PERIPHERAL-BLOOD MONONUCLEAR CELL INTERLEUKIN-2 AND INTERFERON-GAMMA PRODUCTION, CYTOTOXICITY, AND ANTIGEN-STIMULATED BLASTOGENESIS DURING EXPERIMENTAL RHINOVIRUS INFECTION

To determine whether rhinovirus infection induced a systemic cellular immune response in humans, specific antigen-stimulated blastogenesis, natural killer cell activity, and mitogenstimulated production of interleukin-2 and interferon-γ by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were quantified during experimental rhinovirus infection of normal volunteers. Phytohemagglutinin-stimulated interleukin-2 production PBMC collected on day 5 rhinovirus inoculation was increased fourfold compared with production by PBMC collected before rhinovirus challenge (P <.05); phytohemagglutinin-stimulated interferon-γ production was doubled (P <.05). An inverse relationship was observed between the increase in interleukin-2 production and both mucus production (P <.02) and the number of days virus was cultured from nasal washings (P <.02). Natural killer cell-mediated cytotoxicity of PBMC collected on day 5 after rhinovirus challenge also increased (P <.01) compared with preinfection levels, as was specific antigen-stimulated blastogenesis on day 21 (P <.05). The extent of blastogenic response correlated directly with both mucus production P <.05) and the number of days virus was cultured from nasal washings (P <.05). These observations are consistent with the hypothesis that rhinovirus infection results in activation of a systemic cellular immune response. © 1990, by The University of Chicago.