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Cell-mediated immunity (CMI) plays an important role in controlling the proliferation of tumor cells. Since transfer factor (TF) is reportedly able to increase CMI, it was tempting to plan clinical trials whereby transfer factor could be used to increase cancer patients’ cellular immune response to their tumor cells.

The distribution of G1m(f,z,a, and x), G2m(n), G3m(b0, b1, b3, b5, c3, c5, g, s, t, and v), A2m(1 and 2) and Km(1) (formerly Inv[1]) allotypic determinants has been examined in a series of Czechoslovakian blood donors. The results indicate that Gmza;-;gvA2m1, Gmzax;-;gvA2m1, Gmf;n;bvA2m1 and Gmf;-;bvA2m1 are present in polymorphic frequencies. Further, 9 idiomorphic phenotypes were observed; however, without family data it was not possible to exactly define the majority of these. The observed frequencies of Gmza;g, Gmzax;g and Gmf;b and Km1 are similar to those observed previously in Czechoslovakians and similar to those observed in adjacent populations, though different from those observed in Western Europeans, primarily due to a higher frequency of Gmf;b in Czechoslovakians.

In this study, three cases of Hodgkin's disease with autoimmune hemolytic anemia are described. The IgG autoantibodies in each case were shown to have IT specificity. There is only one other case of an IgG anti-IT described in the literature and that also was present in a patient with Hodgkin's disease. No other examples of anti-IT were found in studies which included 50 cases of Hodgkin's disease with negative direct antiglobulin tests, three cases with positive direct antiglobulin test but no hemolysis, and 70 cases of autoimmune hemolytic anemia, either idiopathic or secondary to other diseases of the reticuloendothelial system. Fetal, cord and adult cells were tested with anti-IT, anti-I and anti-i in an attempt to show the development of IT relative to i and I.

An interleukin-1 (IL-1) lymphocyte-activating factor, with an approximate molecular weight of 13,000-16,000 was isolated from the culture supernatants of a murine macrophage-like cell line, P388D1. Contrary to the general belief that murine mediator is incapable of stimulating human lymphocyte mitogenic responses, leukoagglutinin (LA)-induced mitogenesis of peripheral blood lymphocyte (PBL) were significantly affected by murine IL-1. On one hand, when PBL were obtained from either normal healthy individuals or from cancer patients who still possessed normal levels of general immunocompetence, their mitogenic responses were not augmented any further by the murine mediator. Instead, slight but significant suppression were noted in most cases. On the other hand, the LA-induced responses of PBL from 5 immunodepressed cancer patients were markedly augmented by murine IL-1.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the isolation of soluble immune complexes (IC) from human serum, with combined use of polyethylene glycol (PEG) precipitation, gel filtration, and affinity chromatography on protein. The most popular approach to the isolation of ICs has been the use of immobilized staphylococcal protein A as a substrate. PEG is known to precipitate antigen-antibody complexes more readily than free antigen or free antibody. It is found that at the concentration used for first step, IgM, IgG, a2-macroglobulin, and C4 are also precipitated even in their native forms. Additional steps are needed to separate the ICs from these proteins. Gel filtration on any of the several types of gel can be used effectively to separate the high molecular-weight fractions from monomeric IgG. Double immunodiffusion analysis showed that pool III contained IgG only, indicating that this patient had a mixture of atypical anti-immunoglobulin antibodies, probably including IgM anti-IgA and IgG anti-IgG. The results for the ICs formed in vitro indicate that gel filtration on sepharose G-50, under dissociating conditions, is an effective approach to the dissociation of insulin-anti-insulin IC.

Die Unterscheidung der durch Medikamente verursachten Immunphanomene von sog. Autoimmunveranderungen kann Schwierigkeiten bereiten. Mit der zunehmenden therapeutischen Verwendung der Cephalosporine gewinnen derartige, fur diese Medikamentengruppe charakteristische Nebenwirkungen an klinischer Bedeutung und an praktischem Interesse.