Immunoregulation of human natural killer cells (NK) by corticosteroids: Inhibitory effect of culture supernatants Article

Nair, MPN, Schwartz, SA. (1988). Immunoregulation of human natural killer cells (NK) by corticosteroids: Inhibitory effect of culture supernatants . JOURNAL OF ALLERGY AND CLINICAL IMMUNOLOGY, 82(6), 1089-1097. 10.1016/0091-6749(88)90148-0

cited authors

  • Nair, MPN; Schwartz, SA

authors

abstract

  • Peripheral blood lymphocytes were separated into HNK-l+ and HNK-l- subpopulations and examined for the effects of prednisolone (PRD) on natural killer cell activities in vitro. Preculture of HNK-l+ lymphocytes with PRD (10-6 to 10-8 mol/L) for 72 hours resulted in a significant reduction of cytotoxic functions. When peripheral blood lymphocytes were first precultured with PRD and then separated into HNK-l+ and HNK-l- subpopulations, both could suppress the target binding and lytic activities of fresh large granular lymphocytes with the HNK-l+ cells demonstrating greater inhibition than the HNK-l- cells. Moreover, PRD-treated cells demonstrated greater suppression of target binding and cytotexicity than identical subpopulations cultured without PRD. Culture supernatants of lymphocytes treated with 10-6 to 10-9 mol/L concentrations of PRD contain PRD-induced soluble suppressor factor that significantly inhibited the natural killer activity of allogeneic lymphocytes against different targets. PRD-induced soluble suppressor factor was not cytotoxic itself, and suppression was evident at various effector-to-target cell ratios. These studies indicate that in addition to being directly immunosuppressive, corticosteroids may also induce immunoregulatory lymphocytes to secrete a suppressive lymphokine. © 1988.

publication date

  • January 1, 1988

published in

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

start page

  • 1089

end page

  • 1097

volume

  • 82

issue

  • 6