Generation of CFU-c suppressor T cells in vitro. V. A multistep process

Different cell fractions obtained from 5 patients with immune severe aplastic anaemia (SAA) in complete autologous haematologic reconstitution were tested for CFU-c suppression. Bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMC), but not peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), showed definite CFU-c inhibitory activity. On the contrary, both peripheral blood and marrow E rosetting cells (E⁺) suppressed CFU-c growth. The suppressor activity of PBE⁺ cells could not be rescued by adding back PBE^- cells and/or PB adherent cells (AC). In addition, unfractionated PBMC exposed to sheep red blood cells (SRBC) suppressed CFU-c growth. PBMC from normal donors exposed to SRBC had no suppressor activity. This study suggests that CFU-c suppressor T cells in the peripheral blood of SAA patients are in different activation state as compared to BM cells from the same patients, and also differ from normal PB cells. The identification of T cells with different requirments for in vitro activation in order to exhibit a suppressor activity, suggests that generation of suppressor cells is a multistep process, and this may have practical implications for in vitro assays designed to test for immune suppression of haematopoiesis.