KINETICS OF ACCUMULATION OF GAMMA-DELTA-RECEPTOR-BEARING LYMPHOCYTES-T IN MICE INFECTED WITH LIVE MYCOBACTERIA

The kinetics of accumulation of T cells bearing the gamma-delta-heterodimer form of the T-cell receptor in mice infected with live Mycobacterium bovis BCG or M. tuberculosis was studied. Substantial numbers of gamma-delta T cells accumulated in mice given primary mycobacterial infections, although this accumulation was in parallel to, but not preferential to, that of alpha-beta-receptor-bearing T cells. In contrast, no accumulation of gamma-delta cells was observed in memory immune mice upon rechallenge, thus suggesting that gamma-delta-cells play no role in the anamnestic response. The results of the study show, further, that large accumulations of gamma-delta T cells can also be induced by inoculation with oil adjuvant vehicles containing heat-killed mycobacteria, although not by inoculation of the heat-killed bacteria alone.