Permissive effect of cytochalasin B on DNA synthesis in concanavalin-A-treated lymphocytes.

Unfractionated or T-cell-enriched human lymphocytes can be stimulated to undergo DNA synthesis and mitosis by the addition of polyclonal cell activators such as the plant lectins phytohaemagglutinin and concanavalin A (ConA). Under conventional culture conditions stimulated cells cease proliferating only a few days after the first cells have initiated DNA synthesis. Cytochalasin B (CB), which is non-mitogenic per se, causes a prolongation of the period during which ConA stimulates DNA synthesis from normally 3-5 days to more than 3 weeks. The CB-induced prolongation of cell proliferation is clearly stage-specific in the sense that the CB effects are exerted after an initial period of 24 h and do not come into effect until 48 h after onset of ConA stimulation. In contrast, CB exerts a slight suppressive action on DNA synthesis between 24 h (when activated cells initiate DNA synthesis) and 48 h after onset of stimulation. These two separate effects of CB, i.e. augmentation of lymphocyte stimulation 48 h after stimulation, and suppression of stimulation before this point of time, are relatively independent of the concentration of CB.