Resistance to metabolic inactivation is a functional phenotype of radioresistant stimulating spleen cells (RSCs) in allo-CTL generation.

The stimulating potential of freshly irradiated spleen cells in the generation of primary allogeneic cytolytic T lymphocytes (CTLs) is abrogated with as low as 0.003% glutaraldehyde concentration, while their antigenicity begins to decrease only with 0.1%. We show here that the very high stimulating potential of murine radioresistant spleen cells (RSCs) in the primary allo-CTL generation is thirty times more resistant to glutaraldehyde than the one of total spleen cells, while the resistance of their antigenicity is similar. Analysis of the components of the resistance of RSC immunogenicity during MLC showed that IL-1 activity produced by RSCs also decreases after 0.1% glutaraldehyde, and withstands cyclosporin A inhibition to a higher degree than fresh spleen cells.