DINAMICA ED ATTIVITA PROLIFERATIVA DELLE CELLULE LINFOIDI ATIPICHE CIRCOLANTI NEL SNAGUE PERIFERICO DI PAZIENTI AFFETTI DA EPATITE B (HBAG +)

The blood level of circulating atypical lymphoid cells was determined in relation with the course of HBAg+ viral hepatitis. The spontaneous proliferative activity of these cells was also assessed on the basis of the mitotic index and of the colchicine stathmokinetic test. The blood level of atypical lymphoid cells was higher at the beginning of the illness, then declined progressively. The spontaneous proliferative activity of atypical lymphoid cells, though appreciable with the methods employed, was moderate, and in fact limited to the beginning of the disease. The combined use of mitotic and stathmokinetic tests yielded an estimated mitotic time of 45 min. While the spontaneous proliferative activity of atypical lymphoid cells in B type viral hepatitis is interpreted as a facet of the complex virus cell interactions in the disease, these findings have been discussed in relation with present knowledge on the functional activities of lymphocytes in viral hepatitis.