No abstract

In the transplantation of a kidney from a sibling donor who is mismatched with the recipient for one HLA haplotype, graft survival is higher when the donor has maternal HLA antigens not inherited by the recipient than when the donor has paternal HLA antigens not inherited by the recipient.

Cord blood is a potential source of hematopoietic stem cells for transplantation and is being used on a growing number of patients. However, there are concerns that cord blood might be contaminated with maternal cells that could lead to graft-versus-host disease. To ascertain the extent to which maternal cell contamination of cord blood occurs, we examined 49 cord blood samples from male babies for maternal cells by fluorescence in situ hybridization using probes to the X and Y chromosomes. A minimum of 1,000 nuclei were scored from each sample, and maternal cells were found in 7 of the 49 cord bloods, at levels ranging from 0.04% to 1.0%. In addition, in 39 and 27 of the cord blood samples, respectively, we examined the CD8+ and CD34+ cell populations for maternal cells. Maternal cells were found in 5 of the 39 CD8 fractions and in 1 of the 27 CD34 fractions, at levels similar to that found in the unfractionated cord blood. In sum, maternal cells were found in either the unseparated mononuclear fraction or the CD8 or CD34 fractions in 10 of the 49 cord blood samples (20%). These results show that maternal cells are present in a substantial number of cord bloods, and that some of these maternal cells are T cells.

The cell-mediated cytotoxicity (CMC) of nonadherent cells from the peritoneal cavity (NAPC) of alloimmunized mice can be measured by the [3H]proline microassay. The exhibition of thymus-derived (T) cell antigens on these killer cells was studied by incubating them with the relevant T-cell antisera and complement (C), under optimal conditions for lysis, before performance of the CMC assay. Under these conditions, the following T-cell antigens were demonstrable on the killer population in terms of percent reduction in CMC by the respective antisera: (a) Thy-1.1 (83%) and Thy-1.2 (100%), (b) MSLA (86%), (c) NTA-RA (a T-cell antigen recognized by naturally occurring autoantibody of NZB mice) (62%), (d) Ly1.1 )58%, (e) Ly-2.1 (11%; considered a marginal result) and Ly-2.2 (63%), and (f) Ly-3.2 (77%). The following were not demonstrable: (g) TL, and (h) Ly-1.2. (i) The antigen Ly-3.1 was not studied. Omission of C deprived all T-cell antisera tested of their capacity to suppress CMC, indicating that the cell components recognized by such antisera may perform no direct function in CMC. On the assumption that all Ly+ cells are Thy-1+, it is clear that the T-cell members of the immune NAPC population must be heterogenous. This follows from the fact that the proportions of T cells lysed by different Ly antisera did not correspond with ensuing degree of loss of CMC capacity. The extremes were represented by anti-Ly-1.2 (74% Thy-1+ cells lysed, but no reduction in CMC) and Ly-3.2 (54% Thy-1+ cells lysed, with 77% reduction in CMC). From this initial survey it appears that the C57BL/6 mice killer T-cell population active in CMC in vitro is relatively rich in surface antigens of the Ly-2/Ly-3 category and relatively poor in representation of the Ly-1 surface antigens. It remains to be seen whether this killer cell phenotype, poor in Ly-1 and rich in Ly-2/Ly-3, is characteristic of the mouse generally. From these results it appears that subsets of T cells with different immunological functions may exhibit qualitative or quantitative differences in surface antigens specified by different Ly loci; this will be easier to assess in the future when the results of experiments with the same Ly antisera but dealing with T-cell functions other than CMC become available.

Prostatic involvement by transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder includes a spectrum of histologic patterns. Ductal only or ductal and acinar involvement occurs with or without stromal invasion. Stromal invasion may exist without glandular involvement. Invasive prostatic patterns are most frequent in the setting of high stage invasive bladder tumors and 5-year survival rates for these patients are low. Non-invasive in situ prostatic patterns are usually associated with low stage bladder tumors and 5-year survival approaches that predicted from radical cystectomy for low stage bladder tumor alone. When an invasive pattern is associated with a low stage bladder tumor the 5-year survival rate is determined by the prostatic lesion and is low. Although the survival rate is severely jeopardized by stromal prostatic invasion the prognosis is not hopeless. Preoperative radiotherapy followed by cystoprostatourethrectomy can be expected to produce a 20 per cent 5-year survival rate.