CELLULAR IMMUNITY IN NEWBORN-INFANTS AND CHILDREN - STIMULATION OF LYMPHOCYTE PROTEIN-SYNTHESIS AS A MEASURE OF IMMUNE COMPETENCE

Abstract

An assay based on the early stimulation of protein synthesis in lymphocytes was used as an in vitro measure of cellular immune competence. 3H-labeled leucine incorporation into human peripheral lymphocytes (PBL) stimulated by the mitogens phytohemagglutinin (PHA), wax bean agglutinin (WBA) and concanavalin A (Con A) was measured after 1 day in culture. This assay offers a technical advantage over the analogous 3H-labeled thymidine incorporation assay because of the short incubation time required and the absence of homologous serum in the assay system. Newborn infants and patients with Down''s syndrome as a group had normal responses; those suffering from recurrent infections demonstrated normal or hyper-reactive responses. Patients with lymphoproliferative disorders, ataxia telangiectasia and some patients under steroid therapy had diminished immune proliferative reactions.