The "active" rosette test in rheumatoid arthritis: correlation with disease activity

Oral methotrexate therapy for chronic rheumatoid arthritis ulcerations

Eight patients with long-standing rheumatoid arthritis and cutaneous vasculitis ulcerations resistant to conventional therapy were treated successfully with a low-dose intermittent regimen of oral methotrexate. Objective clinical response was prompt and complete resolution was observed at about 12 weeks of therapy. The drug was well tolerated. Mild gastrointestinal side effects were the most common untoward reaction. We conclude that methotrexate therapy is an effective agent for some of the extraarticular manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis including vasculitis, and further clinical evaluation should be a consideration.

Transfer factor and repeated otitis media

The effect of transfer factor (TF) was investigated in 12 children with repeated otitis media. These patients were immunologically compared to a control group of 23 age-matched healthy children. Levels of immunoglobulins, total and "active" T-cells, and phagocytic activity of granulocytes and monocytes were evaluated in the 12 children prior to, during, and after TF therapy. Percentages of "active" T cells and absolute numbers of "active" T and total T cells, which were initially low in the patient group, increased significantly after TF therapy to statistically match those of the healthy control group. The percentage of phagocytic monocytes in patients after therapy did not differ from healthy children; however, the percentage of phagocytic granulocytes remained depressed significantly. The levels of IgG, IgA, and IgM were unaffected by the therapy although the IgA and IgM were higher in the patient population throughout the study. After therapy, one-half of the patient population remained asymptomatic for a 1-year period and the others had markedly reduced attack rates.

Identification of "active" T lymphocytes among effector cells in guinea pigs

Guinea pig T lymphocytes have receptors of different affinity for rabbit red blood cells (RRBC): those binding RRBC immediately are termed "active" T cells; the remainder, which bind RRBC only after longer incubation times, are "non-active" or "late-rosetting" T cells. We have found that these two subpopulations have different functional characteristics. Active T cells could not be stimulated effectively with phytohemagglutinin (PHA), and stimulation with concanavalin A (ConA) increased their DNA synthesis only at high concentrations. The non-active subpopulation responded better to PHA but poorly to ConA. Unseparated (total) T cells, however, responded well to both mitogens, suggesting a helper effect by the active T cells. The presence of monocytes in T-cell cultures further enhanced mitogen-induced DNA synthesis. Active T cells were not present in guinea pig bone marrow, whereas they constituted 10% of all lymphocytes in the thymus, 13% in the spleen, 29% in lymph nodes, and 32% in the peripheral blood. After administration of antigen in vivo, the number of active T cells in the regional lymph node increased, whereas the number of total T cells did not change. The similarity of the active T cell populations in guinea pigs and humans increases the usefulness of these animals for preclinical tests of potential new immunomodulating agents.

Multiple sclerosis: heterology among early T cells and Tg cells

Circulating early T cells and TG cells were estimated simultaneously in 100 patients with multiple sclerosis and 21 controls. The results were analyzed from individual patients, from patients grouped according to disease activity, and from some patients studied longitudinally. Previously documented fluctuations in these two T cell populations were confirmed. By comparing the fluctuations and by examining the distribution of TG cells in suspensions of isolated early and isolated late T cells, it was found that TG cells are a T cell subpopulation distinct from early T cells.