QUANTITATIVE-ANALYSIS OF LEUKOCYTE MEMBRANE ANTIGEN EXPRESSION - NORMAL ADULT VALUES

In this paper the normal ranges of the expression of various different iation antigens, referred to by their cluster of differentiation (CD) numbers, are described on the lymphoid, monocytic, and polymorphonucle ar (PMN) blood populations in normal healthy individuals. The values e xpressed as antibody binding capacity per cell (ABC/cell) are related to the density of antigenic molecules expressed by these cells. These values have been quantitated by the quantitative indirect immunofluore scence (QIFI) test which renders the ABC/cell values for the different antigens directly comparable and defines a ''league table,'' i.e., an enumeration of antigen expression on the three main cell types studie d. The values for occasional antigen that are expressed differently in adults and the elderly or men and women (CD5, CD8, and CD18) are also shown. Furthermore, the QIFI test is used in two-color immunofluoresc ence for defining the subset heterogeneity within the T lineage for th e CD2 and CD7 antigens within the separately analyzed CD45RA and CD45R O subsets. These quantitative immune phenotype analyses, also referred to as quantimetry, show variations in ABC values if different monoclo nal antibodies (MAbs) are used, although these differences are frequen tly minor. Therefore, using whole blood and well-characterized MAbs, w e established values of antigen density in normal adults which can be regarded as control values for the various pathological conditions whe re CD antigen expression may be altered, (C) 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.