The active E rosette test: correlation with delayed cutaneous hypersensitivity.
An active subpopulation of peripheral blood T lymphocytes, characterized by rapid (5-min) rosette formation with sheep erythrocytes (A-RFC), was measured in normal individuals after they were skin tested with microbial antigens. A significant rise in A-RFC occurred in all individuals who developed positive delayed cutaneous hypersensitivity (DCH) reactions, whereas skin test nonresponders showed no significant rise in A-RFC. No similar consistent changes occurred in populations of total T cells, characterized by longer (60-min) rosette formation with sheep erythrocytes, or in B cells, measured by immunofluorescence of surface immunoglobulin. The A-RFC response paralleled the DCH response in timing, but not in intensity. These results provide in vivo evidence for a biologically distinct T cell subpopulation, and focus attention on the A-RFC as immunologically active cells.
D000328:Adult; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000008:administration & dosage; D001772:Blood Cell Count; D006801:Humans; D006968:Hypersensitivity, Delayed / Q000276:immunology*; D007104:Immune Adherence Reaction; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012882:Skin Tests; D013601:T-Lymphocytes; D014374:Tuberculin Test
D000942:Antigens, Bacterial