Role of the LFA-1 molecule in cellular interactions required for antibody production in humans.

The lymphocyte function-associated antigen 1 (LFA-1) has been shown to play a role in various T cell functions in mice and humans including cytotoxicity, and proliferation to allogeneic cells and foreign antigens. These functions have been defined with specific monoclonal antibodies and were additionally confirmed by the investigation of patients with inherited deficiency in membrane LFA-1 expression. In this paper, we report our studies on the potential role of the LFA-1 molecule in T lymphocyte-dependent antibody responses. In a patient with a complete lack of membrane expression of LFA-1, there was no in vivo antibody response to vaccinal antigens such as tetanus, diphtheria toxoids, and polio virus, and no in vivo or in vitro antibody production to influenza virus, whereas serum immunoglobulin levels and antibodies to polysaccharides (isohemagglutinins, antibody to mannan, and a polysaccharide from Candida albicans) were detected in correlation with in vitro production of anti-mannan antibody. The defective antibody response to polypeptides was not secondary to poor antigen-specific T proliferation, because the latter was found to be present. Similarly, in vitro antibody production to influenza virus of normal cells was blocked by several anti LFA-1 monoclonal antibodies specific for the alpha subunit of the molecule, if they were added from the beginning of the culture. The antibody production blockade could be achieved with monoclonal antibody concentrations that partially preserved T cell proliferation. The helper effect of an influenza virus-specific helper T cell clone was also blocked. The targets of the blockade were shown by incubation experiments to be T cells and monocytes. In contrast, anti-LFA-1 monoclonal antibodies had no effect on pokeweed mitogen-induced B cell maturation into immunoglobulin-containing cells and on the anti-mannan antibody production. These combined data demonstrate that the LFA-1 molecule plays a role in T cell dependent antibody production to polypeptidic antigens but not in the antibody response to polysaccharides, although the antibody response to mannan is T cell dependent. It is proposed that the LFA-1 molecule is required to some extent for a antigen-presenting cells-T lymphocyte interaction and for the maintenance of a close association between antigen-specific helper T cells and small resting B lymphocytes. Polysaccharidic antigens that exhibit repetitive antigenic determinants might cross-link membrane immunoglobulins on B lymphocytes, thus allowing B cells to pass through a first step of activation requiring cognate T-B cell interaction.