Autocytotoxic cells in rheumatoid synovial fluids
Sugiyama, E.; Suzuki, H.; Yano, S.
Journal of Rheumatology 16(3): 276-279
1989
ISSN/ISBN: 0315-162X PMID: 2524590 Document Number: 326529
The possibility that patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) might have autocytotoxic activity in the joints was investigated using a 51Cr release assay. Peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) and synovial fluid (SF) lymphocytes from 9 patients with active RA were tested for cytotoxic activity against autologous PBL stimulated with pokeweed mitogen (PWM). In 5 of 9 patients, lymphocytes isolated from the SF showed cytotoxic activity against autologous PWM-blasts, whereas none of the PBL showed autocytotoxic activity. Unstimulated PBL were resistant to lysis by SF cytotoxic cells. The autocytotoxic cells in RA SF may have relevance to immunoregulatory activity in the diseased area.