The selective adherence of lymphoblasts to antigenic cell monolayers. A method for determining the specificity of lymphocytes proliferating in response to histocompatibility antigens

Seminal plasma abrogates the postcoital T cell response to spermatozoal histocompatibility antigens

The T-cell responses to spermatozoal histocompatibility antigens were studied in the uterine regional lymph nodes of female rats by a specific cytoadhesion assay. The antigenic challenge was introduced either by artificial insemination with syngeneic or allogeneic epididymal spermatozoa or coitus. The uterine regional T-cell response to allogeneic spermatozoa following artificial insemination was measureable after 2 days and continued undiminished until day 5. In contrast, the measurable response to allogeneic coital challenge peaked on day 3 and disappeared by days 4-5. Since the difference between the two stimuli involved the presence of seminal plasma, these results indicate a possible immunoregulatory (suppressive) effect of seminal plasma on the cellular immune reaction of the female to the male alloantigens after mating.

Cytoplasmic lipid droplets as the possible eventual cellular fate of active forms of cyclosporin

The activity of cyclosporins can be defined with regard to their ability to inhibit the proliferation of susceptible lymphoblastoid cell clones. All active cyclosporins cause the emergence of highly refringent globular bodies, independently of cell susceptibility to cyclosporin. Cyclosporins devoid of proliferation-inhibition capability do not cause such alterations in cell morphology. The use of dansylated active cyclosporins suggests that within a few hours of treatment in vitro, most if not all cyclosporin is contained within those globular bodies. By using cytochemical methods allowing differential staining, we show here that these cyclosporin-containing structures are neither normal mitochondria (shown by use of rhodamine 123) nor normal lysosomes (shown by use of acridine orange under stringent staining conditions) but most probably lipid droplets (shown by use of perylene and various dansylated hydrophobic probes).

A specific cytolytic T cell response induced by subcutaneous challenge with allogeneic rat epididymal spermatozoa

Groups of virgin female rats were killed on days 2-5 after footpad injection with either thoracic duct lymphocytes or epididymal spermatozoa from allogeneic male rats and the cellular response in the regional lymph nodes determined by the specific cytoadhesion technique. After challenge with both thoracic duct lymphocytes and epididymal spermatozoa a specific cytolytic T cell response to the male strain histocompatibility antigens was evident on the second day and increased until the fifth day. The weight and total lymphocyte content of the nodes were significantly greater than the unimmunized control values throughout the observation period. These results provide further evidence for the expression of histocompatibility antigens by epididymal spermatozoa.