The Response of Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells of Glioma-Bearing Patients to Stimulation with Microbial Antigen and IL-2: Proliferation and IFN-Gamma Production

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of malignant gliomabearing patients were stimulated in vitro with a glucomannan-protein antigen of Candida albicans (GMP) or Interleukin-2 (IL-2), then assayed for proliferation and production of Interferon gamma. PBMC of healthy, age and sex matched subjects were the controls. PBMC from glioma-bearing patients did not differ, as a whole, from PBMC of healthy donors in IL-2 or GMP-induced proliferation. However, they showed a definitely lesser ability to produce IFN. The results are discussed in the framework of the impairment of immune responses known to affect alioma-bearing patients.