Enhancement by TP-1, a thymic extract, of pokeweed mitogen-induced differentiation of B cells from normal subjects but not of those from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.
We studied the ability of TP-1, a calf thymic extract, to influence in vitro pokeweed mitogen (PWM)-induced plasma cell generation and blastogenesis of peripheral blood lymphocytes from normal donors and from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). In normal subjects, TP-1 significantly increased plasma cell generation, but did not affect the mitogenic response to PWM. On the contrary, differentiation of B cells from SLE patients was not enhanced by this extract. The action on the differentiation of normal B cells could either be due to a direct effect on B cells or be mediated by activation of helper T cells.
D000818:Animals; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology*; D002417:Cattle; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000276:immunology*; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000187:drug effects*; D011043:Pokeweed Mitogens / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013936:Thymidine / Q000378:metabolism; D013949:Thymus Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology*
D011043:Pokeweed Mitogens; D013949:Thymus Extracts; C031407:thymostimulin; D013936:Thymidine