Cyclosporin A does not prevent expression of Tac antigen, a probable TCGF receptor molecule, on mitogen-stimulated human T cells.

Results of recent studies indicated that a monoclonal anti-Tac antibody might recognize the receptor sites or closely related structures for T cell growth factor (TCGF) on activated human T cells. In the present study, we examined the effect of cyclosporin A (CsA) on the expression of Tac antigen by mitogen-stimulated T cells. CsA inhibited the proliferative response of T cells to Con A and PHA in a dose-dependent manner. Both Con A- and PHA-induced cellular proliferation were decreased to about 10% of controls at 5 micrograms/ml of CsA. When T cells were stimulated with these mitogens, many of them expressed Tac antigen on their surfaces, assessed by the immunoperoxidase method. The appearance of Tac-positive cells occurred earlier than a rise of cellular DNA synthesis. Characteristically, CsA showed no inhibitory effect on the expression of Tac antigen by mitogen-stimulated T cells, even at a relatively high concentration of 5 micrograms/ml, whereas the expression of other "activation" antigens reactive with monoclonal anti-Ia, OKT9, or OKT10 antibodies by T cells was blocked completely by CsA. Morphologically, the majority of Tac-positive cells in culture with mitogens alone showed the characteristics of blastoid cells; Tac-positive cells in the culture containing CsA mainly consisted of medium-sized cells, indicating these cells probably accumulated at a stage of partial activation. T cells, once stimulated with Con A or PHA for 3 days whether in the presence or in the absence of CsA, were able to absorb TCGF activity from TCGF-containing media similarly. In addition, T cells, even stimulated in the presence of CsA with these mitogens for 24 hr, were capable of responding to TCGF with the same grade of proliferation as did T cells stimulated with mitogen alone. CsA showed no appreciable inhibition in a TCGF-dependent proliferation of such prestimulated cells. These functional properties of activated T cells might be correlated with their ability to express Tac antigen. These experimental findings present some evidence that CsA might not prevent the expression of probable functional receptor sites for TCGF in mitogen-dependent activation of human T cells.