[Influence of pregnancy and steroid hormones on interferon production of lymphocytes].

A study was done to investigate the involvement of interferon (IFN) in immunological acceptance of fetal allograft. IFN was induced by stimulating OK-432 from lymphocyte of pregnant and nonpregnant women as well as men. There was no difference in the IFN titer in these groups. In pregnant women there was no difference between trimesters, either. In addition, we examined the influence of sex steroid hormones such as progesterone and estrogen on IFN production by the lymphocytes of women and men. Generally, each steroid hormone suppressed the production of IFN. However, the extent of suppression varied with the concentration of hormones, resulting in different suppression curves for men and women in a physiological concentration. Differences in response by men and women were also noticed when interleukin 2 was added to examine whether it could reduce the suppression by steroid hormone. This unique sensitivity of female lymphocyte to steroid hormones may play a role in successfully taking a fetal allograft in pregnancy.