Action of endotoxin on lymphoid cells.

Endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide, LPS) has been found to act on all three cell types of the immune system, thymus-derived (T-) cells, bone marrow-derived (B-) cells, and macrophages. LPS is mitogenic for B-lymphocytes and activates them to release a chemotactic lymphokine. Macrophage activation appears to be mediated by macrophage-activating factor, another lymphokine released from B-cells. In addition, LPS acts synergistically with phytohemagglutinin to initiate division of purified T-lymphocytes. All these phenomena are mediated by the lipid A moiety of LPS. The role of lymphoid cells in mediating the lethal effects of LPS have also been investigated. The adoptive transfer of spleen cells from LPS-responsive mice (C3H/HeN) to LPS-resistant but histocompatible mice (C3H/HeJ) rendered the LPS-resistant mice significantly more susceptible to LPS-induced lethality. These findings suggest that spleen cells play an essential role in mediating the lethal effects of LPS in vivo.