Effect of Serum and Serum Components on the Mitogen-Induced Proliferation of Murine Lymphocytes

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Abstract
By increasing the concentration of human serum, the dose-response profile of the concanavalin A[con A]-induced proliferation of murine spleen lymphocytes becomes broader and the optimal cell proliferation takes place at higher concentrations of mitogen. This behavior is due to the globulin fraction of serum which greatly decreases the binding of con A to lymphocytes. Cohn fractions III and IV have a similar effect. Cell proliferation also takes place in the absence of pooled human serum at appropriate concentrations of con A and within a very narrow range of cell concentrations. In the presence of the albumin fraction of serum, proliferation takes place over a wider range of mitogen and cell concentrations. As a result of these phenomena, the mitogenic effect of con A varies greatly in function of the concentration of serum. Analogous results were obtained with fetal calf serum.