title: Thymosin alpha 1 effects, in vitro, on lymphokine-activated killer cells from patients with primary immunodeficiencies: preliminary results.
abstract: In patients with primary immunodeficiencies the role of natural killer (NK)- and lymphokine (IL-2)-activated killer (LAK)-cells is not yet satisfactorily established. Using a clonogenic assay with K562 leukemia target cells, we studied their NK- and LAK-cell activity in vitro. Moreover, the effect of thymosin alpha 1 (T alpha 1) on LAK-cell activity was studied in 11 patients with different immunodeficiencies. The results were compared with data of healthy controls (n = 11) and cord blood samples (n = 6). Common variable immunodeficiency patients demonstrated a mean LAK-cell activity of about 65% of normal controls and cord blood samples. The moderately reduced LAK-cell activity was not affected by T alpha 1. In the immunodeficient other patients, low levels of LAK-cell activity with a mean value of 10% of normal controls were seen. The mean LAK-cell activity could be improved by T alpha 1: three patients showed an improvement of their LAK-cell activity up to 25-30% after T alpha 1 administration in vitro, but in one case T alpha 1 was without any effect. Analysis of the expression of the surface markers CD8, CD16, CD57 and CD8/CD57 revealed that only CD16 positive lymphocytes were significantly less in immunodeficient patients. We found a linear correlation between LAK-cell activity and CD8/CD57 double positive lymphocytes in all patients. Our results demonstrate that suppressed LAK-cell activity from immunodeficient patients can be individually improved by T alpha 1. Further in vivo studies should evaluate thymic peptide immunotherapy for individual immunodeficient patients.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pharmacy, Free University of Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Eckert
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schmitt
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Garbin
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Wahn
authors.forename: H R
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Maurer
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000032:analysis; D002648:Child; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007153:Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes / Q000276:immunology*; D015979:Killer Cells, Lymphokine-Activated / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology; D000077596:Thymalfasin; D013947:Thymosin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D015703:Antigens, CD; D013947:Thymosin; D000077596:Thymalfasin