Isolation procedures for blood lymphocytes produce artifacts. Detection by changes of electrophoretic mobilities of lymphocytes.

The changes induced in the distribution of the electrophoretic mobility (EPM) of human peripheral blood lymphocytes (HPBL), by various methods used to prepare the lymphocyte suspensions and eliminate platelets from them, were investigated on blood samples collected from healthy individuals and thrombopenic patients. Data showed that the distribution of the lymphocyte EPMs, i.e., the "lymphocyte electrophoregram," was dependent on the method chosen to enrich the suspension in the cell type of interest. The relative percentages of the low and high mobility cells, the two main subpopulations defined by lymphocyte electrophoresis, were different. The most striking artifactual differences in the lymphocyte electrophoregram were induced by the method of elimination of platelets; the distribution was unimodal and asymmetric when thrombin was used and bimodal when the blood sample, or the lymphocyte suspension, was placed on ice for 30 min (as is the practice in some laboratories). The "split" of the lymphocyte electrophoregram was found to be reversible within 90 min. Similar changes were observed on lymphocyte suspensions and blood samples of thrombopenic patients when the step for the elimination of platelets was not involved.