Percentage of NK-cells in peripheral blood in resting normal subjects is negatively correlated to plasma adrenaline

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Abstract
The purpose of the present study was to examine, if there was a correlation between natural killer cells in blood and plasma catecholamines in a resting situation. Lymphocyte subsets, especially the NK-cells (CD3-CD56+), plasma adrenaline and noradrenaline were determined in peripheral blood from healthy male subjects resting in the supine position. Median age was 32 years. A negative correlation was observed between resting plasma adrenaline and the percentage of (CD3-CD56+) mononuclear cells (p = 0.048, r =-0.61). Previous studies have shown however, that adrenaline may increase the number of natural killer cells in blood within minutes. We suggest that adrenaline may have a dual effect on NK-cells: an acute effect by which NK-cells are mobilized from depots and a chronic effect, which decreases the number of lymphocytes and especially NK-cells in peripheral blood.