EVIDENCE FOR IMMUNOLOGICAL IMMATURITY OF CORD-BLOOD T-CELLS - CORD-BLOOD T-CELLS ARE SUSCEPTIBLE TO TOLERANCE INDUCTION TO IN-VITRO STIMULATION WITH A SUPERANTIGEN
N. Takahashi et al., EVIDENCE FOR IMMUNOLOGICAL IMMATURITY OF CORD-BLOOD T-CELLS - CORD-BLOOD T-CELLS ARE SUSCEPTIBLE TO TOLERANCE INDUCTION TO IN-VITRO STIMULATION WITH A SUPERANTIGEN, The Journal of immunology, 155(11), 1995, pp. 5213-5219
T cell blasts resulting from stimulating human cord blood (CB) mononuc
lear cells (MC) and adult peripheral blood (APE) MC with a bacterial s
uperantigen, toxic shock syndrome toxin-l (TSST-1), and then with huma
n rIL-2 were investigated for their reactions to restimulation with TS
ST-1. Expression of TCR V beta 2, which determines the potential react
ivity to TSST-1 and of CD45RO, was increased in both TSST-1-induced CB
and APB T cell blasts, Most preparations of the TSST-1-induced CB T c
ell blasts exhibited low or no production of IL-2 and IL-4 in response
to restimulation with TSST-1, while the APB T cell blasts showed high
responses. TSST-1-induced T cell blasts derived from APE T cells depl
eted of both CD45RO(+) T cells and HLA class II+ T cells showed high I
L-2 production in response to restimulation with TSST-1. TSST-1-induce
d CB T cell blasts generated in the presence of DR(+) L cells with hig
h accessory cell activity still showed a low response to restimulation
with TSST-1. These results indicate that CB T cells are inherently hi
ghly susceptible to tolerance induction by bacterial superantigens, su
ggesting the immunologic immaturity of CB T cells.