Lysis of tumor biopsy cells by blood lymphocyte subsets of various densities. Autologous and allogeneic studies

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Abstract
Blood lymphocyte subsets of various densities from 14 healthy donors and 25 patients with solid tumors were used in tests for cytotoxicity against allogeneic or autologous tumor cells. The allogeneic combinations comprised 36 tests on 28 tumors. In these the unmanipulated total lymphocyte population was cytotoxic in one experiment. In tests with density‐separated subsets, 16 experiments were positive. The lytic effect resided in the light subsets. Auto‐tumor lysis was detected in 7 of 25 cases, when the total lymphocyte population was used. Eleven additional tests showed cytotoxocity with the separated subsets. The autologous tumor cells were damaged by the light lymphocytes of 15 patients. Of these patients, 6 had cytotoxic cells also in the high‐density subset. In seven cases auto‐tumor lysis was exerted only by the dense lymphocytes. Thus, in 13 cases the profile of auto‐tumor lysis differed from that observed with the allogeneic combinations and against K562. Pretreatment of the effectors with Hu‐IFN‐alpha enhanced or induced cytotoxicity in the light lymphocytes, against both allogeneic and autologous tumors, while the dense subset was rarely potentiated. The autologous system may represent an immune situation and therefore it is not unexpected that the active cells should have different phenotypic characteristics from those of the operationally natural killer system.

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