Intrinsic capacity of monocytes to produce cytokines ex vivo in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia

Monocytic cytokine profiles of fifteen children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) were included to determine whether malignancy per se contributes to impaired cytokine profiles in vivo and ex vivo, The ex vivo tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin 1 beta (IL-1 beta) production was positively correlated with the monocyte number and with the number of intracellular TNF-alpha or IL-1 beta positive cells in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated MNC cultures. The mean ex vivo TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta production per 1 x 10(4) monocytes in these cultures was not significantly different in children at diagnosis of ALL, at remission or in controls. High IL-10 plasma levels at diagnosis of ALL had no effect on the ex vivo TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta production of monocytes in LPS stimulated MNC cultures. These results show that monocytes of ALL patients have a normal intrinsic capacity to produce cytokines ex vivo. However, the decreased monocyte number is responsible for the lower TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta concentrations ex vivo upon LPS stimulation. (C) 2000 Academic Press.