Evaluation of anomalous HLA reactivity in the typing of neoplastic lymphoreticular cells.

Lymphoblasts from 6 cases of acute lymphocytic leukemia showed a paucity of receptors for T-cells (E-rosettes) and B-cells (surface membrane immunoglobulin). In contrast, neoplastic lymphoid cells from 5 cases of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma demonstrated that 4 cases could be listed as B cell proliferations and 1 case as a T-cell tumor, Anomalous HLA cytotoxic reactions were observed in all 6 cases of acute lymphocytic leukemia and probably in 1 case of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. When the HLA antisera was absorbed of its HLA specificity, lymphoblast cytotoxicity was still observed, indicating the presence of some contaminating nonHLA antibody in HLA antisera. Severson et al. (3) demonstrated the presence of anti-B-cell activity in 2 of the 4 antisera used in this study. Lymphoblasts failed to stimulate autologous peripheral blood remission lymphocytes and neoplastic lymphoid cells did not stimulate autologous peripheral blood lymphocytes in mixed lymphocyte culture, indicating the lack of a neoantigen as measured by this technique. However lymphoblasts from 4 cases of acute lymphocytic leukemia and neoplastic lymphoid cells from 2 cases of B-cell lymphoma stimulated better than they responded to allogeneic lymphocytes. The data suggest the possibility that lymphoblasts without receptors of E-rosettes and surface membrane immunoglobulin may contain B-cell antigens which crossreact with HLA antisera and vigorously stimulate allogeneic lymphocytes.