Holding medium for cell surface phenotypic analysis.

Peripheral blood samples from 20 normal adults and 12 patients with diagnosed B cell lymphoproliferative disease were phenotyped with a panel of 20 monoclonal antibodies (Coulter) using a whole blood lysis technique at zero time and after storage in M199 containing insulin, transferrin and L-glutamine at 24, 48 or 72 h. The samples were analyzed using flow cytometry (EPICS V) to determine the percentage of positive events for each sample. A 2-way analysis of variance showed that there were no significant differences between the initial sample and those phenotyped after 24, 48 or 72 h. These data suggest that this medium can be utilized for the storage and transport of blood samples from patients and ensure satisfactory cell surface phenotypic analysis.