title: Variability of antibody-specific induction and regulation of plaque-forming cells in cultures of normal human peripheral blood lymphocytes.
abstract: PFC have been detected in normal human PBL cultures, immunized with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) and supplemented with Concanavalin-A (Con-A) on day 0 (suppressive effect), and on day 2 (helper effect). Five PBL cultures responded punctually on established days, while four cultures failed to reproduce an enhancing effect when Con-A was added on day 2. In one case only no suppression was observed following addition of Con-A on day 0. Furthermore, it should be taken into consideration the dose of Con-A employed that can give suppressive, enhancing and no effects irrespective of the day of its addition in culture. On the basis of these considerations, it has been concluded that such a method is not suitable for clinical purposes, for instance in patients with immunological disorders, since the individual response to Con-A is extremely variable.
mesh_terms: D000918:Antibody Specificity; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003208:Concanavalin A / Q000494:pharmacology; D006462:Hemolytic Plaque Technique; D006801:Humans; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D003208:Concanavalin A