INVITRO IGE FORMATION BY PERIPHERAL-BLOOD LYMPHOCYTES FROM NORMAL INDIVIDUALS AND PATIENTS WITH ALLERGIC BRONCHOPULMONARY ASPERGILLOSIS

  • 1 January 1980
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 40  (3) , 581-585
Abstract
Peripheral blood lymphocytes from 5 normal donors and 5 individuals with allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) were used for measurement of in vitro Ig[immunoglobulin]E formation in tissue culture preparations. IgE was measured by a sensitive radioimmunoassay using concentrated tissue culture medium (TCM) and expressed as ng IgE/ml of TCM. IgE was formed by unstimulated lymphocytes from 1 of 5 normal donors (range 1.5-2.4 ng/ml) and in 2 of 5 ABPA donors (range 2-4 ng/ml). When different dilutions of pokeweed mitogen were added to the tissue culture, 3 of 5 normal donors and 3 of 5 ABPA donors in remission showed enhanced IgE formation. At the time of an ABPA exacerbation in 1 individual, there was a definite increase in IgE synthesis up to 40 ng/ml which was suppressed by pokeweed mitogen to 17.3 ng/ml. Clear differences between normals and ABPA patients in remission are not apparent.