Clonal expansion and specific cytotoxicity of autologous or allogeneic T cells induced by M2a cells

AIM: To investigate clonal expansion and specific cytotoxicity of TCR Vβ subfamily T cells from acute myelogenous leukemia M_2a subtype (AML-M_2a)patients and normal individuals induced by AML-M_2a cells, respectively. METHODS: Complementarity determining region 3(CDR3) of TCR β with variable region genes was amplified in autologous or allogeneic T cells from mixed lymphocyte and tumor culture (MLTC) using RT-PCR. The positive products were further analyzed to identify the clonality of T cells by genescan. The specific cytotoxicity of T cells was analyzed by MTT. RESULTS: T cells from both M_2a patients and normal individuals after MLTC showed high response to M_2a cells with 4-17 TCR Vβ subfamily dominant utilization, one or two clonal expansion of T cells were identified in some predominant TCR Vβ subfamilies. Difference of distribution and clonal expansion of TCR Vβ subfamily T cells were related to source of T cells and the phase during MLTC. Compared with LAK cell, most of T cells from MLTC were CD3⁺CD8⁺T cells with higher and more specific cytoxicity to the induced cells, M_2a cells, but not HL60 or K562 cell line. CONCLUSION: Clonal expansion of TCR Vβ subfamily T cells stimulated selectively by M_2a cells may be a specific immune response of autologous and allogeneic T cells to M_2a cells associated antigen. The T cells induced by M_2a cells have the ability of specific cytoxicity to the AML-M_2a cells.