Recombinant human erythropoietin stimulates production of interleukin 2 bywhole blood cell cultures of hemodialysis patients

The impairment of function of human T lymphocytes, leading to an inappropri ate cytokine production, is partially responsible for defective immunologic al response in hemodialysis patients (HD). Recent data suggest that recombi nant human erythropoietin (rhEPO) may exert immunological effects. The aim of this study was to find out whether rhEPO treatment of the HD patients ma y have an effect on the interleukin 2 (IL-2) production by their whole bloo d cell cultures. The study was carried out in 10 HD patients receiving rhEP O for 6 months. Compared with the levels seen before the treatment, the con centration of IL-2 increased in the phytohemagglutinin-stimulated whole blo od cell cultures of 7 of 10 patients under study. Addition of rhEPO in vitr o to the whole blood cell cultures of the HD patients before implementation of erythropoietin confirmed that rhEPO is able to directly stimulate IL-2 production. Our studies show that the therapy with rhEPO affects IL-2 secre tion.