IMPAIRED CELL-MEDIATED-IMMUNITY IN LIPOID NEPHROSIS

Cell-mediated immunity (CMI) was evaluated in 26 patients with lupoid nephrosis (LN), 50 patients suffering from chronic diffuse proliferative glomerulonephritis (CGN) without renal insufficiency and 24 healthy controls. The following parameters were measured: delayed hypersensitivity skin test responses to purified protein derivative (PPD) and Candida, circulating lymphocytes, T lymphocytes and T lymphocytes with receptors for the Fc portion of IgG (T.gamma. cells) or IgM (T.mu. cells). Patients with LN in relapse had less mean induration of skin reactivity and a smaller proportion reacting to both antigens as compared with the control subjects. In contrast, the intensity of skin reactivity and the frequency of negative reactions in patients with LN in remission and CGN were similar to those of the control subjects. The LN patients in relapse had a significant T lymphocytopenia and a significant decrease in absolute numbers of T.mu. and T.gamma. cells, whereas the patients with LN in remission and CGN did not differ significantly from the control population. Thus, the majority of patients with LN in relapse demonstrated an impaired response in a CMI assay system. The disturbed CMI may be secondary to hypoproteinemia and other nutritional factors induced by the nephrotic syndrome.