Studies on Lymphocytes

Abstract

Some of the time parameters of the cell cycle in bovine thoracic duct lymphocytes have been estimated by analysing labeled mitoses curves, and by double labeling. The two methods gave similar estimates of Ts. Thus, Ts measured directly from labeled mitoses curves varied from 4 to 6 hr, while the estimates from double labeling were 4.8 and 4.5 hr. T G measured directly from labeled mitoses curves was 5 hr, and estimates of TG from the values of Ts ranged from 6.3 to 7.7 hr. The present data confirm the short generative cycle of large thoracic duct lymphocytes. Extracorporeal irradiation of the lymph (ECIL) had no detectable effect on the cell cycle or the fractional production rate of the lymphocytes. However, the calculated absolute production was reduced following ECIL, due to a decrease in the absolute number of cells present. The grain count over mitoses after ECIL was approximately one‐half that found before ECIL.