The production of interleukin 2 (IL-2) by phytohaemagglutinin (PHA)-stimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from 21 patients with transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder (BTCC) and 16 control blood donors was measured with a solid phase enzyme immunoassay based on the dual antibody immunometric sandwich principle. PBMC from patients with invasive BTCC (grade III-IV) showed a defect in the production of IL-2. The concentration of IL-2 in the supernatants of PBMC cultures from these patients was substantially lower (0.4 +/- 0.1 U/ml) than that observed in the supernatants of PBMC cultures from patients with non-invasive BTCC, grade II (1.5 +/- 0.7 U/ml), and from tumour-free controls (1.4 +/- 0.8 U/ml). These results suggest an immune dysfunction based on quantitatively impaired IL-2 production in patients with invasive BTCC and indicate that exogenous IL-2 could be used as an immunological response modifier for the treatment of these patients.

Institute of Molecular Genetics Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences Prague

References provided by Crossref.org

Local and regional immunotherapy of cancer with interleukin 2

Tumour-bearing animals synthesize a decreased level of mRNA for the inducible 55,000 MW interleukin-2 receptor