Exogenous interleukin-2 abrogates differences in the proliferative responses to T cell mitogens among inbred strains of mice.
The proliferative response of spleen cells from BALB/c mice to stimulation with a T cell mitogen, concanavalin A (Con A), was two or more times stronger than that of cells from C57BL/10SnSc (B10) mice. In contrast, the cells from B10 mice responded better to B cell mitogen bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The differences in the proliferative response to Con A stimulation were not associated with the function of macrophages nor did they depend on IL-1. Spleen cells from BALB/c and B10 mice synthesized comparable amounts of mRNA for IL-1 alpha, and the production of biologically active IL-1 was even higher in the B10 strain. Indomethacin, an inhibitor of prostaglandin synthesis, had no effect on the differences in reactivity between the cells from BALB/c and B10 mice. In addition, no differences in the synthesis of mRNA for the inducible 55-kDa interleukin-2 (IL-2) receptors were found between the spleen cells from BALB/c and B10 mice. However, Con A-stimulated spleen cells from B10 mice produced a significantly lower amount of biologically active IL-2 than similarly stimulated cells from BALB/c mice. In the presence of exogenous IL-2, these low responder spleen cells from the B10 mice responded by proliferation to Con A stimulation to the same extent as cells from the BALB/c mice. These results thus show that a low proliferative response to Con A stimulation in B10 mice was a consequence of a lower production of IL-2 and possibly abrogated the proliferative hyporeactivity produced by exogenous IL-2. We suggest that the differences in the ability to produce IL-2 could be a reason for the discrepancies observed in the immunological responsiveness between BALB/c and B10 mice.
Lipoldová
M
M
Institute of Molecular Genetics, Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, Prague 6.
Zajícová
A
A
Stĕdra
J
J
Holán
V
V
D000818:Animals; D003208:Concanavalin A; D005260:Female; D007375:Interleukin-1 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C / Q000276:immunology*; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL / Q000276:immunology*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000096:biosynthesis; D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D013045:Species Specificity; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism
D007375:Interleukin-1; D007376:Interleukin-2; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2; D003208:Concanavalin A