Metaphase yields from staphylococcal enterotoxin A stimulated peripheral blood lymphocytes of unirradiated and irradiated aged rhesus monkeys.
The mitogen phytohemagglutinin (PHA) works well in both human and cynomolgus monkey (Macaca fascicularis) lymphocyte cultures to stimulate T cell proliferation. T cells from rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) are less responsive than human cells, producing few metaphases when thousands are required, e.g. in biological dosimetry studies. We show that staphylococcal enterotoxin A (SEA), one of the most potent mitogens known, at a concentration of 0.5 microgram/ml stimulated peripheral lymphocytes to grow with a mitotic index (MI) averaging 0.13 metaphases/cell in old, irradiated rhesus macaques. This was significantly greater (p < 0.001) than that produced by PHA (MI < 0.01) in lymphocytes from the same animals. Whole blood was cultured for 96, 120 and 144 h for five irradiated individuals and for two controls. All cells cultured with SEA produced a high MI with a peak response at 120 h whereas the same cultures showed low MI for each PHA stimulated culture.
Hill
F S
FS
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, University of California, Livermore 94551.
Cox
A B
AB
Salmon
Y L
YL
Cantu
A O
AO
Lucas
J N
JN
D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D004768:Enterotoxins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000528:radiation effects; D008253:Macaca mulatta; D008677:Metaphase / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000528:radiation effects; D008940:Mitotic Index / Q000187:drug effects / Q000528:radiation effects; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins / Q000494:pharmacology
D004768:Enterotoxins; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins; C026066:enterotoxin A, Staphylococcal