Cord serum inhibits allogeneic mixed lymphocyte reaction and stimulates lymphokine production.
An inhibitory activity on the two-way allogeneic mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR) was detected in maternal and cord serum at delivery. The inhibitory effect of the maternal serum was found to be more pronounced and was detected in almost all sera tested, whereas the inhibitory capacity of cord sera was observed in only 70% of the cases. In addition, a lower stimulatory activity for interleukin-2 (IL-2) production was found in the maternal serum, suggesting an additional mechanism for the suppression of the maternal immune system during pregnancy. On the other hand, a higher stimulatory activity for IL-2 production was observed in cord serum as compared with adult normal serum. The possibility that a fetal humoral factor is involved in the regulation of the immune system via the stimulation of IL-2 production is discussed.
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007111:Immunity, Cellular / Q000187:drug effects*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000378:metabolism; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D007959:Lymphocyte Culture Test, Mixed / Q000379:methods; D008222:Lymphokines / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D011247:Pregnancy; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous
D007376:Interleukin-2; D008222:Lymphokines