Production of granulopoiesis-stimulating and -inhibiting activities by T cells associated with malignant cells in lymphomas

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Abstract
The possible role of T lymphocytes in the formation of granulomatous reactions seen in certain malignant lymphoid tumours was investigated by measuring the granulopoietic colony-stimulating activity (CSA) and granulopoietic-inhibiting activity (IA) produced by stimulated T-lymphocytes isolated from peripheral blood, spleen and lymph nodes of patients and normal subjects. Lymph-node T-cells from patients with benign lymphoid hyperplasia, B-cell non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma (B-NHL), and non-granulomatous Hodgkin''s disease (HD) showed no CSA, but the cells produced IA of 40 .+-. 23%, 40 .+-. 24% and 50.5 .+-. 22.5% respectively. The corresponding cells from patients with HD accompanied by granulomatous reactions produced CSA of 6.85 .+-. 6.5 u/.mu.l and IA of 23.5 .+-. 21%. The presence of a granulomatous reaction in malignant lymphoma was correlated with the stimulation of granulopoiesis in vitro by T lymphocytes associated with malignant cells. A correlation was demonstrated betwen neutrophilic and eosinophilic colonies obtained in vitro under the influence of CSA-producing T cells isolated from malignant lymphomas and the neutrophils and eosinophils present in the granuloma. These results showed that tumour-infiltrating T cells play a role in the presence of granulomatous reactions seen in lymphomas. Peripheral-blood T cells from healthy subjects, and from patients with B-NHL, or with HD unaccompanied by granulocytic reactions produced CSAs of, respectively, 5 .+-. 0.5 u/.mu.l, 4.8 .+-. 2.2 u/.mu.l and 5.3 .+-. 0.4 u/.mu.l, and IAs of 45 .+-. 18%, 50 .+-. 5.5% and 50.5 .+-. 7% respectively. The corresponding values for HD patients with granulocytic reactions were CSA, 17 .+-. 15.5 u/.mu.l, and IA, 9.5 .+-. 9%. No correlation was demonstrated between neutrophilic colonies obtained in vitro under the influence of HD blood T cells and neutrophils present in blood. Only one correlation was found: between the percentage of eosinophilic colonies and the number of blood eosinophils. HD blood T cells did not seem to explain completely granulocytic reactions seen in blood.