An Antibody Paradox, Resolved.

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  • Additional Information
    • Subject Terms:
      LYMPHOCYTES; CYTOKINES; IMMUNOGLOBULINS; LYMPHATICS; B cells; T cells; KILLER cells; HOMEOSTASIS; INTERLEUKIN-2
    • Abstract:
      The article presents information about lymphocytes. The immune effect of a cytokine bound to an antibody is paradoxically much stronger than that of the cytokine alone, suggesting a way to lower therapeutic doses and thereby reduce side effects. Lymphocytes are the epitome of migrant cells in the body, coursing through blood and lymphatic vessels, trafficking through lymphoid organs such as spleen and lymph nodes, and entering any tissue upon activation. Yet the numbers of these highly mobile populations of immune cells--B and T lymphocytes and natural killer cells--must be balanced and maintained to sustain lymphoid homeostasis. In the absence of such balance, autoimmunity or the failure to respond to an infection may result. Cytokines, soluble factors produced by lymphoid and nonlymphoid cells, provide signals for the survival, proliferation, and turnover of many subpopulations of lymphocytes. Currently, interleukin-2 injection is used for antitumor therapy in renal cell carcinoma and melanoma patients and as a restorative therapy in patients infected with HIV.