Mitogenic responses to lipopolysaccharide by B lymphocytes from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Peripheral blood lymphocytes from 43 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and from age- and sex-matched normal controls were cultured with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to examine the response to the polyclonal B-cell activator. Lymphocytes from active SLE patients incorporated 4840 +/- 471 (mean +/- SE) cpm in response to LPS, whereas lymphocytes from inactive SLE patients incorporated 6906 +/- 897 cpm. In contrast, lymphocytes from normal individuals incorporated 7452 +/- 1126 cpm.

Mode of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) virus infection in tissue culture cells. III. Neurovirulence of cell-free SSPE viruses of Niigata-1, Kitaken-1, and Biken strains.

Cell-free viruses recovered from virus-carrying cultures of the Niigata-1, Kitaken-1, and Biken strains of SSPE virus were examined for neurovirulence. The cell-free viruses were prepared by freezing and thawing or by EDTA treatment of the virus-carrying cultures and inoculated into adult mice intracerebrally. A considerable number of the inoculated mice showed clinical signs about 1 to 5 weeks after the inoculation.

Evidence of aberration of T-cell subsets in aged individuals.

In the present study, T-cell subsets from aged individuals were examined by using anti-BAT (brain-associated thymocyte antigen) serum. Anti-BAT serum was raised against the human fetal brain at 28 weeks of gestation. After absorption wit AB erythrocytes, B-cell lines, and leukaemic cells, anti-BAT serum was T cell-specific but unreactive to normal B cells.

Thyrotropin (TSH) receptor and adenylate cyclase activity in human thyroid tumors: absence of high affinity receptor and loss of TSH responsiveness in undifferentiated thyroid carcinoma.

TSH receptor and adenylate cyclase activity of plasma membrane fractions of human thyroid tumors were examined. The mean (+/- SD) basal adenylate cyclase activity in normal thyroid tissues was 0.35 +/- 0.

Enhancement of lymphocyte response to PHA by lysosomal enzymes from polymorphonuclear leukocytes of RA joint fluid. I. Biological effect on T lymphocyte function.

The effect of polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN) granule lysates obtained from joint fluid of RA on the in vitro DNA synthesis of PHA-stimulated autologous lymphocytes from joint fluid was studied. Lymphocytes were cultured for 3 days with or without PMN lysates in 2 ml of RPMI-1640 supplemented with 10% heat-inactivated fetal calf serum (FCS). The lymphocytes were stimulated with phytohemagglutinin (PHA-M).

The cellular basis of impaired T lymphocyte functions in the elderly.

Immunologic changes associated with aging were studied by various immunologic tests in 24 aged persons (age range, 76-83) and 25 young persons (age range, 20-40). The responses to phytohemagglutinin (PHA) and concanavalin A (Con A) were depressed in the aged subjects compared to the young ones (p less than 0.05), whereas the responses to pokeweed mitogen (PWM) were similar.

Characteristic and functional specificity of anti-human BAT (brain associated thymocyte antigen) serum.

A rabbit antiserum to human fetal brain after multiple absorption reacted with 100% of thymocytes, 55% of peripheral blood lymphocytes and 90% of enriched T lymphocytes, but not significantly with B lymphocytes. Spontaneous SRBC rosette formation was inhibited by anti-BAT pretreatment, but EAC-rosette formation remained unaffected. The antiserum was itself highly stimulatory.

Mode of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) virus infection in tissue culture cells. II. Cell-free viruses in cell cultures infected with Kitaken-1 and Biken strains of SSPE virus.

Cell-free infectious viruses were successfully recovered by the aid of freezing and thawing from cultures infected with the Kitaken-1 and Biken strains of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) virus. Our results including those in a previous report which dealt with the Niigata-1 strain of SSPE virus show that cell-free viruses can be detected from all of the SSPE virus-carrying cultures established in Japan. It was also found that cell-free infectious viruses can be recovered efficiently by dispersing the virus-carrying cultures with EDTA.

Studies of anti-lymphocyte antibody in patients with active SLE. II. Effect of anti-lymphocyte antibody on autoreactive cell clones.

The effect of anti-lymphocyte antibodies of active systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) on the immune regulation of autoantibody production was studied. The present study demonstrated that there were native DNA (nDNA)-sensitized T lymphocytes even in inactive SLE and no or few nDNA-sensitized T lymphocytes in normal individuals, and that in the inactive stages of SLE suppressor T lymphocytes might inhibit the activation of nDNA-sensitized T lymphocytes eliciting the production of anti-DNA antibodies by B lymphocytes. In the active stage of SLE, the anti-lymphocyte antibodies could eliminate the suppressor function of T lymphocytes or a subset of cells capable of either regulating their appearance or differentiating into them, which inhibited such responses.

Trypsin action on the growth of Sendai virus in tissue culture cells. V. An activating enzyme for Sendai virus in the chorioallantoic fluid of the embryonated chicken egg.

A trypsin-like protease which is responsible for activation of Sendai virus was found in the chorioallantoic fluid (CAF) of embryonated chicken eggs. Treatment of the inactive form of Sendai virus, grown in LLC-MK2 cells, with CAF enhanced both hemolytic activity and infectivity for the cells. Soybean trypsin inhibitor restrained the enhancing activity of CAF.