Hairy cells possess more interferon receptors than other lymphoid cell types.
To investigate the possible direct effects of alpha-interferon (IFN-alpha) in hairy cell leukemia, IFN-alpha receptor expression by hairy cells (11 cases) was measured by a radiolabeling technique and compared with that of MOLT-4, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (15 cases), and various other leukemic and normal cell types. Purified peripheral blood and splenic hairy cells showed higher levels of receptor expression (approximately 1,000 +/- 200 binding sites/cell; 11 cases tested) than other normal and leukemic cell types. B cells from normal blood and tonsils showed low levels of receptors (approximately 120 +/- 100 binding sites/cell), while a range of B cell leukemias displayed intermediate levels of expression (100-500 sites/cell). In the 15 cases of chronic lymphocytic leukemia tested, 530 +/- 330 binding sites/cell) were demonstrated, the high standard deviation reflecting the fact that one third of cases had receptor levels comparable with those in hairy cell leukemia. Normal and hairy cell leukemia T cells, red cells, and platelets had no demonstrable IFN-receptors. These findings may be relevant to the efficacy of IFN in hairy cell leukemia.
D000943:Antigens, Differentiation / Q000032:analysis; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000378:metabolism; D006098:Granulocytes / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007370:Interferon Type I / Q000378:metabolism*; D007943:Leukemia, Hairy Cell / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D007945:Leukemia, Lymphoid / Q000378:metabolism; D011971:Receptors, Immunologic / Q000378:metabolism*; D017471:Receptors, Interferon; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
D000943:Antigens, Differentiation; D007370:Interferon Type I; D011971:Receptors, Immunologic; D017471:Receptors, Interferon