Activation of human eosinophils by monokines and lymphokines: source and biochemical characteristics of the eosinophil cytotoxicity-enhancing activity produced by blood mononuclear cells.

We and others have previously reported that human blood mononuclear cells release in culture certain substances that enhance the capacity of purified human blood eosinophils to kill the antibody-coated larvae of Schistosoma mansoni. The present study shows that this eosinophil cytotoxicity-enhancing activity (ECEA) is released by monocytes and T lymphocytes. Monocytes produce ECEA in resting and in LPS-stimulated cultures; T lymphocytes release such activity when stimulated by mitogens such as concanavalin A. Furthermore, the human monocytic line U-937 also releases ECEA-like activity when stimulated by LPS. The enhancing activity produced by monocytes has been partially characterized: it is sensitive to proteolysis by trypsin, relatively heat stable, and associated with molecules that have an apparent molecular weight of 14,000 to 65,000 daltons and isoelectric points of 3.8-3.9, 4.2, 4.5, 4.8-4.9. This shows that while ECEA produced by monocytes is heterogeneous in size and charge, it is probably different from interleukin 1.