A patient with post-hepatitis B immune deficiency: nonspecific helper factor partially restores the in vitro immune response.
A patient with severe post-hepatitis B aplastic anemia had depressed B and T cell responses. In mixed leukocyte culture, her cell were unresponsive to unrelated control stimulating cells, but responded well to a pool of cells from the same unrelated controls. She had reduced production of lymphocyte mitogenic factor (MF), suggesting a helper cell defect, and she had few or no cells reactive with the monoclonal anti-T cell antibodies OKT3, OKT4 or OKT5. Her cells proliferated in response to MF produced by a pool of cells without mitogen, however. Furthermore, her cells became specifically cytotoxic when stimulated by cells plus MF, but not when stimulated by either cells or MF alone. Thus her T cell deficiency was correctable by nonspecific helper factor in vitro.
D000293:Adolescent; D000741:Anemia, Aplastic / Q000209:etiology; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D003602:Cytotoxicity, Immunologic; D005260:Female; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D007153:Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D007959:Lymphocyte Culture Test, Mixed; D008297:Male; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology