PMID: 8611729May 1, 1996Paper

Detection of empty HLA class II molecules on cord blood B cells.

Blood
F GarbanN A Mooney

Abstract

Fetal mononuclear cells are increasingly used in transplantation of hematopoietic cells due to a reportedly lower incidence of graft-versus-host disease. Previous studies of immune responses of fetal lymphocytes have indicated a general hyporesponsiveness in response to polyclonal stimulation. Fetal B lymphocytes display many features typical of the resting state such as a low level of HLA class II expression, but a large proportion of cells also carry the activation-associated CD23 antigen. We show here that despite a low cell surface level of all three HLA class II isotypes on fetal B cells, their allogeneic capacity, measured as the ability to elicit a mixed lymphocyte reaction, is similar to that of adult B cells. Allogeneic stimulation is believed to be peptide-dependent. Surprisingly, the majority of the HLA class II molecules on cord blood B cells appeared to be devoid of stably bound peptide as detected by the binding of a recombinant and soluble invariant chain, as well as by the absence of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) stable alpha beta heterodimers in whole cell lysates. Immunoblot experiments showed that HLA class II molecules of fetal B cells were predominantly present in high molecular weight aggregates in stark co...Continue Reading

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