Abnormal production of B cell growth factor in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

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Abstract
In order to clarify the role of B cell growth factor (BCGF) in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE), BCGF production by peripheral blood mononuclear cells(PBMC) and T cells was studied using a new bioassay for BCGF activity. For this purpose, we established an Epstein‐Barr (EB) virus‐transformed B cell line KS‐3.F10 that proliferates only in response to two B cell‐specific BCGF, low‐mol. wt BCGF (LMW‐BCGF) and high‐mol. wt BCGF (HMW‐BCGF). PBMC from active SLE patients produced less BCGF when stimulated with phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) compared with controls. The decreased BCGF production by PHA‐stimulated PBMC from active SLE reverted to control values when SLE became inactive. However, PHA‐stimulated T cells from active SLE patients produced more BCGF compared with controls, whereas those from inactive SLE showed normal BCGF production. Spontaneous BCGF production by T cells was not observed in active SLE patients. These findings suggest that decreased BCGF production by SLE PBMC is due to excessive BCGF consumption by B cells in vitro and that SLE T cells produce large amounts of BCGF with appropriate immune stimuli in vitro to promote polyclonal B cell activation.

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