B lymphocyte differentiation and suppressor activity by T lymphocytes derived from neonatal and sucking piglets.

The capacity of porcine neonatal T and B lymphocytes was studied employing a protein A haemolytic plaque assay. Only a few peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) from newborn piglets differentiated into immunoglobulin (Ig)-producing cells on stimulation by pokeweed mitogen (PWM). Newborn PBL also suppressed the differentiation of adult PBL into Ig-producing cells. This suppressive effect existed in T-cell enriched populations and appeared to be equally effective in the generation of IgG and IgM-producing cells. When newborn B lymphocytes were cocultured with T lymphocytes from adults in the PWM system, their differentiation into IgG and IgM-producing cells was enhanced. No such enhancement was seen in cocultures of newborn T and B lymphocytes. The generation of Ig-producing cells in PBL from suckling piglets increased with ageing, and reached about half the adult mean at six weeks old. On the other hand, the suppressor activity of T lymphocytes was observed throughout the suckling period, although it gradually decreased with ageing and was not consistently demonstrated by five weeks of age.