Use of Tissue Distribution Studies to Determine the Specificity of Monoclonal Antilymphocyte Antibodies

Abstract

The use of monoclonal antilymphocyte antibodies has opened the way to studying the functional organization of the lymphoid system, particularly of patients with whom no in vivo experiments are possible. The vast majority of studies are done on peripheral blood lymphocytes; occasionally some are done on cell suspensions from lymphoid organs, but studies on tissue sections are rare. Nevertheless studies on tissue sections of the lymphoid organs may be very helpful for understanding the lymphoid system, and experiments on nonlymphoid tissues may reveal surprising cross-reactivities, even with antibodies thought to be highly specific for lymphoid cells. Such cross-reactivities may be due to the sharing of identical differentiation antigens between lymphoid and nonlymphoid cells; if this is the case, questions are raised about related differentiation pathways. The results of our study illustrate these different situations.

This work was supported by grants from MRT (81 M 033), INSERM (CRL 81.10.28 and Action Spéciale Hybridome), and the University of Lyon I (U. E. R. Biologie Humaine)

This work was realized with the technical assistance of Mrs. M. Blanc and Messrs. V. Buisson, G. Vivier and M. Jeannin