Fig. 2.

T cell receptor (TCR)Vβ expression among patients with asbestosis and MM. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were obtained from six healthy volunteers [HV; mean age ± SD: 38.0 ± 6.4 years; male (M):female (F): 1:5], nine asbestosis patients without significant clinical signs of complications, such as lung cancer or malignant mesothelioma (ASB; 74.4 ± 3.9; all males) and 12 patients with MM (58.7 ± 10.1; M:F: 9:3). Specimens were taken only once informed consent had been obtained. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Kawasaki Medical School, Okayama Rosai Hospital, Hyogo College of Medicine and Kusaka Hospital. The expression of TCRVβ in CD3+ cells derived from HV, ASB and MM subjects was examined with an IOTest Beta Mark TCRVβ repertoire analysis kit (Beckman Coulter, Fullerton, CA) using a FACSCalibur flowcytometer (Becton, Dickinson and Company, Franklin Lakes, NJ) according to the manufacturer’s instructions. This kit can analyze TcRVβ1, -2, -3, -4, -5.1, -5.2, -5.3, -7.1, -7.2, -8, -9, -11, -12, -13.1, -13.2, -13.6, -14, -16, -17, -18, -20, -21.3, -22 and -23 from 1 ml of peripheral blood. The 0% expression in this figure is the mean + 2 SD of HV. Thus, each bar indicates how many overexpressions were observed in individual patients and individual TVRVβs