T-Lymphocytes: Mature Polyclonal and Antigen-Specific Cell Culture

Summary

Methods for T-cell culture, manipulation and functional evaluation continue to evolve at an astonishing rate. The discovery of IL-2 and other cytokines as well as the surface receptors and coreceptors important in T-cell activation has led to the design of reagents that have improved T-cell culture. Because lymphoid cells are composed of a heterogeneous mixture of cell lineages, it is most important to work with a well-defined and phenotyped population of T-cells. The development of techniques such as membrane cell tracking dyes and intracellular cytokine staining now allow the characterization of individual T-cells and T-cell subsets. Previously, cells had to be separated and cultured as individual subsets or clones to acquire the information now available through these techniques. Because of the interdependence of T-cell subsets such as helper and cytotoxic cells, separate culture does not permit physiologic interaction among cells. In vitro culture itself is only a rough approximation of the interactions in vivo. As more is learned about the cytokines and surface receptors important to T-cell interactions with other cells in the body, in vitro models will likely evolve to emulate the structure of a lymph node, an evolutionarily optimized T-cell culture vessel.