Skip to main content
NCBI home page
British Journal of Cancer logoLink to British Journal of Cancer
. 1979 Oct;40(4):628–633. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1979.228

Response of T lymphocytes to phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) and to cancer-tissue-associated antigens, measured by the intracellular fluorescence polarization technique (SCM test).

H Orjasaeter, G Jordfald, I Svendsen
PMCID: PMC2010086  PMID: 387060

Abstract

Human peripheral-blood mononuclear cells, separated by Isopaque-Ficoll flotation and E-rosette formation, were tested by the fluorescein fluorescence polarization method of Cercek & Cercek (the SCM test). The response to stimulation with PHA or cancer tissue leads to a decreased polarization value TP). The responding cells were present in the T-cell fraction (E-rosette-forming cells), which contained less than 10% macrophages and less than 1% cells with surface-bound Ig. Control experiments with the non-T-cell fraction gave different response patterns. The response of T cells from apparently healthy donors and patients with and without cancer were compared. All of the group of 16 healthy persons had a polarization value (P) which decreased (mean +/- s.e. = 23% +/- 2) after PHA stimulation, compared with no or little decrease after stimulation with cancer tissue, giving cancer indices (P cancer/PPHA) of 1.15--1.56. In 13 patients with carcinoma of the colon, stimulation with PHA produced little decrease of polarization, while stimulation with colonic cancer tissue decreased the polarization in all cases (mean +/- s.e. = 25% +/- 2). The corresponding cancer indices were 0.61--0.86. Seven of 10 colonic-cancer patients tested against ovarian cancer tissue did not respond, whilst 3 patients in this group responded and had a cancer index less than 1.0. Three patients with non-malignant diseases had response patterns similar to those of healthy persons, except for the lack of PHA response in the patient with ulcerative colitis. This method seems to open up new possibilities for evaluation of cancer patients, although further studies including many more patients are needed before any conclusion can be drawn as to the validity of the test.

Full text

PDF
628

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Albrechtsen D., Lied M. Stimulating capacity of human lymphoid cell subpopulations in mixed lymphocyte cultures. Scand J Immunol. 1978;7(5):427–434. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3083.1978.tb00474.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bøyum A. Isolation of lymphocytes, granulocytes and macrophages. Scand J Immunol. 1976 Jun;Suppl 5:9–15. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Cercek L., Cercek B. Apparent tumour specificity with the SCM test. Br J Cancer. 1975 Feb;31(2):252–253. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1975.33. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Cercek L., Cercek B. Application of the phenomenon of changes in the structuredness of cytoplasmic matrix (SCM) in the diagnosis of malignant disorders: a review. Eur J Cancer. 1977 Sep;13(9):903–915. doi: 10.1016/0014-2964(77)90166-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Cercek L., Cercek B. Changes in the SCM response ratio (RRscm) after surgical removal of malignant tissue. Br J Cancer. 1975 Feb;31(2):250–251. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1975.32. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Cercek L., Cercek B., Franklin C. I. Biophysical differentiation between lymphocytes from healthy donors, patients with malignant diseases and other disorders. Br J Cancer. 1974 May;29(5):345–352. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1974.81. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. KAPLOW L. S. SIMPLIFIED MYELOPEROXIDASE STAIN USING BENZIDINE DIHYDROCHLORIDE. Blood. 1965 Aug;26:215–219. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Kreutzmann H., Fliedner T. M., Galla H. J., Sackmann E. Fluorescence-polarization changes in mononuclear blood leucocytes after PHA incubation: differences in cells from patients with and without neoplasia. Br J Cancer. 1978 May;37(5):797–805. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1978.118. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Pritchard J. A., Sutherland W. H., Seaman J. E., Deeley T. J., Evans I. H., Kerby I. J., James K. W., Paterson I. C. Cancer-specific density changes in lymphocytes after stimulation with phytohaemagglutinin. Lancet. 1978 Dec 16;2(8103):1275–1277. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(78)92039-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Takaku F., Yamanaka T., Hashimoto Y. Usefulness of the SCM test in the diagnosis of gastric cancer. Br J Cancer. 1977 Dec;36(6):810–813. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1977.266. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. WALFORD R. L., GALLAGHER R., TROUP G. M. HUMAN LYMPHOCYTE TYPING WITH ISOLOGOUS ANTISERA; TECHNICAL CONSIDERATIONS AND A PRELIMINARY STUDY OF THE CYTOTOXIC REACTION SYSTEM. Transplantation. 1965 May;3:387–401. doi: 10.1097/00007890-196505000-00009. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from British Journal of Cancer are provided here courtesy of Cancer Research UK

RESOURCES