Epstein-Barr virus induces normal B cell responses but defective suppressor T cell responses in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.
Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a polyclonal B cell activator, independent of helper T cells, which induces the generation of suppressor T cells in vivo and in vitro. Given the complexity of the immunologic abnormalities in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), we used EBV as a tool to examine the following questions: a). Are SLE B cells primarily defective? and b). Does EBV stimulate the generation of suppressor activity from SLE T cells? It was found that B cells from SLE patients infected with EBV in vitro generate plaque-forming cell (PFC) responses that are similar to those raised by normal B cells infected with EBV within the first 14 days of culture. T cells from SLE patients, in contrast to T cells from normal individuals, cultured with autologous B cells plus EBV fail to develop the expected normal decrement of PFC during the late phase of the in vitro culture (day 14). However, B cells from SLE patients are susceptible to suppression as mixed cultures of SLE B cells and normal allogeneic T cells showed a pattern of PFC response to EBV similar to that of the co-culture of normal B cells with normal T cells. T cells from SLE patients, in analogous mixed cell cultures, failed to suppress either normal B cells or allogeneic SLE B cells. The above experiments indicate that the B cells are not intrinsically defective in SLE patients; rather, a specific T cell abnormality contributes to the lack of normal immunoregulation of certain B cell responses in SLE.
D000921:Antibody-Producing Cells / Q000276:immunology; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000096:biosynthesis; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D002472:Cell Transformation, Viral; D006462:Hemolytic Plaque Technique; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000276:immunology; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000276:immunology*; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D011043:Pokeweed Mitogens / Q000494:pharmacology; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology*
D001323:Autoantibodies; D011043:Pokeweed Mitogens