02139nas a2200397 4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653001500055653001000070653001200080653002400092653001600116653004400132653001300176653001100189653001100200653002300211653004300234653001200277653002600289653000900315653001600324653002500340653001200365653001500377100001200392700001500404700001400419700001300433700001300446245024900459300001100708490000700719520100100726022001401727 1982 d c1982 Aug10aAdolescent10aAdult10aAnimals10aAntigens, Bacterial10aBCG Vaccine10aDose-Response Relationship, Immunologic10aEpitopes10aFemale10aHumans10aImmunity, Cellular10aImmunoelectrophoresis, Two-Dimensional10aleprosy10aLymphocyte Activation10aMale10aMiddle Aged10aMycobacterium leprae10aRabbits10aTuberculin1 aCloss O1 aReitan L J1 aNegassi K1 aHarboe M1 aBelehu A00aIn vitro stimulation of lymphocytes in leprosy patients, healthy contacts of leprosy patients, and subjects not exposed to leprosy. Comparison of an antigen fraction prepared from Mycobacterium leprae and tuberculin-purified protein derivative. a103-150 v163 a

In vitro lymphocyte stimulation was performed on peripheral blood lymphocytes from 48 leprosy patients, 15 healthy contacts of leprosy patients, and 16 normal controls who lived in a leprosy-free area and who had not been exposed to leprosy. Tuberculin PPD and an antigen fraction. MLW 1, prepared from M. leprae, were used as stimulants. The MLW 1 preparation contained one antibody-precipitable component when tested in crossed immunoelectrophoresis against a polyvalent anti-M. leprae immunoglobulin preparation, namely the ML 7 antigen. MLW 1 induced strong lymphocyte responses in patients with tuberculoid leprosy and healthy contacts of leprosy patients, but only a weak or no responses in lepromatous leprosy patients and non-exposed controls. A marked depression of the response to tuberculin PPD was observed in lepromatous leprosy patients. The specificity of the MLW 1 antigen is discussed, and a new estimator of specific lymphocyte stimulation, the delta cpm', is introduced.

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