SPECIFIC T-CELL AND B-CELL IMMUNITY TO MEASLES AFTER ALLOGENEIC AND AUTOLOGOUS BONE-MARROW TRANSPLANTATION

Lymphocyte stimulation with measles virus antigen (MLY) and ELISA for measles IgG antibodies were performed on 60 patients after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT), and on 59 patients after autologous bone marrow transplantation (ABMT). The T cell response was significa ntly higher in the 75 measles seropositive patients than in the 29 ser onegative patients (P < 0.001), but not significantly different from t he MLY in the 15 patients with uncertain serologic reactivity. When th e patient group was divided according to type of transplant, the T cel l response to measles was also significantly higher in seropositive pa tients than in seronegative patients after both ABMT (P < 0.001) and a fter BMT (P < 0.05). Twenty-three seronegative children who were measl es vaccinated after BMT had a significantly higher T cell response to measles (7100 c.p.m.) than 17 seronegative non-vaccinated children (10 0 c.p.m.; P < 0.01). No significant difference was seen in the T cell response in 12 seronegative children vaccinated after ABMT (2500 c.p.m .) compared to seven children not vaccinated (2800 c.p.m.; NS). Seroco nversion after vaccination was more frequent in children after BMT (20 /23; 87%) compared to ABMT (5/12; 42%; P < 0.05) but no significant di fference was found in the T cell response. Therefore, most patients wh o lost IgG antibodies to measles after bone marrow transplantation als o lost their T cell response to measles. A T cell response to measles developed in most patients who seroconverted after vaccination. Failur e to develop antibodies to measles in ABMT patients after revaccinatio n may depend on a persisting T cell immunity.