Thymus-dependent increases in splenic T-cell population by indomethacin.

After administration of indomethacin, an inhibitor of prostaglandin synthesis, the number of splenic T cells increased in normal mice but not in adult-thymectomized or athymic nude mice. The enlarged T-cell population consisted mainly of Lyt-1+2+ cells. This thymus-dependent increase in T-cell population augmented in vivo antibody response to sheep erythrocytes, a T-dependent antigen. The increased T-cell population also included suppressor cells that were eliminated by treatment with anti-Lyt-2 antibody plus complement. These results suggest that increased T cells in the spleen were recruited from the thymus by an indomethacin-mediated mechanism and participated in immune responses as regulator cells.