Classification of bronchial lymphocytes from nonsmokers and smokers.
The population of lymphocytes obtained by endobronchial lavage is significantly different from the distribution of lymphocytes in the peripheral blood. Both B and T lymphocytes are found in fluids lavaged from the normal human lung. Of the lymphocytes that can be classified, the T cell population is larger than the B cell population in both nonsmokers and cigarette smokers, whereas a further increment in T cells is noted in smokers. A third population of unclassified lymphocytes, the "null" cells, also comprise a large portion of the lymphocyte population in both smokers and nonsmokers. Their significance has yet to be determined.
D000328:Adult; D001402:B-Lymphocytes; D001980:Bronchi / Q000276:immunology*; D002452:Cell Count; D006801:Humans; D008214:Lymphocytes; D008264:Macrophages; D012907:Smoking; D013601:T-Lymphocytes