A new flow cytometric method for quantitative assessment of lymphocyte mitogenic potentials.

A new flow cytometric method was developed to quantitatively assess lymphocyte proliferation simultaneously for different subsets. The cells were stained with a fluorescent dye, PKH-26 and were stimulated with mitogens. The fluorescence intensities (FL2) of proliferating cells were measured by flow cytometry; and each subset was identified by the use of a monoclonal antibody (Mab)-fluorescein-isothiocyanate (FITC) (FL1). FL2 histograms were then analyzed by the cell proliferation model based on the ModFit software (Verity). This new method revealed information which could not be obtained by conventional mitogen assays. For example, the CD4+ and the CD4- T-subsets responded to phytohemagglutinin (PHA) quite differently from each other and it was indicated that activation of one population could significantly alter the response of the other. In addition, even within a subset, all activated cells did not proliferate uniformly. Some cells divided only once while others underwent further cellular division during the same time period. The method is, therefore, invaluable for studying the nature and the extent of interactions between different cellular subsets within a culture.