Ihibition of Cytotoxicity of Lymphocytes by Concanavalin A in vitro
Peter Perlmann 1,
Helena Nilsson 1, and
Myron A. Leon 2
1 Wenner-Gren Institute for Experimental Biology, University of Stockholm, Norrtullsgatan 16, S 113 45 Stockholm
2 Pathology Research Department, St. Luke's Hospital, Cleveland, Ohio 44104
Human lymphocytes treated with the plant protein concanavalin A are stimulated to transform into blasts, without developing cytotoxicity for chicken erythrocytes. Prior treatment of lymphocytes with concanavalin A potentiated phytohemagglutinin-induced blast transformation and DNA synthesis but completely inhibited phytohemagglutinin-induced cytotoxicity. Inhibiton was not due to suppression of the mixed lymphocyte-erythrocyte aggregation normally caused by phytohemagglutinin. Inhibition of cytotoxicity was reversible when concanavalin A was removed from the lymphocytes by treatment with methyl-
-D-manno-pyranoside after 1 hour but not after 20 hours. The results indicate that blast transformation and cytotoxicity are separate expressions of lymphocyte stimulation.