR: A COMPARISON WITH OTHER T CELL ASSAYS IN HEALTHY SUBJECTS AND CANCER PATIENTS
Author(s) -
Wilson JD,
Dalton Gael
Publication year - 1976
Publication title -
australian journal of experimental biology and medical science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.999
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1440-1711
pISSN - 0004-945X
DOI - 10.1038/icb.1976.3
Subject(s) - phytohaemagglutinin , immunology , biology , lymphocyte , mitosis , immunity , cell , antigen , immune system , microbiology and biotechnology , genetics
Summary Colonies of human lymphocytes with T cell characteristics will grow in agar from repeated mitotic divisions with phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) stimulation. The colonies comprise spheres of tightly‐packed cells with up to 500–1,000 blast‐like cells in each colony. 65% of cells from pooled colonies bound AET‐treated sheep red cells. 1,100–2,500 colonies/10 6 peripheral blood lymphocytes developed when cell donors were healthy but lower numbers (350–1,000 colonies/10 6 lymphocytes) were detected in blood from cancer patients. Comparison with other non‐specific assays of cell‐mediated immunity showed that, while 66% of cancer patients were anergic (to five recall antigens) and 78% exhibited depressed mitotic activity in standard cultures with low dose PHA, 100% of these patients revealed T cell colony formation below normal. It is suggested that further studies of T lymphocyte colony‐forming cells in healthy people and in a number of disease states may significantly advance our understanding of mechanisms of cell‐mediated immunity.