An analysis of the Phagocytic potential of multinucleate foreign body giant cells.

Multinucleate giant cells were collected by subcutaneous implantation of plastic films into mice. The attached cells were challanged in vitro with staphylococci, yeasts and sheep erythrocytes treated with either glutaraldehyde or isologous or heterologous antiserum. Cells containing more than seven nuclei rarely phagocytized yeasts or staphylococci, and the uptake and ingestion of sheep erythrocytes treated with heterologous antiserum was equally infrequent. Many sheep erythrocytes treated with isologous antiserum or glutaraldehyde attached to giant cells. When the adherent erythrocytes were related to the increased size of the multinucleate cell by dividing the number attaching by the number of nuclei in the giant cell, a progressive relative reduction was demonstrated as the nuclear content increased. It is suggested that these phenomena are due to the loss of surface receptors subsequent to fusion during the formation of multinucleate cells.